Nothing Like the Holidays was filmed in Chicago last winter, one of the coldest winters on record for Chicago. 

Imagine coming to Chicago in the middle of one of the worst winters I’ve ever experienced in Chicago, and filming take after take after take in 20 mph winds that are helping bring the wind chill factor to 10 below. 

That’s what the cast of Nothing Like the Holidays did. 

The cast of Nothing Like the Holidays includes some of the finest actors working today, including Emmy winner John Leguizamo (“John Leguizamo's Freak”), Emmy nominee Freddy Rodriguez (“Six Feet Under”),  Emmy winner Debra Messing (“Will and Grace”), two-time Tony nominee Alfred Molina (Frida) and six-time Alma Award winner Elizabeth Peña (Tortilla Soup).  

And every single one of them froze their asses off for you. 

The film chronicles a week around Christmas as the Rodriguez family of Chicago celebrates the holidays. During that week, lives are changed, but in the end the family pulls together.

By: Cristi Oczepek

What do you get when you blend the classic “steal from the rich and give to the poor” tale of Robin Hood and the clever, action-packed scheming of Ocean’s Eleven?  The answer is the new TNT series LEVERAGE, executive-produced by Dean Devlin and starring Academy Award winner Timothy Hutton.

LEVERAGE is about a former insurance investigator named Nate Ford (Hutton) who was hired by an aeronautics executive to recover documents that were claimed to be stolen by a rival. Ford puts together a team of master thieves and skilled hackers to assist him in doing the job. Once they learn to trust one another after being double-crossed, the team eventually decides they are best working as a unit and go on a mission to target rich, greedy lowlifes who unjustly victimize others. The team then brings them down in a “stick it to the man” sort of style to take revenge for their dirty deeds.

Our new episode will be featuring interviews with Hutton and co-star Gina Bellman. They’ll be discussing the show, taping here in Chicago, and much more so be sure to check in with What’s Your 2wenty for the inside scoop on this much talked about new show. Catch the series premiere on TNT Sunday, December 7th at 10/9c.

By:  Cristi Oczepek

Our next episode on What’s Your 2wenty is a must see.  We’ll be spending time chatting with renowned author John Boyne and filmmaker Mark Herman, who has recently directed and executive produced a big screen adaptation of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, one of Boyne’s award-winning novels.  Some of Herman’s prior films include, “Brassed Off”, “Little Voice”, and “Hope Springs”.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a fictional account of a young boy named Bruno who is growing up the son of a Nazi commandant and his relationship with a Jewish boy named Shmuel that he meets through a fence, a fence belonging to an extermination camp devoted to the eradication of Jewish people.  Set in the time of the Holocaust, this story follows these two forbidden comrades through the toils of their friendship, why Shmuel is wearing “striped pajamas”, and the discoveries of what really lies beyond the barbed wire fence separating the two.

Boyne and Herman will be discussing with us why they decided to collaborate and take the novel from the bookshelf to the big screen, as well as what the process was like during the film’s production with Heyday Films.

Be sure to keep checking in with What’s Your 2wenty for more on this great episode and others soon to come.

What's Your 2wenty caught up with three of the worlds most talented graffiti artists on Lawrence Avenue in Chicago for the Max Payne Mural Event.  Host Janna Cosby discussed the modern artistic process with Mario "Zore" Gonzalez, Rafael "Rawfa" Almaguer and Sam "Rouge...1" Cerventes before getting face time with two of the stars of Max Payne, Mark Walhberg and Chris "Ludacris" Bridges.  Tune in to see behind the scenes footage, clips and interviews of Max Payne and the Max Payne mural event only on What's Your 2wenty.

Things get pretty crowded this week on What’s Your 2wenty!
Flash of Genius, the inspirational story of Robert Kearns as he fights the Ford Motor Company for stealing the idea for the intermittent windshield wipe, opens tomorrow, and we’ve got two of the stars and the director.  Academy Award nominee (As Good as it Gets) Greg Kinnear and Golden Globe nominee (Gilmore Girls) Lauren Graham sit down to discuss their rolls in this true story of David and Goliath.  Additionally Marc Abraham makes his directorial debut, and discusses what it’s like to go from producer to director. 
 

By Chris De Salvo

Few onscreen duos have created as much buzz as two of the greatest film legends in cinematic history have in recent weeks. Despite having been cast members on two previous films together, Al Pacino's volcanic potency and Robert DeNiro's perpetually inhibited angst took center stage last Friday with the release of Righteous Kill.

The crew behind What’s your 2wenty were lucky enough to have been there. At the Muvico Rosemont 18, amidst an alluring layout welcoming patrons to grab a cocktail on the way to their seats. Could there have been a more appropriate setting to witness an opening whose stars’ collective resumes features films about wise guys, crooked casino owners, and highly afflicted criminal masterminds?

The answer is no, and we have the footage to prove it. Tune in tonight at 8 PM (C.D.T) for a peek at what we captured. Finally, a film and a theatre that would make even your Godfather proud.

By Chris De Salvo

Though it's true the television once took over for the fireplace, warming the toes and hearts of millions, the future may not be as bright for our large windows to the world. Bill Gates was right. Computers are our future, and the future is now.

When it started many thought it was nothing more than a passing fad. A diversion from the traditional norm. Though many still feel this to be the case, Internet Television is certainly here to stay. What's your 2wenty brings the entertainment world into your home without the fluff. Entertainment Tonight may be a popular show for much of Middle America, but there is a growing percentage of young Americans who are more interested in the evolution of Independent film, than who Ben Affleck has recently impregnated.

Vision Films is an online television company that believes there is more to the world of entertainment than the aura it creates. These are real people talking about real issues. Without the clever originality of those who work to create the programming you can find online (http://www.2wenty.tv), there would be no choice but to revert back to the filler TMZ subjects us to everyday.

Internet T.V. shows are popping up all over the Information Super High Way. Major corporations are signing up. While this is an exciting time to get on board, it's a fair warning to declare there will eventually be just as much fluff online as you can find flipping through your cable channels.

What's Your 2wenty gets it. It's too easy to fall in line with what other networks are doing. The grass roots approach we've taken is something we're proud of, and though the world of Entertainment may be about making serious cash, there is a certain code of ethics Vision Films adheres to.

The world of Entertainment is not as shady as it's been made out to be.

For every Paris Hilton, there are several hundred individuals banging out scripts, passing out headshots and going on auditions. It's their story that better fuels the minds of those interested in signing up. These aren't prima donnas showing up for photo-ops, these are people holding down thankless jobs to fund a dream that probably won't come true. That is news.

In recent years, Entertainment News has become something of any oxymoron. This isn't the case at What's your 2wenty. We value the importance of film, and insist our appreciation of related arts is more than apparent on our website. People will more than welcome this. It's a fresh take on the industry that is long over due, delivered through an emerging medium more people tune into everyday.

So the question is, What's Your Twenty?

By:  Cristi Oczepek

What’s Your 2wenty has been busy preparing an awesome upcoming episode featuring Susanne Bier and Allan Loeb, the director and writer of the 2007 film Things We Lost in the Fire.  Bier and Loeb will be discussing with us the experiences they had during the making of the powerful drama.

The film stars Halle Berry, David Duchovny, and Benicio del Toro, and is based on the struggle of a family at the loss of one of its members.  Audrey Burke (Berry) loses her husband Brian (Duchovny) when he is killed trying to save a woman being beaten by her violent husband.  They had two young children together, and Audrey is left to raise them alone.  While grieving, she turns to Brian’s best friend Jerry Sunborne (del Toro) to help her cope.  Jerry has his own share of problems, including heroine addiction, but agrees to move into the room adjacent to her garage.  He becomes exceedingly close to not only Audrey, but her children as well, acting almost as their late father.  This later causes Audrey to push Jerry away, which causes him to drift deeper into his addiction and move away from the family.  With the help of her brother, Neal (Omar Benson Miller) Audrey comes to Jerry’s rescue in a similar way he’d done for her, and helps him through rehab.

Keep checking in with us at What’s Your 2wenty to find out just what it was like writing and directing this heart-warming film, plus more sneak peeks at what’s to come in future episodes.

With the Midwest Film Festival in downtown Chicago featuring some great new flicks, What’s Your 2wenty has some exciting episodes headed your way. 

Tim Evans will be speaking with us about his experience producing the new Matthew Broderick film Diminished Capacity, which is about a Chicago journalist suffering from memory loss who bonds with his Alzheimer’s-impaired uncle Rollie, played by Alan Alda, upon returning to his rural hometown.  We’ll also be speaking with the film’s screenwriter Sherwood Kiraly. 

We’ll be spending some time chatting with the film fest’s director Mike McNamara to find out more about the festival and why it’s so important to Midwestern filmmakers and fans, as well as Rich Moskal of the Chicago Film Office and Linda Mensch of Movie Trax to get their thoughts on the film industry and those currently taking over the big screen.

Another film being featured is gaining a lot of hype due to its political views and criticism.  I.O.U.S.A., directed by Patrick Creadon, is about the national debt and its effect on the United States’ economy due to careless government spending.  Set up in a documentary style, this film startlingly brings to light the trouble the U.S. is in financially.  Creadon and producer Christine O’Malley will be speaking with us, as well as providing us with some great clips from the film.  

Be sure to keep checking in with What’s Your 2wenty this week for more on these amazing films and more fabulous interviews.