Let's plan on going back to the movies (Just don't forget your mask)

More than 200 delegates have already registered for the Summer Webinar of the National Pharmaceutical Congress: "Pharma's Purpose, People & Process Post-Covid. Who Will Thrive? Who Will Be Left Behind?" Featured panellists are Ronnie Miller, Hoffmann-La Roche; Mike Egli, Aspen Healthcare Canada; Claude Perron, Amicus Therapeutics; Danielle Portnik, Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals; Peter Brenders, Kontollo Health [lead panellist]; Mitch Shannon, Chronicle Companies [host.] Mark the date of Tuesday, June 23, 11:00 to noon (EDT.) Registration is free. Space is limited. Sign up here.

⇒ Issue #58
⇒ Confirmed Covid cases in Canada as of 06/19: 101,889*
⇒ Confirmed Covid fatalities in Canada as of 06/19: 8,361*
⇒ Worldwide Covid cases as of 06/19: 8,514,422*
⇒ Worldwide Covid fatalities as of 06/19: 454,522*

June 19, 2020 — Many of us, including yours truly, cinephile and Chronicle senior editor John Evans, are taking advantage of the lockdown to catch up on our must-watch movie lists through streaming services. But as vast as these digital content libraries are, they are not limitless. Demand for new content remains, and many of the countless people involved in film and TV production, from studio execs and box-office darlings through boom mic-handlers and grips are itching to get back to the making the magic of cinema.

Universal Studios has announced that it plans to resume production on the next dinosaur-disaster Jurassic World film as soon as early July of this year. Similarly, filming on the next instalment of James Cameron's Avatar film franchise resumed on June 15 in New Zealand, which has controlled the Covid-19 pandemic very well. No word yet as to whether or not the former will have a sub-plot about residents on lockdown to avoid dangerous dinosaurs in public, or if the latter will include a blue alien metaphor for the Columbian Exchange. [link]

That's not to say filmmaking will be anything like business as usual. Possibly referencing the Pauly Shore classic, in an interview with Vulture, American film producer and financier Doug Belgrad said “Everybody ‘biodomes,’” describing a type of yet-to-be-tried self-isolated movie set. “You take over a hotel. Keep everyone separated. You work six-day weeks. Get in and out as quickly as possible. It could work!” (Hopefully, this approach will be more successful than Shore's movie 'Biodome', which has a 4% score on Rotten Tomatoes.)

At least some good has come from the impact of Covid-19 on Hollywood. Warner Bros. has postponed the release of its live-action Tom and Jerry film until March 2021, giving us all almost a year more life in a world where the unnecessary nostalgia cash-in does not exist.

COVID CHRONICLE 06/19/20

• The Covid-19 vaccine being developed by AstraZeneca will likely provide protection against the virus for up to a year, according to the company's CEO, Pascal Soriot. “If all goes well, we will have the results of the clinical trials in August/September. We are manufacturing in parallel. We will be ready to deliver from October if all goes well,” Soriot said in an interview with Belgian radio station Bel RTL. 
  
• South Dakota-based SAB Biotherapeutics says it will be ready to begin human testing next month for a plasma antibody treatment against Covid-19. What is particularly interesting about SAB's approach is the antibodies are produced by cows that have been genetically engineered to have immune systems that more closely resemble the immune systems of humans. “These animals are producing neutralizing antibodies that kill [the novel coronavirus] in the laboratory,” Eddie Sullivan, CEO of SAB Biotherapeutics said in a statement to CNN. “We are eager to advance to the clinic as we move forward in the the regulatory process with the hopes of bringing this potential COVID-19 therapeutic to patients in need of a solution.”
• A study of social measures to reduce Covid-19 transmission, including mask-wearing by the public, using data from 194 countries shows that mask-wearing can significantly reduce per-capita mortality from this novel coronavirus.
• Research on transmission and control of Covid-19 in individuals younger than 20 years, using epidemiological data from China, Italy, Japan, Singapore, Canada and South Korea, suggests that because of the lower susceptibility to the infection in this population, interventions aimed at children might have a relatively small impact on reducing Covid-19 transmission. 

STORIES CHRONICLE IS WORKING ON TODAY

My U.S.-based colleague Cory Perla is wrapping up an article on what families expect regarding the management of congenital melanocytic nevi in the plastic surgery the clinic, including a look at their persistent concerns regarding malignancy.

RIGHT NOW WE ARE WATCHING

“Some like it hot Manhattan” on the 'How to Drink' Youtube channel. While I am not a serious drinker by any measure, this channel by an amateur bar back explores the history of classic spirits and cocktails and invents new cocktails inspired by pop culture, with wit and humour. It is a perfect evening watch while sipping on a G&T or Negroni. 

TONIGHT WE ARE COOKING

My brother recently gave me a couple of beautiful hydroponic beefsteak tomatoes, so I'm going to make them the stars of tonight's dinner. Thick slices broiled with a fresh-grated parmesan crust and a touch of big brother's homemade hot sauce. I think a mild Italian sausage will complement that well. Some spicy cold cuts could do as well, but I haven't had a chance to get to the store and I don't think roast beef would pair with the tomatoes done this way.

HOW WAS YOUR WEEK?

What have you been up to today? Please let us know by making use of the comments section at the Daily CurveFlattener, or feel free to check in via LinkedIn, email, or your choice of connector. And do pass this newsletter along to your colleagues.

That's it. Stay in touch, stay safe and enjoy your weekend. Kylie Rebernik will be here on Monday to start your week off right.