Zombieland

Sometimes a great shot can be attained through the wonders of visual effects -- the fine folks at Ilm can do just about anything with a computer these days. But there is a certain brutality, a certain aesthetic beauty that can only be achieved in the practical realm. Such is the scene in Zombieland when Columbus, the character played by Jesse Eisenberg, explains survival rule #4: "seatbelts." In the accompanying scene, we see an overweight soccer mom being chased by several zombie kids in her minivan. Upon crashing into a truck, this pink-sweatered lady is hurled out of her windshield, landing on the pavement right in front of the camera and sliding a few feet before she comes to rest right in front of the audience. It is one of the many awesome, fun and gruesome scenes that make Zombieland such a fun ride. Over at The Envelope, stunt coordinator Jill Brown writes about the process of »
- Neil Miller

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Here's a seasonal tale of mince pies, presents, false beards and vicious in-fighting: Mike White, best known for scripts like School Of Rock and last seen being attacked by the undead in a tiny cameo in Zombieland, has signed on to write Santa Wars, an incredible story of rival professional Santas that is, it turns out, based on a true story.Yes, it's all about the discord and bitter disagreement that developed between the two founders of the Amalgamated Order of Real Bearded Santas, who first formed the Santa union and then tore it apart, with the original board of directors largely expelled. Mix all this amid accusations of un-Santa-like behaviour between members, and the establishment of a rival Fraternal Order of Real Bearded Santas, and you surely have a Hollywood classic ready to go.It's all based on a radio show segment from This American Life, hosted by Ira Glass »

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Emily Jean Stone, better known as Emma Stone, was born on November 6, 1988, in Scottsdale, Arizona, the daughter of Jeff and Krista Stone, and the older sister of Spencer. Stone started acting at a relatively young age, appearing in a school production of The Wind in the Willows when she was just 11. Regional theater appearances followed and eventually, at 15, Stone convinced her parents -- using popcorn and a PowerPoint presentation, of all things, keyed to the Madonna song "Hollywood" -- to let her take a serious shot at acting, which meant relocating to Los Angeles. "I just always wanted to act from birth,” Stone told Saturday Night Magazine. "I think I was drawn to comedy originally because when I was really young, by the time I was eight, I had seen movies like The Jerk (1979), Animal House (1978), and Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987) with my dad, and I knew them by heart. I loved them, »
- ianspelling@corp.popstar.com (Ian Spelling)

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