Joel Silver is without a doubt one of the most successful Hollywood producers of all-time. His career goes back over thirty-years and he is responsible for some of the most popular movies ever including 48 Hrs., Predator, Die Hard, the Lethal Weapon series, and The Matrix franchise.

Producer Susan Downey first worked with Silver on the 2002 film Ghost Ship, and their collaboration continued on such films as Cradle 2 the Grave, and House of Wax. But it was the movie Gothika that probably had the biggest impact on Susan Downey personally, as that is where she met her now husband, two-time Oscar-nominated actor Robert Downey Jr.

Silver had first worked with Downey Jr. in the early ‘80s on Weird Science, and was no stranger to the actor’s brilliant, yet unusual body of work. Silver and the Downeys would eventually go on to make the 2005 cult classic comedy Kiss Kiss Bang Bang together, but after the actor’s inexplicable success in a series of films based on a certain Marvel Comics superhero (Iron Man, Iron Man 2, and next summer’s The Avengers), Silver and the married couple wanted to create their own movie franchise at Warner Bros. They began with ‘2009s smash hit action-mystery Sherlock Holmes, and now hope to continue that success with Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, which opens in theaters on December 16^th.

It’s my birthday; I’m sitting in the bedroom I grew up in at my parent’s house in Massachusetts … and I’m waiting for Ron Perlman to call me. Does life get any better than this?

Last week while I was home visiting my family, I had the pleasure of spending the evening of my 36^th birthday speaking with one of my all-time favorite actors. I first became aware of Ron Perlman’s immense talent as a performer from his work on the popular ‘80s fantasy series Beauty and the Beast, but it’s his impressive and vast resume of film accomplishments that has made me a fan. I loved his unique portrayal of characters in movies like The City of Lost Children, Alien Resurrection, and Star Trek Nemesis, but it is his collaborations with lifelong friend Guillermo del Toro (Cronos, Blade II, Hellboy, and Hellboy II: The Golden Army) that I think marks some of his finest work.

But recently it seems like Perlman’s career could not be hotter. For the past three seasons he’s starred as Clay Morrow on FX’s hit motorcycle gang series Sons of Anarchy, which just began airing its forth season. He is also currently getting rave reviews for his role as a crime boss in director Nicholas Winding Refn’s critically acclaimed movie Drive, starring Ryan Gosling. Not to mention that he was seen this past summer playing the father of Conan the Barbarian in Lionsgate’s big screen adaptation of Robert E. Howard’s beloved character. Now the actor once again plays a crime boss in the new film Bunraku, which opens in theaters on September 30^th.

For the last 17 years, the Los Angeles Film Festival has provided a showcase for hundreds of features, shorts, and music videos from the hub of the film industry itself.  Film Independent, which produces the festival, has announced some special treats for this year's shindig, which will run from June 16th-26th and feature more than 200 cinematic works from over 30 countries.  Among the freshly-announced goodies: a gala screening of Nicholas Winding Refn's Drive, an evening with James Franco, a special screening of Green Lantern, Guillermo del Toro as guest director, and the World Premiere of Don't Be Afraid of the Dark, which he produced.  Read on for all the details.

More casting news has come in for Nicolas Winding Refn's high-octane Drive - I swear, if I had a dollar for every casting update on this flick I'd have... 'bout 4 or 5 bucks. And yet, how can I argue when each update is cooler than the last?