BlackStyleFile

Halle Berry and Idris Elba get nods for 2011 Golden Globe Awards

 

Hollywood's awards season is upon us and what better way to kick it off than with the Golden Globes, a fav amongst actors and their fans. BSF Faves, Halle Berry and Idris Elba lead the nominees which include regulars like Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman, and Johnny Depp. New comers include Colombian bombshell Sofia Vergara from Modern Family.

Halle Berry was nominated for Best Performance By an Actress in a Motion Picture for her portrayal as a stripper with multiple personalities. (I haven't seen the film but a little annoyed that she gotta be a sexpot to get nominated again. Lets hope that's the least important characteristic of hers in this role.) Still glad to see that she still got it after her Oscar win in 2002 for Monster's Ball.

Idris Elba was nominated for Best Performance By An Actor In A Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made For Television for his role on Luther,  a  six-part, psychological crime thriller that aired on BBC America. Elba was also Associate Producer on the project.

The high glam/low key dinner and awards celebration which will be presented by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) and broadcast nationwide live on NBC,  Sunday, January 16, 2011 from 5:00-8:00 (PST)/8:00-11:00 (EST) from the Beverly Hilton Hotel. 

For more the latest updates on the official website of the 68th Annual Golden Globes.

 

'Precious' snags two statues as stars sizzle at Oscars

Mo 'Nique capped off her award season with one final win for Supporting Actress for her role in 'Precious'. But Gold statues weren't the only thing on Mo 'Nique's mind. So was actress Hattie McDaniel, the first African American woman to win the award. As reported by abcnews.com the actress stated:

"I'm wearing a royal blue dress because that is the color of dress Hattie McDaniel wore when she accepted her Oscar,"

 "I have a gardenia in my hair because that's what Hattie McDaniel had in her hair when she accepted her Oscar,"

McDaniel, who died in 1952, won the best supporting actress Oscar for her portrayal of the sassy servant Mammy in the 1939 film "Gone with the Wind."Mo 'Nique's tribute dresss was designed by Tadashi Shoji.

Joining her as a fellow Oscar winner was Geoffrey Fletcher, who became the first African American to win for best adapted screenplay for "Precious: Based on the Novel 'Push' by Sapphire."

Other notable dresses and designers: Gabourey Sidibe - Marchesa, Zoe Saldana - Givenchy, Jennifer Lopez - Armani

BSF EVENT: HBO Black List Screening

Last night, HBO premiered its third installment in a three-part documentary series called The Black List Project at the Paley Center for Media in New York City. The Black List features intimate portrait-interviews with some of today's most accomplished and influential African Americans. The Project not only includes the film series but also a book with portraits taken by photographer Timothy Greenfield-Sanders.  The interviews in the film were conducted by Elvis Mitchell.

Among those in attendance were Oscar nominee Lee Daniels, Rev. Al Sharpton, LaTanya Richardson, Faye Wattellton, Majora Carter, and Dr. Michael Lomax.

During the profile of fashion model Beverly Johnson, she discusses how the industry made a big deal about her being the first black model to land the cover of Vogue when at the time she'd already graced the covers of magazines like Glamour numerous times.

She said it infuriated her that it had taken so long for a black model to be accepted by Vogue, but it angered her even more when the media referred to her as the top black model. As she pointed out - she was THE top model at the time - black or white.

Johnson says she overcame the struggles and the challenges of the fashion industry, and life in general  by not giving up and simply putting "one foot in front of the other."

Other profiles revealed in Vol 3 include John Legend, Hill Harper, Lee Daniels, Whoopi Goldberg, Debra Lee and Dr. Michael Lomax.

For a closer look into the lives of fashion contributors Patrick Robinson of the Gap, and Sean 'Diddy' Combs visit -The Back List Project.

The half hour show will air nationwide on HBO February 8th at 8:30pm.

Trailer

Precious gets 6 Oscar nominations

 

'Precious', 'Invictus', the 'Princess and the Frog', and 'Music by Prudence' all received nominations for an Oscar this morning. Precious received 6 nods from the Oscars including, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Director, and Best Picture. The nominees include Morgan Freeman for Invictus, Gabby Sidibe, Golden Globe and SAG winner Mo'Nique, and Lee Daniels all for Precious.

The Oscars air on Sunday March 7th.

HBO's 'The Black List: Volume Three' to air on Feb. 8

HBO will air 'The Black List: Volume Three' on Feb. 8 to celebrate Black History Month.

The Black List:Volume Three - the latest installation of HBO's critically acclaimed Black List documentaries presents an all new set of dramatic portraits featuring some of today's most fascinating and influential African Americans, who share their stories and insights into the struggles triumphs and joys of black life in the U.S.

The film is a collaboration between celebrated portrait photographer and filmmaker Timothy Greenfield-Sanders, who direct a, and award-winning journalist Elvis Mitchell, who interviews such notables as fashion model Beverley Johnson, as well as Lee Daniels, Whoopi Goldberg, John Legend, Debra Lee, and Hill Harper.

For more information visit HBO.com

Mo'Nique goes 2 for 2 at the SAG awards

 
Mo'Nique gets an Actor at the Screen Actors Guild Awards which raises her award count to 2 for 2 so far this season. And although the nominations for the Oscars have yet to be announced this makes her a shoe in for another nod, if not another statue.

Gabby Sidibe looked beautiful in blue and Mo rocked a natural nuetral look as they presented the picture Precious in which they starred together.

 

Mo'Nique grabs the Globe

After winning the category BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE IN A MOTION PICTURE for her work in “Precious: Based On The Novel Push By Sapphire”, actress Mo'Nique poses backstage with her Golden Globe Award at the 67th Annual Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hilton.

And Halle Berry looked fab as usual. Check out more red carpet looks in the sllideshow below.

 

Dirie's 'Desert Flower' gives Kebede her lead debut

 
Liya Kebede has been tapped to portray supermodel Waris Dirie with the starring role in the independent film, Desert Flower. An adaptation Dirie’s bestselling autobiography, the story recounts Dirie’s rise from childhood in the Somali desert to the catwalks of the international fashion business.

Waris Dirie was born in 1965 into a nomad family living in the region of Gallcaio, in the Somali desert near the border to Ethiopia. At the tender age of five, she underwent the inhuman procedure of genital mutilation. This horrible tradition is still practiced worldwide today, both by Muslems and Christians. According to estimations of the United Nations, more than 8 000 girls become victims of this cruel crime every day.

At the age of 13 Waris fled from a forced marriage to a man, who could have been her grandfather in age. After an adventurous escape she arrived in London and worked there as a housemaid and at McDonald’s. She was discovered by the British top photographer Terence Donovan as a model at the age of 18 and became an international celebrity.

She was given a part as a James Bond girl in the movie ‘The Living Daylight’, side by side with Timothy Dalton.The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Kofi Annan, appointed her as UN Special Ambassador for the elimination of Female Genital Mutilation. She travelled the world for the UN, participated in conferences, met with presidents, Nobel Prize winners and movie stars and collects enormous funds for the UN.

1997 Waris Dirie’s biography ‘Desert Flower’ was published in New York. The book became an international bestseller (in Germany, for example, the book stayed in the Top Ten list of best-selling books published in the magazine ‘Der Spiegel’ for a total of 120 weeks). The book appeared in more than 50 licensed editions and became number 1 of the best-seller lists in many countries. Till today, there were 11 million copies sold worldwide.

Visit the movie website and learn more about the foundation to fight FGM,

 

Gabourey Sidibe is worth it, and she knows it

With the Golden Globes airing this Sunday night the world will be watching to see if newcomer and surprise breakout star Gabourey Sidibe will take home her first statue of the award season.

In the Feb Issue of Harpers Bazaar on stands now ,Gabby talks about how people miss the point when reviewing her movie Precious:

"'Gabby Sidibe is an overweight black girl who is illiterate and pregnant by her father,'" she parrots. "Look, I am black. I'm also overweight, but that's not the point of the story. The point is the abuse and her bravery. This stuff happens to skinny people, to white people, to so many different people that they've missed the point if they say it's about a fat girl."

She adds, "People always ask me, 'You have so much confidence. Where did that come from?' It came from me. One day I decided that I was beautiful, and so I carried out my life as if I was a beautiful girl. I wear colors that I really like, I wear makeup that makes me feel pretty, and it really helps. It doesn't have anything to do with how the world perceives you. What matters is what you see. Your body is your temple, it's your home, and," she chuckles, "you must decorate it."

And just what would happen if she met herself at a party?

"I'd think I was pretty. Is that weird? I might be really interested in me. I'd probably watch myself the whole night, then I'd come over and say, 'You're a really good dancer.' We'd talk for a while and then," she says, starting to giggle at the silliness of it, "we'd go home separately to avoid the paparazzi."

BSF loves her confidence, humour, sass, and class. Go get 'em Gabby. We are routing for you!

For the rest of the article visit Bazaar.

Lee Daniels director of 'Precious' talks Vogue and Vivienne Westwood

Lee Daniels and Monique

In an honest and eye opening interview with the NY Times, director/producer Lee Daniels dishes on everything from how to hustle in Hollywood to his own sexuality. No topics were off limits including his prejudices, previous drug use, heart attack scare, not to mention Obama and his "sexy" wife Michelle. At a screening gala for his latest project 'Precious', he even greeted the audience with “I’m a little homo, I’m a little Euro and I’m a little ghetto.” The crowd cheered.

“ ‘Precious’ is so not P.C. What I learned from doing the film is that even though I am black, I’m prejudiced. I’m prejudiced against people who are darker than me. When I was young, I went to a church where the lighter-skinned you were, the closer you sat to the altar. Anybody that’s heavy like Precious — I thought they were dirty and not very smart. Making this movie changed my heart. I’ll never look at a fat girl walking down the street the same way again.”

Dainiels also discusses what that led him to direct and produce films like The Woodsman, Shadowboxer, and Monster's Ball. Academy Award winner Hellen Mirren, who stared in the Shadowboxer (which Daniels says was loosely based on his own life) - said the following about her time on the set:

“It was an anarchic shoot,” Mirren recalled enthusiastically. “Lee was learning on the set. He loved the designer Vivienne Westwood, and he told me, ‘You’re going to wear Vivienne Westwood!’ I said, ‘Why would a contract killer living in Philly wear Vivienne Westwood?’ But the why was irrelevant.”

But even his love of Westwood couldn't get him and Andre Leon Talley to see eye to eye:

When Daniels wanted a fantasy sequence to be a Vogue photo shoot starring Precious and the magazine's editor at large, André Leon Talley, Talley looked at a clip of Sidibe from the movie and declined.

Wow. It looks like Precious and girls that look like her can't even dream about being in a publication like Vogue - not even in a Hollywood dream sequence.

For the rest of the article visit www.nytimes.com.

Paula Patton and Gabourey Sidibe