| BECKER GROUP AND WARNER BROS. CONSUMER PRODUCTS ANNOUNCE “HARRY POTTER: THE EXHIBITION” International Touring Exhibit to Debut in 2009 (Baltimore – April 25, 2008) Becker Group, in partnership with Warner Bros. Consumer Products, today announced it will bring worldwide audiences “Harry Potter: The Exhibition,” a state-of-the-art exhibition highlighting artifacts from the Warner Bros. films based on J.K. Rowling’s beloved book series. The 10,000 square foot experience will premiere in Spring 2009 in a major market, and will appear in ten or more cities around the world throughout a five-year span. “Harry Potter: The Exhibition” will include elaborate displays of authentic costumes, props and artifacts from popular environments featured in the films such as those from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, including the Gryffindor common room and Hagrid’s hut. During its run, the exhibit will also be updated to include artifacts from the final installments of the Harry Potter film series. The exhibition will be displayed in major cultural and entertainment venues, museums and institutions, and will be supported by a multimedia promotional effort and advance ticket sales worldwide. Tour information, updates and ticket availability will be posted at www.harrypotterexhibition.com as details become available, or for more information, call 866-231-8328. (more) |
| PRODUCTION BEGINS ON UNTITLED CONTEMPORARY COMEDY DIRECTED BY SAM MENDES, WRITTEN BY DAVE EGGERS AND VENDELA VIDA; CAST SET NEW YORK, April 21, 2008 – Production begins in Connecticut this week on an untitled contemporary comedy directed by Academy Award winner Sam Mendes (American Beauty) from an original screenplay by Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida. The film is being produced and co-financed by Big Beach, with Focus Features co-financing and distributing worldwide. The untitled movie follows the journey of an expectant couple, as they travel the U.S. in search of a place to put down roots and raise a family. John Krasinski (one of the SAG Award-winning ensemble from The Office) and Maya Rudolph (Saturday Night Live) star as the parents-to-be. Rounding out the cast are Academy and Golden Globe Award nominee Toni Collette (Little Miss Sunshine), Golden Globe Award nominee Jeff Daniels (The Squid and the Whale), Carmen Ejogo (Lackawanna Blues), Jim Gaffigan (My Boys), Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm), Screen Actors Guild Award winner Allison Janney (whom Mr. Mendes previously directed in American Beauty), Melanie Lynskey (Two and a Half Men), Chris Messina (Made of Honor), Kevin J. O’Connor (There Will Be Blood), Emmy Award winner Catherine O’Hara (Waiting for Guffman), and Paul Schneider (Lars and the Real Girl). Academy Award-winning producer Ed Saxon (The Silence of the Lambs) is producing the film, through his Edward Saxon Productions, with Academy Award-nominated producers Marc Turtletaub and Peter Saraf (Little Miss Sunshine) of Big Beach, and Mr. Mendes’ Neal Street Productions. Mari Jo Winkler (Dan in Real Life) is executive-producing; Pippa Harris, of Neal Street, is co-executive-producing. (more) |
2008 TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL TO CLOSE WITH A SPECIAL PRESENTATION SCREENING OF WACHOWSKI BROTHERS’ SPEED RACER Film Starring Emile Hirsch, Christina Ricci, Susan Sarandon and Matthew Fox to Screen Closing Night, May 3, 2008, in New York City [New York, NY –April 2, 2008] – The Tribeca Film Festival and Warner Bros. Pictures today announced that the new high-octane, live action family adventure Speed Racer, written and directed by the Wachowski brothers, will have a special presentation screening as the closing night film of the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival, presented by American Express. Speed Racer, a Warner Bros. Pictures presentation, in association with Village Roadshow Pictures (more) |
| TAKING WOODSTOCK IN DEVELOPMENT AS NEXT FILM FOR OSCAR-WINNING DIRECTOR ANG LEE NEW YORK, April 17, 2008 – Focus Features is developing the 1969-set true story Taking Woodstock as the next project for Academy Award winner Ang Lee to direct. Focus Features CEO James Schamus confirmed the comedy’s active development today. Mr. Schamus is writing the screenplay, which is an adaptation of Elliot Tiber’s memoir Taking Woodstock: A True Story of a Riot, A Concert, and A Life. The book, published last year by Square One Publishers, was written by Mr. Tiber with Tom Monte. Mr. Tiber played an unexpected but pivotal role in making the 1969 Woodstock Music and Arts Festival into the famed happening it was. Working as an interior designer in Greenwich Village during culturally and politically exciting times, Mr. Tiber felt empowered by the gay-rights movement. But he was also still staked to the family business – a Catskills motel. As its part-time manager, he had become the local town’s issuer of event permits, granting himself one annually for a small music festival. When he heard that the planned Woodstock concert had had its own permit denied by a neighboring town, he called to offer his own. Soon half a million people were on their way to Mr. Tiber’s neighbor’s farm in White Lake, New York, and Mr. Tiber found himself swept up in a generation-defining experience that would change his life, and American culture, forever. (more) |
Paramount Vantage and Hammer & Tongs are teaming up for a short film contest. To enter, you will need to submit an original short film about anything, literally anything! Submissions can be up to 5 minutes max. The Grand Prize winner will have their short film placed in the Special Features section of the Son of Rambow DVD. Three runner-ups will receive framed movie posters signed by the director and producer. The deadline for submissions is May 12, 2008. Filmmakers must be 13 years of age or older to enter. Films must be submitted in one of the following formats: AVI, QA, MOV, MPG, MPG4, WMV Visit http://sonoframbow.filmmakingfrenzy.com for more information. SON OF RAMBOW In Theatres Summer 2008 www.sonoframbow.com |
BUENA VISTA HOME ENTERTAINMENT THE DIVING BELL AND THE BUTTERFLY – Miramax Films presents the extraordinary story of Jean-Dominique Bauby, a man whose indomitable imagination and love of life shaped his will to achieve a life without boundaries when The Diving Bell and the Butterfly comes to DVD on April 29, 2008 from Miramax Films. Winner of the 2008 Golden Globe® for Best Foreign Language Film and Best Director, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly was also nominated for Academy Awards® in the Directing (Julian Schnabel), Cinematography (Janusz Kaminski), Adapted Screenplay (Ronald Harwood) and Editing (Juliette Welfling) categories. Based on Bauby’s best selling memoir of the same name, this triumphant true story inspired renowned filmmaker and visual artist Julian Schnabel (Before Night Falls) to create a film of unprecedented visual and emotional impact. Written by Academy Award® winner Ronald Harwood (BAFTA award winner and was nominated for both a Golden Globe® and WGA Award for this screenplay and the 2002 winner for Best Adapted Screenplay; The Pianist), the film also features the spectacular photography of two time Academy Award® winning cinematographer Janusz Kaminski (1999 winner for best Cinematography; Saving Private Ryan and 1994 winner for Best Cinematography; Schindler’s List). The internationally acclaimed cast is led by Academy Award nominee and screen legend Max von Sydow (1987 nominee for Best Actor in a Leading Role; Pelle Erobreren), Cesar Award Winner Mathieu Amalric (2004 winner for Best Actor in Rois Et Reine; 2004), Cannes Film Festival winner Marie- Josée Croze (2003 winner for Best Actress; Les Invasions Barbares), Cesar Award nominee Anne Consigny (2005 nominee for Best Actress; Je Ne Suis Pas) and Cesar Award winner Marina Hands, (2007 nominee for Best Actress; Lady Chatterley). The Diving Bell and the Butterfly’s bravura performances, elegantly realized screenplay and sensual visuals left both moviegoers and critics breathless. “Stunning”- David Ansen, Newsweek. Named Best Foreign Language Film at the 2008 Golden Globes®, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly garnered numerous prestigious awards and nominations, sweeping through film festivals in Europe and the U.S. with its audacious and touching depiction of Bauby’s constrained yet vibrant world. Schnabel earned the Best Director Award at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival, where the film also received the Technical Grand Prize and was nominated for the Golden Palm. The National Board of Review named The Diving Bell and the Butterfly this year’s Best Foreign Language Film, as did the San Francisco Film Critics Circle, the Boston Society of Film Critics, the Washington and DC Film Critics Association. The film took home the Audience Award at the AFI Film Festival and was named Best Picture by the New York Film Critics Online, among other honors. Jean-Dominique Bauby (Mathieu Almaric) was felled at the age of 43 by a massive stroke that left his body almost completely paralyzed but his mind intact—what doctors call “locked in syndrome.” In a heartbeat, he went from the well-known editor of a top magazine to a prisoner in his own ruined body, able only to blink his left eye. Remarkably, Bauby was able to use that eye to dictate a memoir to his dedicated speech therapist (Marie-Josee Croze)—one letter at time. Director Julian Schnabel, screenwriter Ronald Harwood and cinematographer Janusz Kaminski translate Bauby’s memories and extraordinary inner life into a visually astonishing and emotionally wrenching saga in The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. Bauby’s interior chronicle – his memories, fantasies, pain and spiritual triumph - are eloquently brought to the screen in this unforgettable film. SALUDOS AMIGOS/THREE CABALLEROS 2-MOVIE COLLECTION– For the first time, the two Academy Award® nominated south of the border animated adventures are available together when Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment presents The Classic Caballeros Collection: Saludos Amigos/Three Caballeros on DVD April 29, 2008. Celebrate a cinematic Cinco de Mayo with Donald, Goofy and Walt Disney himself in this animated and live action addition to the classic Disney collection. Embark on thrilling adventures to South America and Mexico with Goofy, Donald Duck and Walt Disney himself as they experience all the music, beauty and excitement Latin America has to offer. In Saludos Amigos, Walt and his team of artists, musicians, writers and animators say “Adios!” to the U.S. to explore the heart and soul of Latin America. From the Bolivian Andes to the Argentine pampas, watch these four whimsical animated escapades while they travel to fun and exciting places. This delightful international adventure earned three Academy Award nominations in 1943 including Best Musical Score, Best Sound and Best Original Song. Next, it’s Donald’s turn to take a fantastic journey through these colorful lands with his friends Joe Carioca and Panchito in The Three Caballeros. With lighthearted dance and lively music, this dazzling blend of live action and classic Disney animation is a celebration the whole family will enjoy! The film received two Academy Award® nominations for Best Musical Score and Best Sound Recording. |

| Friday, May 2, 2008 |
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