Posted

in

by

Tags:


Every week, I get several press releases, screening invitations and other notifications from a handful of studio contacts. While I won’t be sharing any information regarding my screening invites, some of the press releases might be of interest to my readers, so I thought I’d start sharing them in toto with all of you. These could include new image galleries for various films or important updates to upcoming releases from various smaller studios and art house production companies.


Image Gallery: Movie 43

Movie 43 Gallery

Press Release: First Russian-Language Zombie Film to Premiere at Leeds

FIRST RUSSIAN LANGUAGE ZOMBIE FILM METELETSA โ€“ WINTER OF THE DEAD TO WORLD PREMIERE AT LEEDS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

Resolution Independent Handling Worldwide Sales at AFM on Pic from Director Nikolai Pigarev

Leeds โ€“ October 4, 2012 โ€“ Meteletsa: Winter of the Dead, the first Russian language zombie film from writer/director/producer Nikolai Pigarev, will world premiere on November 3, 2012 at the 26th Leeds International Film Festival in the Fanomenon section. Melbourne-based producer/distributor Resolution Indepdendent is handling worldwide sales at AFM. The action adventure film is co-written by Pigarev and Mikhail Borzenkov, and executive produced by Resolutionโ€™s Pete Ford alongside Wayne Duband.

Meteletsa: Winter of the Dead, the directorial debut from Nikolai Pigarev, follows the story of a not-so-intrepid Moscow reporter who finds himself battling an army of undead zombies during a freak snowstorm on the hottest day in Russian history. Now all he has to do is get the girl, stop himself from being shot by her father and stay away of the sharp end of the mad Russian Orthodox Priestโ€™s axe, while still making his deadline!

Co-writer Mikhail Borzenkov stars alongside Tatyana Zhevnova, Alekandr Abramovich, Sergey Shirochin, Dmitriy Kozhuro, and Yuliya Yudintseva.

Resolution Independentโ€™s Pete Ford said: โ€œThis is the kind of movie that we always want to part of, something that punches way above its weight. This isnโ€™t just a zombie movie, itโ€™s an action adventure movie that has extraordinary scale and scope that has the added bonus of zombies!โ€

Executive Producer Wayne Duband, who previously served as President of Warner Bros. International, added: โ€itโ€™s exciting to see a genre film of this calibre with such huge global appeal come out of an important market like Russia from a upcoming talent like Nik, Iโ€™m thrilled to partner with Pete and RI to represent the film worldwide .โ€

Director Nikolai Pigarev said: โ€œFanomenon at Leeds is one of the largest genre events in the UK, so itโ€™s the perfect setting in which to world premiere the film.โ€

Pigarev will present the film at the 26th Leeds International Film Festival, running November 1-18, 2012. Meteletsa: Winter of the Dead will premiere in the festivalโ€™s Fanomenon section showcasing new horror, sci-fi, and fantasy films from around the world.

About Resolution Independent
Resolution Independent is a Melbourne based Production Company dedicated to the local production of genre feature films for international audiences. Founded by Pete! Ford, internationally regarded and award-winning creative director, producer, comic book writer and graphic novellist, it has evolved as a vertically integrated company that develops, produces, post-produces and distributes projects.

Press Release: Ron Perlman Joins Cast of ‘Savage Mutts’

Ron Perlman joins ‘Savage Mutts’ cast Perlman will play Terry โ€œShotgunโ€ Coburn in the latest film from director Nika Agiashvili

PERLMAN GETS ‘SAVAGE’

Los Angeles- Friday, October 2, 2012— Ron Perlman and George Finn have signed on to star in the criminal action thriller, SAVAGE MUTTS. Written and directed by Nika Agiashvili, SAVAGE MUTTS will be produced in conjunction with Energy Entertainmentโ€™s Independent division.

Scheduled to begin production in Los Angeles in January, SAVAGE MUTTS centers on Terry โ€œShotgunโ€ Coburn (Perlman), who after he is released from maximum security prison sets out on a path of revenge and rampage through the criminal underworld, as he seeks out a final confrontation with his brother – a dark and powerful crime boss. Project has been described as being in the vein of Guy Richie’s “Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.”

Agiashvili will also produce through his Storyman Pictures banner, along with Energy Independent’s Brooklyn Weaver (“Out of the Furnace”) and Derrick Eppich – with Circus Roadโ€™s Glen Reynolds and Zac Reeder handling worldwide sales.

โ€œNika is a writer-director whose Ex-Soviet Republic Georgian background brings a raw, edgy, darkly comedic sensibility to his characters and storytelling- which talent is clearly reacting to. He fits squarely into the gritty, “partners-in-crime” brand we’ve been cultivating here at Energy… I’m excited to help bring his vision for SAVAGE MUTTS to life” states Weaver.

Agiashvili recently collaborated with Perlman on Freedom, a short film that is part of the Georgian omnibus, TBILISI, MY CITY which is currently in post-production. In addition, Agiashvili produced and directed the Van Vlahakis biopic, A GREEN STORY starring Ed Oโ€™Ross, George Finn and Shannon Elizabeth that will be released in April 2013 by Indican Pictures.

Energy Independent was launched in February 2012 by Energy Entertainment owner Brooklyn Weaver with private equity and foreign sales partners that fund development – to package and produce projects budgeted at $15 million and under, which typically fall outside the traditional Hollywood studio system. Next up for Energy Independent is hi-concept contained actioner HIGH VALUE TARGET, by writer-director Spenser Cohen – which Weaver has partnered with Vinson Films to produce.

Perlman is repped by KLWGN Entertainment. Finn is repprd by Lena Roklin at Luber Roklin Entertainment.

Press Release: English Voice Cast for ‘From Up on Poppy Hill’ Announced

GKIDS, KENNEDY/MARSHALL AND STUDIO GHIBLI ANNOUNCE THE ENGLISH-LANGUAGE VOICE CAST FOR โ€œFROM UP ON POPPY HILLโ€

CAST INCLUDES:
GILLIAN ANDERSON, SARAH BOLGER, BEAU BRIDGES, JAMIE LEE CURTIS, BRUCE DERN, JEFF DUNHAM, ISABELLE FUHRMAN, CHRISTINA HENDRICKS, RON HOWARD, CHRIS NOTH, EMILY OSMENT, AUBREY PLAZA, CHARLIE SAXTON, ALEX WOLFF, ANTON YELCHIN

#1 GROSSING JAPANESE FILM OF 2011 NOVEMBER OSCARยฎ RUN – THEATRICAL RELEASE MARCH 2013

New York, New York โ€“ October 4, 2012 โ€“ GKIDS, a distributor of award-winning animation for both adult and family audiences, has announced the English voice cast for From Up on Poppy Hill, the highly anticipated new feature from Studio Ghibli. The film was directed by Goro Miyazaki from a screenplay by Hayao Miyazaki and was the top-grossing Japanese film of 2011. Multiple Academy Awardยฎ winner Gary Rydstrom directed the English language version from a script adaptation by Karey Kirkpatrick. Frank Marshall and Kathleen Kennedy executive produced. GKIDS is handling theatrical, home video, television and VOD rights and will qualify the film for the Academy Awardsยฎ in the Best Animated Feature category. Theatrical release is planned for March 15, 2013.

SYNOPSIS
From the legendary and highly celebrated Studio Ghibli (Spirited Away, Ponyo, and The Secret World of Arrietty) comes From Up on Poppy Hill, the uniquely inspired and highly anticipated coming-of-age story from Goro Miyazaki and Hayao Miyazaki. Set in Yokohama in 1963, this lovingly hand-drawn film centers on Umi (voiced by Sarah Bolger) and Shun (voiced by Anton Yelchin) and the budding romance that develops as they join forces to save their high schoolโ€™s ramshackle clubhouse from demolition. The top-grossing Japanese film of 2011 and winner of the Japan Academy Prize for Animation, From Up on Poppy Hill captures the innocence of new love as well as the beauty of Yokohamaโ€™s harbor and lush surroundings. With its rich color palette, stunning exteriors, sun-drenched gardens, bustling cityscapes and painterly detail, From Up on Poppy Hill provides a pure, sincere, and nuanced evocation of the past, and marks yet another creative triumph for Studio Ghibli.

ABOUT STUDIO GHIBLI
Studio Ghibli was founded in 1985 by animation directors Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata and is one of the most successful and well-respected animation studios in the world. Cultivating a creative force of talented directors, animators, and storytellers under the revered brilliance of Miyazaki and Takahata, Studio Ghibliโ€™s films have been praised for their originality, dazzling animation, and epic storytelling. The films have become a beloved part of Japanese popular culture, and have garnered worldwide acclaim from audiences and critics alike. Hayao Miyazakiโ€™s Spirited Away won the Academy Awardยฎ for Best Animated Feature of 2002 and in 2005 Miyazaki was named one of “the most influential people” by TIME Magazine.

ABOUT GKIDS
GKIDS is a distributor of award-winning filmed entertainment specializing in animation for both adult and family audiences. The company has scored three Best Animated Feature Oscarยฎ nominations in the past three years, with The Secret of Kells in 2010 and both A Cat in Paris and Chico & Rita in 2012 โ€“ marking the first time an independent distributor has had two simultaneous nominations in the category. GKIDS also handles North American theatrical distribution for Oscarยฎ winner Hayao Miyazaki’s famed Studio Ghibli library of films, one of the worldโ€™s most coveted animation collections with titles Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke and others. GKIDS is longtime producer of the New York International Childrenโ€™s Film Festival, an Oscarยฎ-qualifying event and North Americaโ€™s largest festival of film for children and teens.

Press Release: Movie Grill Opens First Venue

STUDIO MOVIE GRILL OPENS FLAGSHIP VENUE

The popular concept theater chain continues to expand, and aligns with best-selling comic book adaptation ‘Bad Kids Go to Hell’ for October 10th Special Pre-Opening Preview of their new flagship theater, plus Halloween Sneak Peek Run at all Studio Movie Grill Locations

Dallas, TX (October 5, 2012) โ€“ Studio Movie Grill announces today the opening of their new flagship theater, the Studio Movie Grill Spring Valley, in Dallas, Texas. Located at 13933 N. Central Expressway, the state of the art complex will be the largest Studio Movie Grill to date and marks the tenth overall location for the company.

On October 10th BAD KIDS GO TO HELL, starring Judd Nelson and directed by Matthew Spradlin, will have its star-studded Dallas premiere screening along with a pre-opening look at the new Spring Valley location. The film, based on the popular comic book series of the same name, tells the tale of six private school students locked in a Saturday detention with a killer on the loose. Ben Browder (Farscape, Stargate SG-1, Doctor Who) also stars, as well as Ali Faulkner (Bianca in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1), Roger Edwards (Freelancers), Marc Donato (Degrassi: The Next Generation), Cameron Deane Stewart (Pitch Perfect), Augie Duke (The Mentalist), Amanda Alch (When Zachary Beaver Came to Town), Jeffrey Schmidt (Interstate), and Chanel Ryan (BASEketball) . The film was produced by Barry Wernick and Brad Keller, and had its world premiere at this yearโ€™s San Diego Comic-Con International, and screened at Stan Leeโ€™s Comikaze and the Ruby Mountain Film Festival.

Beginning October 27th BAD KIDS GO TO HELL will also have an exclusive Halloween Sneak Peek run at all ten Studio Movie Grill locations, which include the seven theaters in Texas along with theaters in Scottsdale, Arizona, Alpharetta, Georgia and Wheaton, Illinois.

โ€œStudio Movie Grill is extremely happy to host the Dallas premiere of BAD KIDS GO TO HELL and to welcome visitors to its newest flagship, which opens its doors to the public on Friday October 12th,โ€ said president of SMG, Brian Schultz.

โ€œWe are very excited to partner with Studio Movie Grill and be a part of their grand opening week, as well as featured at all of their venues for an exclusive run for Halloween.โ€ said Wernick.

About Studio Movie Grill:
Studio Movie Grill Spring Valley at 13933 N. Central Expressway; Dallas, TX 75243 will be the largest Studio Movie Grill to date. Offering 100% reserved seating, the state of the art complex will mirror many of the creature comforts of a home theatre with its spacious, comfortable leather recliners and dining tables. A dedicated bar, lounge, and lobby area are planned for the new space providing guests an opportunity to unwind before and after their theatre experience in an environment unlike the traditional megaplex theater. The ambience of the modern lounge area evokes a sense of calmness with a rich, earthly color palette offset by textured materials and smooth stone surfaces. Spacious new furniture appointments and modern classics will outfit the space capable of handling corporate functions, private events, birthday parties and lunch meetings, not forgetting that SMG has also been named Best Place To Take A Date by all its current cities.

The Spring Valley opening marks Studio Movie Grillโ€™s 10th location and 7th in Texas. SMG has one location in the Atlanta area with a second location planned to open early November 2012 and recently opened in Scottsdale, AZ and Wheaton, IL with more expansion on the way For additional information, please visit www.studiomoviegrill.com.

Verified by MonsterInsights