Press Releases Archive for October, 2011

Julie Andrews, Target and Disney Announce First Annual National Princess Week

Celebration will take place April 22-April 28, 2012 MINNEAPOLIS (Oct. 31, 2011) — World renowned actress, singer and best-selling children’s author, Julie Andrews, in collaboration with Target and The Walt Disney Company is announcing the creation and inaugural launch of National Princess Week beginning April 22, 2012. This unprecedented collaboration highlights Julie Andrews’ longtime dedication…

Read the full article » 1 Comment »

NetCoalition, CEA, and CCIA Respond to Members of Congress On Stop Online Piracy Act

Letter to Members of the House of Representatives October 31, 2011 Dear Member of Congress: Last week, Representatives Lamar Smith, Bob Goodlatte, John Conyers, Howard Berman and eight others introduced H.R. 3261, the “Stop Online Piracy Act” (“SOPA”). This legislation has been framed by its sponsors as a vehicle to protect U.S. trademarks and copyrights…

Read the full article » 1 Comment »

SUNDANCE INSTITUTE ANNOUNCES ARTISTS AND PROJECTS FOR NEW FRONTIER AT 2012 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL

For Immediate Release October 31, 2011 Program Explores Concept of “Future Normal,” Features Work by: Paul Abacus / Early Morning Opera / Lars Jan Jeremy Mendes & Leanne Allison Marco Brambilla Molleindustria Nonny de la Peña Gingger Shankar, Mridu Chandra & David Liang Brent Green Hank Willis Thomas & Chris Johnson Eva & Franco Mattes…

Read the full article »

LOS ANGELES FILM CRITICS ASSOCIATION NAMES DORIS DAY 2011 CAREER ACHIEVEMENT HONOREE

Association Names Doris Day as 2011 Career Achievement Winner and Announces Awards Voting Date LOS ANGELES, OCTOBER 29, 2010 – Doris Day was selected to receive the Career Achievement Award, it was announced today by Brent Simon, President of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA). “Decades on from the main body of her work, Doris…

Read the full article » 1 Comment »

RELIVE THE PARANORMAL ACTIVITY FRANCHISE FROM THE BEGINNING EXCLUSIVELY AT SELECT REGAL CINEMAS TOMORROW NIGHT!

WHAT:             For one night only, Paramount Pictures and select Regal theatres across the country want PARANORMAL ACTIVITY fans to relive the thriller franchise from the beginning.  For the price of a single admission ticket, see all three films in chronological order: PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 3, PARANORMAL ACTIVITY and PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 2; and receive a free small…

Read the full article »

AMAZONAS FILM FESTIVAL UNVEILS 2011 JURORS AND LINE-UP

Award-winning films from around the globe will be screened at this unique festival in the heart of the Amazonian rainforest MANAUS, BRAZIL (October 26, 2011) – The eighth annual Amazonas Film Festival today announced its 2011 line-up, which features award-winning films from around the globe, and its jury of international stars and filmmakers. The festival…

Read the full article »

27TH FILM INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARDS TO BE HELD ON SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Ceremony to Premiere Exclusively on IFC at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT LOS ANGELES (October 27, 2011) – Film Independent, the non-profit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival, announced today that the 27th Film Independent Spirit Awards will return to its traditional Saturday afternoon on February 25…

Read the full article »

Cinema Eye Honors Announces Nominees for 5th Annual Nonfiction Film Awards

The Arbor, The Interrupters, Nostalgia for the Light, Position Among the Stars, Project Nim and Senna all nominated for top award, Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking The Interrupters’ Steve James leads individuals with 4 Nominations Errol Morris, Werner Herzog, Tim Hetherington and Wim Wenders Among This Year’s Cinema Eye Nominees October 26, 2011 – For…

Read the full article »

New Jersey Filmmaker Offers Kevin Smith $10,000 to Review Film

Chatham, N.J. (October 19, 2011 — Jim Riffel, whose feature film “Black-Eyed Susan” won the Grand Prize at New Jersey’s “Garden State Film Festival,” is making a unique offer to New Jersey native and Hollywood filmmaker Kevin Smith: “If you review my feature film I’ll give you $10,000 to donate to the charity of your…

Read the full article »

Joint Statement from AFM, AFTRA, DGA, IATSE, IBT and SAG Regarding STOP Online Piracy Act (HR 3261)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 26, 2011 Los Angeles, CA – American Federation of Musicians (AFM), American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), Directors Guild of America (DGA), International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, Its Territories and Canada (IATSE), International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT),…

Read the full article » 2 Comments »

Sundance Institute Announces Sarah Eaton as Director of Media Relations

For Immediate Release October 25, 2011, Los Angeles, CA — Sundance Institute today announced the appointment of Sarah Eaton to Director of Media Relations. Eaton will oversee media relations for all programs of the nonprofit Institute, including the annual Sundance Film Festival. She will begin November 14, reporting to Director of External Relations Jennifer Arceneaux….

Read the full article »

MAGNOLIA TAKES U. S. RIGHTS TO FERNANDO MEIRELLES’ 360

New York, NY – October 24, 2011 – The Wagner/Cuban Company’s Magnolia Pictures announced today they have acquired US rights to 360, the sweeping new film from two acclaimed artists: director Fernando Meirelles (City of God, The Constant Gardener) and writer Peter Morgan (The Queen, Frost/Nixon). With a stellar international cast that includes Rachel Weisz,…

Read the full article »

47th CHICAGO INT’L FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARDS: THE ARTIST

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CHICAGO, October 24, 2011 – The 47th Chicago International Film Festival proudly announces the Audience Choice Awards, presented by American Airlines. A record number of audience members participated in the selection of this year’s audience choice winners, with 50% of attendees casting their vote! Audiences received ballots at every public screening during…

Read the full article »

The Paris Film Festival Launches

THE FIRST INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL IN PARIS WILL BE AN ANNUAL CELEBRATION OF FILM ON THE CHAMPS ELYSÉES JUNE 6th – 12th, 2012 October 24th, 2011 — The first edition of the Paris Film Festival, under the patronage of the French Minister of Culture, will take place in Paris from June 6th – 12th, 2012…

Read the full article » 1 Comment »

Bellwether Pictures proudly announces the completion of principal photography on Joss Whedon’s MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING

Santa Monica, CA (October 24th , 2011) Bellwether Pictures proudly announces the completion of principal photography on MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, a modern version of Shakespeare’s classic comedy adapted and directed by Joss Whedon (Marvel’s upcoming THE AVENGERS, “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog”).  Filmed in just 12 days entirely on location in exotic Santa Monica, the film features…

Read the full article »

CHICAGO FESTIVAL WRAPS UP ITS BEST EDITION YET!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 24, 2011 – The 47th Chicago International Film Festival wrapped up another successful 15 days of world-class cinema and events on Thursday, October 20, with the Closing Night presentation of Michel Hazanavicius’ THE ARTIST (France). This edition of the Festival featured one of its strongest lineups in a decade. From silent…

Read the full article »

HAPPY 10TH DAVID BRENT: THE OFFICE GETS GLOBAL DEBUT ON iTUNES

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE New York, NY – October 24, 2011. BBC Worldwide announces that all episodes of The Office are now available to download and purchase in the US for the first time on iTunes (www.itunes.com). David Brent, the awkward and unnerving boss of the fictional paper merchants Wernham Hogg, first graced televisions back in…

Read the full article »

RENOWNED COMPOSER ALEXANDRE DESPLAT SCORING Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

(LOS ANGELES, CA) — Acclaimed composer Alexandre Desplat has signed on to score the drama Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close for Paramount. Based on Jonathan Safran Foer’s novel and directed by Stephen Daldry, the film stars Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock and newcomer Thomas Horn. The film tells the story of a nine-year-old boy who searches…

Read the full article »

NOMINEES ANNOUNCED FOR IFP’S 21st ANNUAL GOTHAM INDEPENDENT FILM AWARDS

Monday, November 28that Cipriani Wall Street The Descendants and Martha Marcy May Marlene Receive Three Nominations Each Beginners and Take Shelter Both Receive Two Nominations New York, NY (October 20, 2011) – The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP), the nation’s oldest and largest organization of independent filmmakers announced today the nominees for the Gotham Independent Film…

Read the full article »

ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY ORGANIZATIONS UNITE IN SUPPORT OF IMPRISONED IRANIAN FILMMAKERS

October 19, 2011 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE In September 2011, the Iranian government arrested six independent filmmakers for allegedly working with the BBC, on charges including espionage and treason. Along with the ongoing house arrest of director Jafar Panahi and the prior arrest of actress Marzieh Vafamehr, who was later sentenced to one year in prison…

Read the full article »

Press Releases

Quote Unquotesee all »

It shows how out of it I was in trying to be in it, acknowledging that I was out of it to myself, and then thinking, “Okay, how do I stop being out of it? Well, I get some legitimate illogical narrative ideas” — some novel, you know?

So I decided on three writers that I might be able to option their material and get some producer, or myself as producer, and then get some writer to do a screenplay on it, and maybe make a movie.

And so the three projects were “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep,” “Naked Lunch” and a collection of Bukowski. Which, in 1975, forget it — I mean, that was nuts. Hollywood would not touch any of that, but I was looking for something commercial, and I thought that all of these things were coming.

There would be no Blade Runner if there was no Ray Bradbury. I couldn’t find Philip K. Dick. His agent didn’t even know where he was. And so I gave up.

I was walking down the street and I ran into Bradbury — he directed a play that I was going to do as an actor, so we know each other, but he yelled “hi” — and I’d forgot who he was.

So at my girlfriend Barbara Hershey’s urging — I was with her at that moment — she said, “Talk to him! That guy really wants to talk to you,” and I said “No, fuck him,” and keep walking.

But then I did, and then I realized who it was, and I thought, “Wait, he’s in that realm, maybe he knows Philip K. Dick.” I said, “You know a guy named—” “Yeah, sure — you want his phone number?”

My friend paid my rent for a year while I wrote, because it turned out we couldn’t get a writer. My friends kept on me about, well, if you can’t get a writer, then you write.”
~ Hampton Fancher

“That was the most disappointing thing to me in how this thing was played. Is that I’m on the phone with you now, after all that’s been said, and the fundamental distinction between what James is dealing with in these other cases is not actually brought to the fore. The fundamental difference is that James Franco didn’t seek to use his position to have sex with anyone. There’s not a case of that. He wasn’t using his position or status to try to solicit a sexual favor from anyone. If he had — if that were what the accusation involved — the show would not have gone on. We would have folded up shop and we would have not completed the show. Because then it would have been the same as Harvey Weinstein, or Les Moonves, or any of these cases that are fundamental to this new paradigm. Did you not notice that? Why did you not notice that? Is that not something notable to say, journalistically? Because nobody could find the voice to say it. I’m not just being rhetorical. Why is it that you and the other critics, none of you could find the voice to say, “You know, it’s not this, it’s that”? Because — let me go on and speak further to this. If you go back to the L.A. Times piece, that’s what it lacked. That’s what they were not able to deliver. The one example in the five that involved an issue of a sexual act was between James and a woman he was dating, who he was not working with. There was no professional dynamic in any capacity.

~ David Simon