Out on Film begins
Friday, Sept. 25— Happy Friday, everyone! As I’m sure you’ve already heard, the big news this week is that the 12 state attorneys general – who were suing to block the proposed merger between Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery and who were led by California’s Rob Bonta – have settled with Paramount. The merger is reportedly set to close in roughly two weeks.
Under the terms of this five-year consent decree Paramount has agreed to a number of things, including releasing 30 films per year from both studios combined for the first two years (32 for the last three), spend at least $300 million more annually on film production in the U.S. than was spent in 2025, and establish an independent news editorial board over CBS and CNN (if the merger goes through, Paramount would own both news stations). But, that editorial board would be selected by the board of the combined companies, so take that with a grain of salt.
To go deep on this, I would recommend listening to this episode of “The Town” with Matt Belloni. On this installment, he talks about how this happened so quickly, and how – despite all of Bonta’s talk about how Paramount might have to sell off CNN or other networks to allow this to go through – there are no real structural remedies mentioned in this settlement. And the scale of the layoffs is still set to be huge and detrimental to the people who actually make and work on these films.
That’s the big picture for you today! On a much happier note, the Out on Film festival started yesterday and continues through Oct. 4. Check out the full schedule here, and keep scrolling for an interview with the opening night film’s director.
Without further ado … Action!
✏️ Speaking of festivals, SCAD AnimationFest started yesterday and continues through Sept. 25.
🏆 The SCAD Savannah Film Festival announced that it will open with the film “A Talent for Murder” and plans to give star Helen Mirren its Legend of Entertainment Award.
✊ Last weekend, the musicians from the Atlanta Ballet’s company orchestra protested the ballet’s decision to cut back on live accompaniment for its productions.
🐝 As part of the inaugural Atlanta Climate Week, the group Shades of Green Permaculture is hosting a screening of the documentary “A Resilient Future” on Oct. 11 at the Tara Theatre.
This week’s newsletter includes the aforementioned interview, along with reviews of the much-anticipated “Primetime” and the oddly delightful “Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!” No Spotlight this round, but we’ve got a full download on what’s playing in theaters this week, and some reading and listening recommendations for your lunch break.
Thanks for reading!
Sammie
☀️ Atlanta’s liveliest cemetery music festival returns to Oakland for its 48th year! The iconic Sunday in the Park ft. Tunes from the Tombs festival is back Sun., Sept. 27. Live music, history, and family fun in one unique experience. SPONSOR MESSAGE
Filmmaker Gary Jaffe on Out on Film opening night screening ‘Before I Do’
🍾 When he’s writing a movie, Gary Jaffe starts with his own life. Once he has the details down, though, he starts to go off book.
That’s how the film “Before I Do,” which was the opening night pick for this year’s Out on Film festival, began. The film follows a bachelor party that takes a turn when the groom, John Michael (Cole Doman) and the best man, Alex (Michael Hsu Rosen), start to rekindle their past romantic feelings for each other. With Alex just getting out of a bad relationship and John Michael questioning whether he wants to get married at all, the weekend devolves into chaos.
Jaffe based the characters on himself and some of his friends in real life – or his own “queer-tet,” as the group calls themselves in the film. The rest of the cast is rounded out by Nico Greetham, Robin de Jesús, and Jared Reinfeldt.
⛰️ Ahead of last night’s screening, I spoke to Jaffe about the making of the film. Check out our conversation here.
From Hitchcock’s Psycho to America’s Musical Heartland
SPONSORED BY EMORY SCHWARTZ CENTER
🎻 The music of cinema and America’s musical heartland converge at the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts on Oct. 2. The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center celebrates the breadth of American musical voices, from Amy Beach’s sweeping Piano Quintet to Aaron Copland’s beloved Appalachian Spring.
At the program’s center is Bernard Herrmann’s gripping Psycho: A Narrative for String Ensemble, adapted from his legendary score for Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 thriller.
→ Preserving the suspense and drama that made the film unforgettable, this concert brings an iconic soundtrack to life. Reserve your seat today.
‘Primetime’ is a surreal reckoning with reality
WEEKLY FILM REVIEW
📺 “To Catch a Predator” blurred the lines of reality television and journalism to a disturbing degree. Punishment has existed as a form of entertainment since the advent of public hangings, and “To Catch a Predator” was always more interested in the spectacle of righteous humiliation of the guilty than any real systemic change to help protect children. Consider that at the same time the show was on the air, Jeffrey Epstein and other powerful men were getting away the exact same thing. The show did nothing to change that.
“Primetime,” directed by Lance Oppenheim with a script from Ajon Singh, captures the disturbance of that spectacle, and calls into question not just host Chris Hansen’s (Robert Pattinson) culpability, but our own as the audience who elevated such a program to not just cultural relevance, but extreme popularity.
Oppenheim blurs the lines between fantasy and reality, interestingly presenting Hansen as both demagogue and true believer – a man unable to see nuance, but able to banish his humanity in pursuit of a perceived higher calling. “Primetime” not only pulls that God complex to the forefront, but makes us question our own role in the endeavor.
🔎 Read my full review here.
☀️ Atlanta’s liveliest cemetery music festival returns to Oakland for its 48th year! The iconic Sunday in the Park ft. Tunes from the Tombs festival is back Sun., Sept. 27. Live music, history, and family fun in one unique experience. SPONSOR MESSAGE
‘Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!’ is a delightfully odd ode to the power of movement
WEEKLY FILM REVIEW
💃 In the opening sequence of Josef Kubota Wladyka’s “Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!” Haru (Rinko Kikuchi) tells her husband and dance partner, Luis (Alejandro Edda), that he’s pigeon-toed. She’s watching a video of their dance routine before they head to a competition, pointing out every single thing that Luis is doing wrong. But there’s no malice in the criticism – this is clearly a ritual, a way for Haru to calm her nerves. While she stares intently at the video, he serves her dinner, looking at her lovingly as she rips him to shreds.
It’s an effective scene, not just because Wladyka deftly sets up their dynamic, but also for how he sets up the iridescent quality of Luis’ love for Haru ahead of the film’s inciting incident – his sudden death during the very competition they’re prepping for. But, that pigeon-toed comment will come back to haunt the film – and not in the way you might expect.
“Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!” is an odd, delightful little duck of a movie about grief and the healing power of movement, written by Wladyka and co-writer Nicholas Huynh – and it’s mostly successful. The film doesn’t always quite nail the balance between its visual ambitions and its story. But when it does, it soars like the lift at the end of “Dirty Dancing.”
🪩 Read my full review here.
At the Movies!
If you’re looking for a movie to see in theaters this week, here’s what you’ve got to look forward to!
Movies releasing this weekend:
🍪 “Primetime”
🕺 “Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!”
🏗️ “The History of Concrete” (pictured)
👩🍳 “Charlie Harper”
🏝️ “Forgotten Island”
🏕️ “The Floaters”
🇨🇦 “You Had to Be There”
Special Events:
🇫🇷 “Caché” @ The Plaza (Friday-Wednesday)
🎧 A Cappella Books Presents Grandmaster Flash: Birth of a Culture Book Talk & “Wild Style” Screening @ The Tara (tonight)
🐺 “Princess Mononoke” – Studio Ghibli Fest 2026 @ The Tara (Saturday-Wednesday)
🏴☠️ “Treasure Planet” in 35mm @ The Tara (Saturday-Tuesday)
🇲🇽 Cinemás: “Amores Perros” Remastered @ The Tara (Sunday)
Lights, Camera, Action!
🇺🇸 I have not yet seen “The Social Reckoning” (it’s on the books, though), and I find myself a little … skeptical, to put it lightly. But, historically, Aaron Sorkin has meant a whole heck of a lot to me, and I love listening to (or reading, in this case) the man talk. For The New York Times, Lulu Garcia-Navarro interviewed Sorkin about why he’s making a follow-up to “The Social Network,” why he’s optimistic about AI (it’s not for the reason you think), and more.
📺 Much like they did with movies, the New York Times is compiling a list of the best television shows of the 21st century. Check out their ongoing list here, and fill out your own! My ballot includes “Battlestar Galactica,” “Girls,” and “The Leftovers.”
🧟 There’s also a jam-packed episode of “The Big Picture,” featuring critic Adam Nayman’s favorite movies from the Toronto International Film Festival and an interview with “Resident Evil” filmmaker Zach Cregger. Check it out here.
🖊️ Today’s Scene was edited by Julie E. Bloemeke.
