Interesting article on Cate who is #10 on the Power Index!

10. Cate Blanchett
An Oscar-winning actress, she’s worked wonders for the Sydney Theatre Company but some say the city’s theatre is still not world class

Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett has worked wonders in her role as artistic director of the Sydney Theatre Company, which she shares with husband Andrew Upton. She has attracted international stars, won new sponsors, boosted audience numbers, scored rave reviews, and transformed the company’s finances.

She’s also greened STC headquarters with solar panels and rainwater harvesting. And she’s doing her best to turn Walsh Bay into an arts precinct, to create “a cultural ribbon” stretching along the waterfront from the Opera House to Barangaroo.

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Some gossip news but thought some of you would be interested in reading about this. There is still so many articles being posted about the carbon taxes, it’s crazy!

Cate Blanchett went to great lengths to hide herself from the photographers awaiting her return from James Packer’s country estate this week. Could that have something to do with her eco unfriendly mode of travel?

The controversial environmentalist – who was attacked by Tony Abbott and other opponents to a carbon tax following a polarising TV campaign in May – was without the eco-friendly hybrid vehicles that take her everywhere in Sydney, instead opting for Packer’s private helicopter.

The chopper is a 12-seater Sikorsky S-76.

The trip to the billionaire’s property in Ellerston, near Scone, registered a carbon footprint more than twice the amount a car would accumulate on the same route, according to the leading carbon emissions calculators contacted by Confidential yesterday.

While the offset of a helicopter is “complex” to measure, the return trip of a light aircraft leaves a footprint of about 1.04 tonnes of CO2.

This is compared with the 0.52 tonnes that Blanchett’s wheels – a Toyota Prius – would create for the same journey.

The Sydney Theatre Company queen – who took the day trip with husband Andrew Upton and three sons Dashiell, 10, Roman, 7 and Ignatius, 3 – ducked the tarmac snappers. A petrol tanker was moved in front of the chopper to block lenses.

Source: The Daily Telegraph (Australia)

Just a cute article with an adorable photo to it if you go to the source’s website!

Most sisters would give a candle or pot-plant when a sibling buys a new home, but not Cate Blanchett.

The Australian actress, who boasts a multi-million dollar property portfolio with her husband Andrew Upton, has been actively helping her little sis’ Genevieve look for a new Sydney abode.

The pair was spotted at in-rooms Ray White Unlimited auctions at Bondi Beach just over a week ago, checking out a few Sydney apartments. Blanchett and her set-designer sibling sat through a few unit sales, all fetching less than $1 million each.

Among those sold were a $590,000 two-bedroom flat in Randwick, a $735,000 Surry Hills terrace and a Vaucluse apartment for $620,000.

If Cate’s helping out with the price, that’s very kind of her, although Genevieve’s new digs will be a little more modest than Cate’s family home.

Source: The Daily Telegraph (Australia)

Just a little note to let you know that I have opened up a smaller tribute for one of my favorite actresses – Natascha McElhone. You might know her from the series Californication and films suchas Solaris, Ronin, Mrs Dalloway and Surviving Picasso.

Visit the site at nataschamcelhone.org and get to know more about Natascha and I hope you will like the site!

I’m in the process of purchasing some really rare photos with Cate and are desperate to get help with the money. It cost a lot to run a fansite and I’m just a student. If you want to help me out you can donate to my Paypal (or any other way): malevolentia(@)gmail.com – Don’t forget to remove the (). If you have any questions don’t hesitate to contact me.

When you support the site so it can continue to be online you will also get the bought photos in HQ originals as a thank you and you will be mentioned on the page.

Thanks in advance! <3

Seems like Cate invested money in a solar panels company and here is an article about it:

The actress’s ground-floor investment in Sungevity may pay off if the solar-panel maker can woo homeowners.

The opening scene:
Talk about star power. Actress Cate Blanchett has turned an interest in clean energy into a budding investment. The Aussie was an early backer of Sungevity, a start-up based in Oakland, Calif., that leases solar panels to homeowners. In a few short years, the firm has raised more than $40 million in venture financing and gone mainstream, recently signing a deal to offer quotes at some Lowe’s stores.

The backstage story:
It’s no mystery why Sungevity founder Danny Kennedy approached the Oscar winner. Not only does she have solar panels on her home and on the theater she oversees in Sydney, but she’s long been an advocate of all things green. (Blanchett has said she times her showers to save water and recently earned the tag “Carbon Cate” for starring in a controversial ad for an Australian carbon tax.) Of course, it didn’t hurt that Kennedy says he’s “good mates” with the actress and her screenwriter husband Andrew Upton from their university days. He says Blanchett was one of about 20 angel investors and is a “strong holder of equity.”

A Hollywood ending?
Being green and making a greenback aren’t always synonymous especially in the solar business. (The actress declined to comment on her investment, and Sungevity isn’t disclosing its financials.) Analysts say most solar companies are still dependent on government incentives, many of which go to large-scale solar farms providing power to utilities. Still, there’s a decent upside for start-ups like Sungevity if they can get homeowners on board, says James Hines, a solar analyst at Gartner. “There’s something to be said for making solar simple.”

Source: Smart Money

Congratulations to the well deserved win, Mrs Blanchett! And also congrats to Cate’s friend Geoffrey Rush, they both deserved to win!

The winners of the 2011 Helpmann Awards have been announced. The prizes were presented in a ceremony held on August 1 at the Sydney Opera House, hosted by Jonathan Biggins.

Geoffrey Rush has won the Helpmann for Best Male Actor in a Play for his performance in The Diary of a Madman, which also picked up an award for its director, Neil Armfield, and Cate Blanchett has won for Best Female Actor in a Play for Uncle Vanya. In addition, Belvoir’s revival of Henrik Ibsen’s The Wild Duck has been named Best Play, and Anthony Phelan and Anita Hegh have both been honored with awards for their supporting performances in the production.

Mary Poppins has won eight awards, including ones for Best Musical, Best Direction of a Musical, for Richard Eyre and Matthew Bourne, and Best Choreography, for Bourne and Stephen Mear. The show has also won prizes for its leads, Verity Hunt-Ballard and Matt Lee, as well as for Philip Quast, who has been named Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical.

Other musical awards have gone to Esther Hannaford for her performance in Hairspray, and the musical Love Never Dies received three awards, including two for Gabriela Tylesova (for Best Scenic Design and Best Costume Design) and one for Nick Schlieper (for Best Lighting Design).

Source: Theater Mania

I got an email about promoting the release of the ‘The Lord of the Rings The Motion Picture Trilogy Extended Edition’ and I know there is a lot of LOTR-fans here so I thought why not? Below is some clips and links to material related to the films!

The Lord of the Rings Motion Picture Trilogy: Extended Edition, one of the most magical, intensely spectacular epic adventures in motion picture history comes alive on Blu-ray and For Download June 28!

Official Site: www.lordoftherings.net

Official Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/lordoftheringstrilogy

Images: http://warnervideo.com/art

Trailer: http://youtu.be/bzfSb25Vtqs

Film Clips:
http://youtu.be/ObspwInJokM
http://youtu.be/wS0cr3-YWDc
http://youtu.be/X6ChJ8QP1k4
http://youtu.be/bxg_V4LnI0E
http://youtu.be/QVubk3BBp_c
http://youtu.be/3PRTowZMkZY

Synopsis:
The Oscar®-winning The Lord of the Rings trilogy, revered as one of the most thrilling epic adventures in motion picture history and one of the highest grossing adventure film franchises to ever be created, was born with the release of The Fellowship of the Ring™, followed by The Two Towers™ and The Return of the King™. Now they are offered on Blu-ray with more than 2 hours of extended scenes that were carefully selected under the supervision of director Peter Jackson.

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy tells the story of Frodo Baggins (Elijah Wood), a hobbit who battles against the Dark Lord Sauron to save his world, Middle-earth, from the grip of evil. In the films, Frodo and his fellowship of friends and allies embark on a desperate journey to rid Middle-earth of the source of Sauron’s greatest strength, The Oneâ„¢ Ring — a ring that has the power to enslave the inhabitants of Middle-earth. The trilogy tells tales of extraordinary adventures across the treacherous landscape of Middle-earth and reveals how the power of friendship, love and courage can hold the forces of darkness at bay. Beside Wood, the films star Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen, Sean Astin, Cate Blanchett, John Rhys-Davies, Billy Boyd, Dominic Monaghan, Orlando Bloom, Christopher Lee, Hugo Weaving, featuring Sean Bean, and Ian Holm, with Andy Serkis as Gollum. The films also star Marton Csokas, Craig Parker and Lawrence Makaoare.

Some rumours about Cate buying a property and I just post it because it has to do with the stir around the carbon campaign!

Cate Blanchett buys land in Vanuatu
Actress is yet to build on acreage
Island nation hard hit by global warming

For Cate Blanchett, climate change is an issue that is very close to home – literally.

The movie star-turned-eco warrior is believed to have recently bought a plot of land in Vanuatu, one of the countries hardest hit by global warming.

Rising sea levels caused the evacuation of an entire village in the Pacific island nation in 2005, the first time climate change is known to have displaced an entire community.

Blanchett is thought to have bought some waterfront property in or around the luxury area of Havannah Harbour during a visit last year.

The Daily Telegraph understands she is yet to build on the property.

A source at the luxury resort The Havannah – whose exclusive restaurant Blanchett was recently turned away from because it had a no-children policy – said the star visited last year and was looking at properties in Undine Bay and Takara.
Other sources said she bought property around Havannah Harbour, where the property market for international celebrities and other jetsetters is booming.

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I will be away on vacation from today June 2nd to June 12th! So I won’t be able to do any updates or answer any emails, but I will get back to you all as soon as possible! Take care <3