While the world of film and TV awards get more and more jaded to the hardcore fans, it’s time to pay more attention to the forms of media that could, very soon, become the new medium to-be. I’m talking about the form of New Media, or “web series”, which is becoming more and more of what kids are talking about these days.

With that comes, of course, a cornocopia of popular awards to give accolades to these hard-working men and women. One of these is for the The International Academy of Web Television, a freshman organization that’s made to bring more attention to the growing medium.

Yesterday, the nomimations for the first year of awards was announced, and as expected, Sean Becker & Felicia Day’s popular web series The Guild, and the excellent drama series RCVR made out like bandits. From Variety.

“RCVR” racked up a dozen nominations. The show focuses on covert government agents that try to suppress the truth about extraterrestrial encounters and hunt humans selected by an alien species to act as channels for advanced technologies. “The Guild,” a long-running Web series that is arguably the field’s most popular, picked up nine nominations.

Voting is currently underway and the show hits on January 12th in Vegas the upcoming CES. Take a look at the full nominees after the jump.

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The Bitcast returns this week with their record setting 8th Episode featuring the Flickcast’s own version of Mario & Luigi, though JC and WallE will both always lay claim to being the star of the episode.

In the News of the Week, JC and WallE discuss the upcoming Spike Video Game Awards show and speculate on the upcoming announcement from Epic Games, the makers of Gears of War and the Infinity Blade franchises. They also discuss the 10th Anniversary of Grand Theft Auto III coming to iOS before getting into detail with South Park: The Game coming from Obsidian. They even talk Beta numbers for Star Wars: The Old Republic and announce the current and upcoming DLC for Goldeneye 007: Reloaded, sadly with the absence of Sean Bean.

In the Long Grind in Skyrim this week, JC gets in detail on both the dragons and music of the Elder Scrolls V.

For the Topic of the Week, WallE shows that he can handle both movies and gaming as he discusses the scores composed for some of the most influential titles in gaming history.

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Family Guy is a popular show. It has legions of fans who have made it an institution. Once it gets dark outside you can almost certainly find an episode on TV somewhere, and it’s popularity doesn’t seem to be waning. I personally feel it’s hit and miss style of throwing everything on the wall and seeing what sticks makes for an inconsistent show. But credit where credit is due I watch the show all the time, and digging into this set was a generally very pleasant experience.

The show continues on in this ninth volume, which is anchored by one of the better episodes Family Guy has ever produced. ‘And Then There Were Fewer’ is clearly the gem of this collection as it is the inspiration for the box art and menu screens. The set also has some pretty solid special features and, annoyingly, an episode from The Cleveland Show.

Interestingly though this set doesn’t follow along with any typical season order. It includes the end of the eighth season and the beginning of the ninth. I am not sure when the show jumped off of season based sets, but this odd organizational decision makes for a rather frustrating time when looking for specific episodes from specific seasons.

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The Screen Actors Guild annually awards excellence in screen acting, and has quickly become one of the more prestigious year end awards. The SAG awards are usually a solid indicator for Oscar glory in the acting categories, so seeing a few these names on this nominations list is a little surprising.

Chief among the unexpected nominees is the cast of Bridesmaids and Jonah Hill for Moneyball. Well deserved nominations, but certainly a tad shocking considering the strong year for acting all around. On the more expected front Modern Family takes in five acting nominations in just three categories.

I also appreciate that the awards honor stunt workers as well, this allows the Screen Actors Guild to broaden the scope of films they salute, and shines a light on a very important aspect of film making. The awards will be handed out Sunday, January 29th.

The full list of nominees after the jump:

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Slamdance, the indie film festival which runs January 20-26 in Park City and considers itself the counter to the big, Hollywood infused Sundance Film Festival, has now announced its slate of films for 2012. It’s an interesting and diverse mix of drama, comedy and other staples of the indie world and should offer attendees and judges lots of good choices.

Here’s the slate:

NARRATIVE FEATURE COMPETITION

BINDLESTIFFS – Director: Andrew Edison, Screenwriters: Andrew Edison, Luke Loftin. (USA)

World Premiere. Three smart-mouthed high school virgins, suspended from school on a graffiti charge, flee to the inner city to live out the plot of The Catcher in the Rye. Cast: Andrew Edison, Luke Loftin, John Karna

Comforting Skin – Director: Derek Franson, Screenwriter: Derek Franson. (Canada) US Premiere. A lonely young woman’s desperate need for emotional and physical companionship draws her into a surreal and ultimately destructive relationship with a shifting and whispering tattoo she has willed to life on her skin. Cast: Jane Sowerby, Tygh Runyan, Victoria Bidewell

Doppelgänger Paul – Director: Dylan Akio Smith, Kris Elgstrand, Screenwriter: Kris Elgstrand. (Canada) US Premiere. The unlikely relationship of two lonely men whose connection sets off a chain of events resulting in the loss of a thumb, the theft of a manuscript, and two appearances on a popular morning talk show. Cast: Brad Dryborough, Tygh Runyan

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Telltale games is a classy organization. They produce character driven adventure games that capture the spirit of classic point and click gameplay while still feeling modern and relevant today. Telltale also has a great ability to nail licensed franchises, really getting the tone right in a wide variety of genres.

Law and Order fans should be thrilled to know that the guys at Telltale are bringing their brand of puzzle based adventure gameplay to the mean streets of New York. Telltale announced details on their blog about the upcoming iOS game:

“Law & Order, one of television’s longest running franchises, is coming to iOS on December 22 in the form of Law & Order: Legacies! Incorporating fan-favorite characters from throughout the entire span of Law & Order, including Olivia Benson, Lennie Briscoe, Rey Curtis, and Jack McCoy, Law & Order: Legacies allows players to effectively play the legendary TV show!”

More details after the jump.

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Once thought to be gone forever, Comedy Central has breathed life back into the mouth of the fan favorite Futurama, making fanboys and fangirls across the globe smile once again. Now things are continuing with better news, as the famed sixth season is coming to fans on Blu-ray and DVD.

As the second release on Blu-ray, this season is slated to bring fans even more fun features and extras. Here’s a sample:

Special Features (Blu-ray and DVD):

• Deleted Scenes
• Audio Commentary
• Professor Farnsworth’s “Science of a Scene”
• Reincarnation Explained! With Director Peter Avanzino
• Futurama F.A.Q. (Frequently Axed Questions)
• Christopher’s Big Score: The Music of Futurama
• Futurama Fans: 101 Questions

The set will be out on both Blu-ray and DVD just in time to fill your stocking on December 20th. Take a look at the full, beautiful box art after the jump and let’s hope we can make it more than 4 seasons this time!

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With Glee going strong on Fox, The Muppets sweeping across the country, and everyone up to their ears with Christmas song, the last thing anyone wants is yet another dose of musical. And that’s just what they’re getting!

The first trailer for the star-studded film adaptation of the Broadway hit Rock of Ages is finally here, and has plenty of Alec Baldwin, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Tom Cruise for you to shake a stick at.

For those who haven’t heard of this phenomenon that swept the east coast, here’s the premise:

“Rock of Ages” tells the story of small town girl Sherrie and city boy Drew, who meet on the Sunset Strip while pursuing their Hollywood dreams. Their rock ‘n’ roll romance is told through the heart-pounding hits of Def Leppard, Joan Jett, Journey, Foreigner, Bon Jovi, Night Ranger, REO Speedwagon, Pat Benatar, Twisted Sister, Poison, Whitesnake, and more.

Plenty of rock covers, and even more recognizable faces. Take a look at the trailer after the jump, and catch Rock of Ages in theaters on June 1st.

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The comic book world is abuzz with anticipation of next year’s battle royal between the Avengers and the X-Men. The event series kicks off with a prologue issue that sets up two of the most critical characters in the series, Hope Summers and The Scarlet Witch. The issue is written by Brian Michael Bendis and Jason Aaron with art by Frank Cho, a veritable dream team of creators.

“This March, fans worldwide cannot miss the prologue to the biggest pop culture comic event of the year as Marvel is pleased to unveil the trade dress and cover to Avengers VS. X-Men #0! Just before the Avengers and the X-Men go head to head, superstar creators Brian Michael Bendis, Jason Aaron & Frank Cho set up the crucial roles of the Scarlet Witch and Hope Summers in the coming storm.

With all eyes on Wanda and the Mutant Messiah, both sides have already made up their mind on where allegiances SHOULD lie …but what about those caught in the middle? The drums of war are beating and fans should be ready for the essential opening to the event that will change everything you know about the Marvel Universe in Avengers VS. X-Men #0!”

Check out the awesome full cover after the jump.

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Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home remains one of the most popular Star Trek films, and is often considered the biggest hit of the original crew’s cinematic run. The movie is certainly the oddest of the bunch and adding to the goofier tone of the film is Leonard Rosenman’s score.

The score is usually sited as one of the weaker elements of the film, but that is an opinion born mostly from one or two very unfortunate cues that made it into the movie. The score as a whole is very good and the movie features one of the best main theme’s written for any of the films.

The wonderful folks at Intrada thankfully see it that way too because they have just announced the release of the complete score for Star Trek IV.

“Intrada ends 2011 with one last major release – the complete Leonard Rosenman score to Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. The second film in the series under the helm of director Leonard Nimoy, Nimoy choose a lighter approach to this outing and injected liberal amounts of well-placed humor.  For this fourth entry, Nimoy introduced another element he had wanted to bring on board earlier in the series: the music of Leonard Rosenman. Rosenman’s Star Trek IV music bears the hallmarks of the composer’s distinctive style: vaulting brass figures, complex textural passages, thumping suspense motives. The main theme—and also Kirk’s theme—is upbeat, heraldic and heroic, its optimistic flavor cutting a different path than the other scores in the series.”

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I wont spend a long time teasing you with different tidbits about why living in Los Angeles is the coolest thing ever, especially for a film fan, but suffice to say it is really amazing. This weekend provided yet more proof of that fact as street artist Anthony Lister painted a seriously cool Rise of the Planet of the Apes street mural on one of the cooler streets in town.

The art was inspired by the new release of Rise of the Planet of the Apes on Blu-Ray. Australian born artist Anthony Lister spent the better part of four nights last weekend conceiving, painting and generally monkeying around to celebrate on of his favorite films of the year.

“I’m an adventure painter. When I’m painting I just bring out the shapes that are already calling me. I’m a problem solver and when I am dealing with paintings conceptually and aesthetically I’m balancing these problems… The reason I’m going to be adding Rise of the Planet of the Apes to my collection is ’cause it is kinda like one of my favorite movies of the year. I mean I’m looking forward to seeing all those bits and how they did that”

The pictures showcase the look of the mural for sure, but having a chance to drive by it and see the art up close really emphasizes the artistry that goes into street art like this. It is great to see actual art being created for the release of this new Blu-Ray as opposed to the standard Photoshop heavy billboards that would have been much easier to create.

Check out some videos and a gallery on the creation of this awesome art after the jump.

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When I first heard about the Amazon Kindle Fire, as a fan of Amazon and its earlier Kindle models, I was hopeful. In fact, I put down my $199.00 as soon as the company started taking orders.

Then, it arrived and with a mixture of excitement and anticipation, I opened the box and got my first real look at the Fire. Sadly, my excitement turned to disappointment as I put the Kindle Fire through its paces. Sure, it has some nice features and makes ordering content from Amazon extremely easy, but in many other ways it came up short.

In the end, even at $199.00, I decided it wasn’t for me and sent it back to Amazon for a refund. Apparently, I am not alone as reports have been coming it hat many others have been doing the same thing.

Fortunately for those still using the Fire, Amazon is set to address some of the concerns with an upcoming software update for the Fire. “In less than two weeks, we’re rolling out an over-the-air update to Kindle Fire,” Amazon spokesperson Drew Herdener told The New York Times in a recent interview.

According to Herdener, the update will improve multitouch performance on the device and will also enable a feature that allows users to edit their usage history on the tablet. That’s all well and good but it won’t address the physical problems I had with the device such as the lack of a volume control and the placement of the on/off switch which, it seems, is designed to be in exactly the wrong place no matter how you hold it.

As a fan of Amazon and their earlier Kindle devices, I’m going to keep an eye out for the next version of the Kindle Fire. Maybe 2.0 will be the magic number.