The Boondock Saints Returns for One-Night Anniversary Showings

Cult Classic “The Boondock Saints” Returns to Movie Theaters for 10th Anniversary Special One-Night Event This March

NCM Fathom Presents The Boondock Saints 10th Anniversary Event with an Exclusive behind-the-Scenes Retrospective by Creator/Writer/Director Troy Duffy in More Than 450 Select Movie Theaters

CENTENNIAL, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Ten years after emerging as a cult sensation, The Boondock Saints will return to the big screen in a special one-night presentation, The Boondock Saints 10th Anniversary Event, on Thursday, March 11th at 7:30 p.m. local time. Creator, writer and director Troy Duffy will introduce the event and share rare behind-the-scenes experiences and footage as well as exclusive interviews with cast and crew members including Norman Reedus (Murphy MacManus) and Sean Patrick Flanery (Connor MacManus), captured especially for this anniversary celebration. Audiences will also be treated to special performance clips by The Dirges, Ty Stone and Taylor Duffy whose music is part of the upcoming soundtrack to The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day, along with a sneak peek into the mobile games, comic books and graphic novel currently in development.

“For those who have only seen this crime thriller on the small screen, this is a unique opportunity to experience it on the big screen like never before with an exclusive retrospective from Troy and the cast members who are part of ‘The Boondock Saints’ decade long journey.”

Presented by NCM Fathom, The Boondock Saints, LLC, and Hot Topic, tickets for The Boondock Saints 10th Anniversary Event are available at www.FathomEvents.com and presenting theater box offices. For a complete list of theater locations and prices, please visit the web site (theaters and participants are subject to change).

“Twenty-ten is already shaping up to be an amazing milestone year for The Boondock Saints and for the millions of fans who have literally carried us to where we are today,” said Duffy. “I know I speak for Sean and Norman as well when I say that it’s going to be a year-long celebration of our connecting with, thanking and entertaining as many fans as possible just for the pure thrill of it all…and it starts on March 11th.”

Initially released in 2000 as a limited engagement to theaters following the Columbine tragedy, “The Boondock Saints” has gained a tremendous cult following, selling more than seven million DVDs to date. Acclaimed by critics and fans alike, “The Boondock Saints” is a story about fraternal twin brothers Connor & Murphy MacManus who embark upon a mission to rid Boston of human evil. After killing two members of the Russian mafia in self-defense, these hard-drinking brothers take the law into their own hands. No public outcry is heard and even FBI agent Paul Smecker begins to feel that the brothers are doing a good deed.

“The Boondock Saints” was previously presented by NCM Fathom in 2006 in 130 select theaters.

“’The Boondock Saints’ special event was a hit four years ago as thousands of fans experienced this cult classic in their local movie theaters,” said Dan Diamond, vice president of NCM Fathom. “For those who have only seen this crime thriller on the small screen, this is a unique opportunity to experience it on the big screen like never before with an exclusive retrospective from Troy and the cast members who are part of ‘The Boondock Saints’ decade long journey.”

The Boondock Saints 10th Anniversary Event will be shown in 457 select movie theaters including, AMC Entertainment Inc., Celebration! Cinema, Cinemark Holdings, Inc., Clearview Cinemas, Georgia Theatre Co., Goodrich Quality Theaters, Hollywood Theaters, Kerasotes Showplace Theatres, National Amusements and Regal Entertainment Group movie theaters, as well as Arlington Theatre (Santa Barbara, CA), Bainbridge 5 (Seattle, WA), The Carolina (Asheville, NC), Palace Cinema 9 (South Burlington, VT) and Penn Cinema (Lititz, PA), through NCM’s exclusive Digital Broadcast Network – North America’s largest cinema broadcast network.

The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day Blu-ray™ and DVD will be available on March 9. Both the Blu-ray™ and DVD include two commentary tracks with filmmakers & cast, deleted scenes, and two behind-the-scenes featurettes: the making-of documentary “Unprecedented Access: Behind the Scenes” and “Billy Connolly and Troy Duffy: Unedited.” For more information about The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day Blu-ray™ and DVD, please visit http://www.theboondocksaintsii.com/.

About National CineMedia (NCM)
NCM operates NCM Media Networks, a leading integrated media company reaching U.S. consumers in movie theaters, online and through mobile technology. The NCM Cinema Network and NCM Fathom present cinema advertising and events across the nation’s largest digital in-theater network, comprised of theaters owned by AMC Entertainment Inc., Cinemark Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CNK), Regal Entertainment Group (NYSE: RGC) and other leading regional theater circuits. NCM’s theater network covers 171 Designated Market Areas® (49 of the top 50) and includes approximately 16,800 screens (15,400 digital). During 2009, approximately 680 million patrons attended movies shown in theaters currently included in NCM’s network (excluding Consolidated Theatres). The NCM Interactive Network offers 360-degree integrated marketing opportunities in combination with cinema, encompassing over 35 entertainment-related web sites, online widgets and mobile applications. National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: NCMI) owns a 41.5% interest in and is the managing member of National CineMedia LLC. For more information, visit www.ncm.com or www.fathomevents.com.

About Boondock Saints, LLC
Boondock Saints, LLC is the official marketing, promotion and communication arm for all things “Boondock.” The company creates and produces special events for the growing community of Boondock Saints fans worldwide, manages media inquiries and requests for personal appearances and operates three websites, www.boondocksaints.com, www.boondockfans.com and www.boondockstore.com to provide the public with a dynamic interactive forum for discussion and user-generated content along with instant access to updated information about the films (The Boondock Saints and The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day,) related music, merchandise and a variety of other creative developments in progress. [END]

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Review: Best Picture "The Departed" Won Scorsese His Oscar

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 217 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Departed (2006)
Running time: 152 minutes (2 hours, 32 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong brutal violence, pervasive language, some strong sexual content, and drug material
DIRECTOR: Martin Scorsese
WRITER: William Monahan (based upon the film Infernal Affairs)
PRODUCERS: Brad Pitt, Brad Grey, and Graham King
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Michael Ballhaus
EDITOR: Thelma Schoonmaker
Academy Award winner – Best Picture 2006


CRIME/DRAMA

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, Ray Winstone, Vera Farmiga, Alec Baldwin, Anthony Anderson, James Badge Dale, David O’Hara, Mark Rolston, and Kristen Dalton

Some are speculating that Leonardo DiCaprio is director Martin Scorsese’s new Robert De Niro, as, like the young De Niro who starred in several of Scorcese’s early films, DiCaprio finds himself playing the lead in a third flick for the acclaimed director. (The others were Gangs of New York and The Aviator.) This time Scorsese and DiCaprio team up for The Departed, a remake of the 2002 Hong Kong film, Mou gaan dou (released in the U.S. as Infernal Affairs).

Whereas Infernal Affairs was set in Hong Kong, The Departed is set in South Boston where the Massachusetts State Police are waging an all-out war against the most powerful mob boss in the city, Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson). Inside the state police, the levelheaded Captain Queenan (Martin Sheen) and the hard-nosed and in-your-face Sergeant Dignam (Mark Wahlberg) operate a deep undercover program. They recruit a young rookie from a trouble background, William “Billy” Costigan, Jr. (Leonardo DiCaprio), who is from South Boston, to infiltrate Costello’s mob. When he accepts, the trio goes through a two-year process of rewriting and reestablishing Costigan’s identity.

Meanwhile, another young policeman is rising through the ranks, earning promotions rapidly. Before long, he joins the state police’s Special Investigations Unit, led by Captain Ellerby (Alec Baldwin). This small group of elite officers is also dedicated to bringing Costello down, but what they don’t know is that their “Southie” (from hoods of South Boston) new officer, Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon), is an undercover mole working for Frank Costello, and Sullivan is keeping the crime boss always ahead of the police.

The double lives consume Costigan and Sullivan, as they penetrate deeper, gathering information on plans and counter-plans of the operations they’ve both infiltrated. Dark secrets and double-crossing, however, abound, and both men learn that they aren’t the only ones with two faces. When both the gangsters and the police discover that there are rats among them, Billy and Colin each race to uncover the other man’s identity in time to save himself.

Infernal Affairs had good characters, but the film focused on plot more than it did on settings and characters. The Departed absolutely loves its characters and setting. William Monahan’s screenplay is a celebration of extreme characters full of odd and extreme behavior. Monahan uses the Boston setting to color these players, their actions, and motivations, etc. Occasionally, Scorsese and his longtime editor, Thelma Schoonmaker, get in the way of these characters because the narrative jumps from one scene to another. Even then, the camera seems restless within any given scene.

Still, nothing holds this cast back. Jack Nicholson does his best psycho in a while. Frank Costello is edgier than Nicholson’s Joker (in 1989’s Batman). Costello (based in part on notorious Boston gangster, Whitey Bulger) is over the top without seeming like a cartoon; Nicholson turns him into a scary, real monster – the incarnation of human evil. Damon’s Colin Sullivan reeks of being a wily street rat – a slick con artist who can sell a man his own car back to him. Mark Wahlberg also shines in a meaty small role, making the most of every scene without being a hog.

Of course, DiCaprio is the golden boy. He’s a great actor with the ability to bury himself in any role, but he’s also a movie star in the classic sense of old Hollywood. His star quality – the essence of Leo – remains, so that each role he takes doesn’t turn out to be just another actor with terrific skills doing method. Has Scorsese found his new De Niro? Perhaps, that’s not even the question to ask, but Scorsese has found another actor who can take his pictures to the next level.

As good as The Departed is, the warts show. Sometimes, the entire thing seems like an exercise in boys behaving badly – a chance for a bunch of actors to be hard killers and butt kickers – nihilism in abundance. Leo and Martin make sure that those warts only seem like blemishes on perfection.

9 of 10
A+

Saturday, October 21, 2006

NOTES:
2007 Academy Awards: 4 wins for “Best Motion Picture of the Year” (Graham King), “Best Achievement in Directing” (Martin Scorcese), “Best Writing, Adapted Screenplay” (William Monahan), and “Best Achievement in Editing” (Thelma Schoonmaker); and 1 nomination for “Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role” (Mark Wahlberg)


2007 BAFTA Awards: 6 nominations for best film, actor (Leonardo DiCaprio) supporting actor (Jack Nicholson), screenplay-adapted, editing, directing


2007 Golden Globes: 1 win for best director-motion picture; 5 nominations for best motion picture-drama, motion picture-drama (DiCaprio), supporting actor-motion picture (Nicholson, Wahlberg), and screenplay-motion picture

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Shutter Island Website Up

http://www.shutterisland.com/

Super Bowl 44 Most Watched TV Program Ever

Associated Press writer David Bauder wrote this short news piece about last night's record setting Super Bowl broadcast on CBS.  The New Orleans Saints beat the Indianapolis Colts, 31-17.

Although I live in Louisiana, I am a diehard Pittsburgh Steelers fan.  However, I supported the Saints throughout their playoff drive.  I will forever be indebted to them, for if Peyton Manning and his Colts had won the Super Bowl, watching Colts game and sports shows during the 2010 NFL season would have been unbearable.  There would have been a non-stop cacophony about how great Peyton is.

I can just hear all the stories about Peyton and the miracles he can perform on and with everything.  Some sportscaster would declare that Manning could walk on water, turn it into wine, and then part it whenever he needed to escape mean old pharaoh.

Bless you, New Orleans Saints.

Review: "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead's Man Chest" a Bloated Corpse

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 146 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006)
Running time: 2 hours, 31 minutes
MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of adventure violence, including frightening images
DIRECTOR: Gore Verbinski
WRITERS: Ted Elliot & Terry Rossio (based upon characters created by Stuart Beattie, Jay Wolpert, and Elliot & Rossio and Walt Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean)
PRODUCER: Jerry Bruckheimer
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Dariusz Walski
EDITOR: Stephen E. Rivkin and Craig Wood
Academy Award winner

FANTASY/ADVENTURE/DRAMA/COMEDY

Starring: Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, Jack Davenport, Bill Nighy, Jonathan Pryce, Lee Arenberg, Mackenzie Cook, Kevin McNally, David Bailie, Stellan Skarsgård, Tom Hollander, Geoffrey Rush, Naomie Harris

When Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl debuted in early July 2003, it had already received mixed reviews from the nation’s major movie critics – many of them deriding the film for having been derived from the Walt Disney theme park ride, “Pirates of the Caribbean.” Disney certainly expected the film to be a hit, but surely they didn’t think it would gross just over $305 million in domestic box office take or go on to do just under $654 million in worldwide business. The Curse of the Black Pearl was the proverbial dumb and silly film that was very well made, a fantasy adventure that caught the imaginations of a broad audience, in particularly that all-important summer demographic – the family. Johnny Depp even earned an Oscar nomination for playing Pirates’ charming rogue of an anti-hero, Captain Jack Sparrow. All in all, this movie delightfully surprised me when I expected so little.

The first of two sequels just opened. Ironically, this new film, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, actually turned out to be the un-fun dumb movie that I expected the first to one to be. It’s everything bad summer movies usually are – full of sound and fury signifying nothing, nothing, and nothing again.

Dead Man’s Chest opens to find the first film’s young lovers, Will Turner (Orlando Bloom, seems bored with this part) and Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley, ditto), imprisoned for aiding and abetting Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp impersonating a robot impersonating him from the first Pirates movie). The couple’s nemesis is Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander), a British official with warrants for their arrests, as well as that of Sparrow, but Beckett’s really after something else. Will makes a deal with Beckett that would free him and Elizabeth, but Will has to find Sparrow and retrieve Sparrow’s apparently enchanted compass for Beckett. Elizabeth later escapes prison with the aid of her father, Governor Weatherby Swann (Jonathan Pryce), and makes her own deal with Beckett to find Sparrow.

Meanwhile, we learn that 13-years ago or so, Sparrow made a deal with cursed sea captain, Davy Jones (played by Bill Nighy with much assistance from CGI). For the cost of his soul, Sparrow got to be captain of a ship, the Black Pearl. Now, Jones, who has an octopus-like head, has returned from the gloomy ocean depths to claim his payment: Sparrow must hand himself over to Jones’ servitude and join the other sea phantoms aboard Jones’ ghostly ship, the Flying Dutchman. Sparrow’s only way out is to give Jones 100 souls in exchange for his one, but Sparrow doesn’t intend to honor even that deal. Sparrow intends to find the dead man’s chest. Buried in some secret location, it holds Davy Jones still-beating heart. The man or woman who possesses it can destroy Jones and/or rule the seas. Sparrow, however, isn’t the only one who wants the treasure of the dead man’s chest, and the fight to find it means that Jack Sparrow may not meet his deadline to appease Davy Jones.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest looks and sounds exactly like the first film, but whereas the first film was fun and filled with the spirit of adventure, Dead Man’s Chest is much darker. Magic and curses play a larger part, and the lead characters: Sparrow, Will Turner, and Elizabeth Swann are all in much more peril. That makes for a film rotten with the stench of gloom, doom, and peril, which wouldn’t be bad if that made Dead Man’s Chest a good movie. Like everything else in this flick (acting, directing, shamelessness, etc.), this dark mood lands with resounding thud.

Dead Man’s Chest is noisy and ponderous, a lazy flick that goes nowhere. It begins well enough with an island misadventure – Sparrow, his Black Pearl crew, and Will Turner engaging in a madcap escape from a tribe of cannibals, but that’s the only bit of slapstick from this flick that recalls the original. It has a lot of potential, with many of the scenes and sub-plots ripe to deliver a good time, but ultimately the moviemakers just fumble it away. It’s hard to believe, but after 2½ hours, this movie goes nowhere. Dead Man’s Chest is just a setup for the third film in this franchise, which is currently titled, Pirates of the Caribbean: The World’s End (the second and third films were shot back-to-back). Dead Man’s Chest seems like the chopped-off half of a longer story because it is. I only hope that this next film, scheduled for release Summer 2007, is the better half.

3 of 10
C-

Saturday, July 08, 2006

NOTES:
2007 Academy Awards: 1 win for “Best Achievement in Visual Effects” (John Knoll, Hal T. Hickel, Charles Gibson, and Allen Hall); 3 nominations for “Best Achievement in Art Direction” (Rick Heinrichs, art director and Cheryl Carasik, set decorator), “Best Achievement in Sound Editing” (Christopher Boyes, George Watters II), and “Best Achievement in Sound Mixing” (Paul Massey, Christopher Boyes, Lee Orloff)


2007 BAFTA Awards: 1 win for “Best Achievement in Special Visual Effects” (John Knoll, Hal T. Hickel, Charles Gibson, and Allen Hall); and four nominations for costume design, make up/hair, production design, and sound


2007 Golden Globes: 1 nomination for actor-motion picture comedy/musical (Johnny Depp)

Pixar's Up Wins Top Annie Award

The 37th Annual Annie Awards were held Saturday, February 6, 2010. Disney/Pixar’s Up, which also received a best picture Oscar nomination, won the Annie Awards for “Best Animated Film” and “Best Directing in a Feature.”


Walt Disney Studios won a total of six Annies, including three for the hand-drawn, critical favorite The Princess and the Frog. DreamWorks Animation garnered five Annies for their numerous made-for-TV programming, including two Madagascar spin-off productions.




The list of Annie Award nominees with winners in bold and “WINNER” next to their listings:


PRODUCTION CATEGORIES

Best Animated Feature
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs — Sony Pictures Animation
Coraline — Laika
Fantastic Mr. Fox — 20th Century Fox
The Princess and the Frog — Walt Disney Animation Studios
The Secret of Kells — Cartoon Saloon
Up — Pixar Animation Studios WINNER

Best Home Entertainment Production
Curious George: A Very Monkey Christmas — Universal Animation Studios
Futurama: Into the Wild Green Yonder — The Curiosity Company in association with 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment WINNER
Green Latern: First Flight — Warner Bros. Animation
Open Season 2 — Sony Pictures Animation
SpongeBob vs. The Big One — Nickelodeon

Best Animated Short Subject
Pups of Liberty — Picnic Pictures
Robot Chicken: Star Wars 2.5 — ShadowMachine WINNER
Santa, The Fascist Years — Plymptoons
The Rooster, The Crocodile and The Night Sky — Barley Films
The Story of Walls — Badmash Animation Studios

Best Animated Television Commercial
Goldfish: In The Dark — Blur Studios, Inc.
Idaho Lottery “Twiceland” — Acme Filmworks, Inc.
McDonald's Nutty Trade — Blue Sky Studios
Spanish Lottery “Deportees” — Acme Filmworks, Inc. WINNER
The Spooning — Screen Novelties /Acne Media

Best Animated Television Production
Glenn Martin, DDS — Tornante, Cuppa Coffee Studios & Rogers Communications
Merry Madagascar — DreamWorks Animation
Prep and Landing — ABC Family/Walt Disney Animation Studios WINNER
The Simpsons — Gracie Films

Best Animated Television Production for Children
Mickey Mouse Clubhouse — Disney Television Animation
SpongeBob SquarePants — Nickelodeon
The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack — Cartoon Network Studios
The Mighty B! — Nickelodeon/Polka Dot Pictures/Paper Kite Productions
The Penguins of Madagascar — Nickelodeon and DreamWorks Animation WINNER


INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENT CATEGORIES

Animated Effects
Scott Cegielski “Monsters vs. Aliens” — DreamWorks Animation
Alexander Feigin “9” — 9 L.L.C.
Eric Froemling “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
Tom Kluyskens “Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs” — Sony Pictures Animation
James Mansfield “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios WINNER

Character Animation in a Television Production
Mark Donald “B.O.B.'s Big Break” — DreamWorks Animation
Mark Mitchell “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
Kevan Shorey “Merry Madagascar” — DreamWorks Animation
Tony Smeed “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
Phillip To “Monsters vs. Aliens: Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space” — DreamWorks Animation WINNER

Character Animation in a Feature Production
Andreas Deja “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
Eric Goldberg “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios WINNER
Travis Knight “Coraline” — Laika
Daniel Nguyen “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
Bruce Smith “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios

Character Design in a Television Production
Bryan Arnett “The Mighty B! - Catatonic” — Nickelodeon/Polka Dot Pictures/Paper Kite Productions
Ben Balistreri “Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends” — Cartoon Network Studios
Craig Kellman “Merry Madagascar” — DreamWorks Animation
Bill Schwab “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios WINNER

Character Design in a Feature Production
Daniel Lopez Munoz “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
Shane Prigmore “Coraline” — Laika WINNER
Shannon Tindle “Coraline” — Laika

Directing in a Television Production
Pam Cooke & Jansen Yee “American Dad: Brains, Brains & Automobiles” — 20th Century Fox/Fuzzy Door/Underdog
Rob Fendler “Popzilla” — Animax
Bret Haaland “The Penguins of Madagascar - Launchtime” — Nickelodeon and DreamWorks Animation WINNER
Jennifer Oxley “The Wonder Pets: Help The Monster” — Nickelodeon/Little Airplane Productions
J.G. Quintel, John Infantino “The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack: Candy Casanova” — Cartoon Network Studios

Directing in a Feature Production
Wes Anderson “Fantastic Mr. Fox” — 20th Century Fox
Pete Docter “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios WINNER
Christopher Miller, Phil Lord “Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs” — Sony Pictures Animation
Hayao Miyazaki “Ponyo” — Studio Ghibli
Henry Selick “Coraline” — Laika

Music in a Television Production
Michael Giacchino “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
Kevin Kiner “Star Wars: The Clone Wars “Weapons Factory” — Lucasfilm Animation Ltd.
Guy Moon “The Fairly OddParents: “Wishology-The Big Beginning” — Nickelodeon WINNER

Music in a Feature Production
Bruno Coulais “Coraline” — Laika WINNER
Michael Giacchino “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
Joe Hisaishi “Ponyo” — Studio Ghibli
John Powell “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” — Blue Sky Studios

Production Design in a Television Production
Mac George “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
Andy Harkness “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios WINNER
Janice Kubo “Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends” — Cartoon Network Studios

Production Design in a Feature Production
Christopher Appelhans “Coraline” — Laika
Ian Gooding “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
Tadahiro Uesugi “Coraline” — Laika WINNER
Christophe Vacher “9” — 9 L.L.C.

Storyboarding in a Television Production
Sunil Hall “The Mighty B!: Catatonic” — Nickelodeon/Polka Dot Pictures/Paper
Robert Koo “Merry Madagascar” — DreamWorks Animation WINNER
Brandon Kruse “The Fairly OddParents: Fly Boy” — Nickelodeon
Joe Mateo “Prep and Landing” — ABC Family/Walt Disney Animation Studios Kite Productions
Adam Van Wyk “The Spectacular Spider-Man: Final Curtain” — Culver Entertainment

Storyboarding in a Feature Production
Sharon Bridgeman “Astro Boy” — Imagi Studios
Chris Butler “Coraline” — Laika
Ronnie Del Carmen “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
Tom Owens “Monsters vs. Aliens” — DreamWorks Animation WINNER
Peter Sohn “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios

Voice Acting in a Television Production
Danny Jacobs - Voice of King Julien - “Merry Madagascar” — DreamWorks Animation
Nicky Jones - Voice of Chowder - “Chowder: The Dinner Theatre” — Cartoon Network Studios
Tom Kenny - Voice of SpongeBob - “SpongeBob SquarePants — Truth or Square” — Nickelodeon WINNER
Dwight Schultz - Voice of Mung Daal - “Chowder:The Party Cruise” — Cartoon Network Studios
Willow Smith - Voice of Abby - “Merry Madagascar” — DreamWorks Animation

Voice Acting in a Feature Production
Jen Cody - Voice of Charlotte - “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios WINNER
Dawn French - Voice of Miss Forcible - “Coraline” — Laika
Hugh Laurie - Voice of Dr. Cockroach Ph.D. - “Monsters vs. Aliens” — DreamWorks Animation
John Leguizamo - Voice of Sid - “Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs” — Blue Sky Studios
Jenifer Lewis - Voice of Mama Odie - “The Princess and the Frog” — Walt Disney Animation Studios

Writing in a Television Production
Daniel Chun - “The Simpsons: Treehouse of Horror XX” — Gracie Films WINNER
Kevin Deters, Stevie Wermers-Skelton - “Prep and Landing” — Walt Disney Animation Studios
Valentina L. Garza - “The Simpsons: Four Great Women and a Manicure” — Gracie Films
Billy Kimball and Ian Maxtone-Graham - “The Simpsons: Gone Maggie Gone” — Gracie Films
Billy Lopez - “The Wonder Pets - Save the Honey Bears” — Nickelodeon Productions/Little Airplane Productions

Writing in a Feature Production
Wes Anderson and Noah Baumbach - “Fantastic Mr. Fox” — 20th Century Fox WINNER
Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy - “Up” — Pixar Animation Studios
Timothy Hyde Harris and David Bowers - “Astro Boy” — Imagi Studios
Christopher Miller and Phil Lord - “Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs” — Sony Pictures Animation


JURIED AWARDS
Winsor McCay Award — Tim Burton, Bruce Timm, Jeffrey Katzenberg

June Foray — Tom Sito

Ub Iwerks Award — William T. Reeves

Special Achievement — Martin Meunier and Brian McLean

Certificate of Merit — Myles Mikulic, Danny Young and Michael Woodside

http://www.annieawards.org/

Up in the Air Takes USC Screenwriting Honor

Up in the Air Soars with Scripter Win

USC Libraries Scripter Award goes to Up in the Air author Walter Kirn and screenwriters Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The author and screenwriters of Up in the Air took top honors at the 2010 USC Libraries Scripter Award ceremony. The film is based on Kirn’s 2001 tale about what he called “the spiritual distortions forced upon people by techno-capitalism.” Crazy Heart, District 9, An Education and Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire rounded out the five Scripter finalists, which are also contending for Oscars in multiple categories. This year, four of the five Scripter finalists are competing for best picture and best adapted screenplay honors at the Academy Awards.

“This year’s field of 68 eligible adaptations was the largest in the history of Scripter”

The ceremony drew an audience of more than 300 to the University of Southern California’s Doheny Library on Saturday, February 6. Dean of the USC Libraries Catherine Quinlan served as emcee for the evening, as the literary, film and academic communities gathered to honor the winning writers.

Kirn, Reitman and Turner accepted the award from Quinlan, selection committee chair Naomi Foner, and Glenn Sonnenberg, president of the Friends of the USC Libraries.

Joking that writers usually only receive awards over the Internet, Kirn thanked Reitman and Turner for introducing his novel to new audiences. Reitman said, “Adaptation is an inherently collaborative act,” thanking Kirn for trusting him and Turner with his novel. “I’m thrilled that the USC Libraries have this award, since it speaks to how many writers work on films.”

Turner added that the Scripter ceremony encouraged conversations among Eric Roth, Steven Zaillian and other distinguished practitioners of his craft. “It’s so wonderful to be here with people who inspired me to be a screenwriter.”

Directed by Reitman, Up in the Air tells the story of Ryan Bingham—played by George Clooney—a “career transition counselor” who travels the country firing employees during corporate downsizings. Bingham’s quest to accumulate 10 million frequent-flier miles—seemingly the only thing of value in the anonymous landscapes of airports and business hotels—explores the moral and practical consequences of a life without ties. The film so far has garnered a Golden Globe Award for best screenplay, six Oscar nominations and six BAFTA nominations. Reitman and Turner are in contention for best adapted screenplay honors at the Oscar, BAFTA and Writers Guild ceremonies.

Kirn’s novel, written at the peak of the dot-com bubble, found new audiences with Reitman and Turner’s successful adaptation. In a recent article for The Daily Beast, “George Clooney Saved My Novel,” Kirn describes the unlikely series of events that led Reitman and Turner—and later Clooney—to “breathe big-screen life into Ryan Bingham’s cadaver.” Completing Up in the Air’s transition from page to screen, Kirn made a brief cameo in one of the film’s many airplane scenes.

Eric Roth received the 2010 Scripter Literary Achievement Award from screenwriter Steve Zaillian. The Oscar-winning screenwriter has earned critical acclaim for his adaptations of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Insider, Forrest Gump and Munich.

“The idea that words matter is what brings us all together here tonight,” said Roth, before recognizing the achievements of every finalist for this year’s Scripter Award. He spoke in particular about the inspiration he draws from Herman Melville’s Moby Dick. “Not only is it the greatest novel in our language, but it’s a philosophy book, a book of sorrow…and a cinematic book, the movie inside Melville’s head. I discovered Moby Dick in the library, which was my home away from home when I was a pimply teen…Every day I discovered another treasure.”

Dean Quinlan thanked the Friends of the USC Libraries and all attendees, saying that Scripter supports the development of the USC Libraries’ collections and the library’s role as a place of discovery. Just as screenwriters adapt literary works for the screen, she said, “A great library invites exploration, encourages invention, and reveals a universe of knowledge that enriches us while broadening our perspectives on the world at large.”

“This year’s field of 68 eligible adaptations was the largest in the history of Scripter,” said Quinlan. “Our authors and screenwriters have created written work and films that are diverse in subject matter and form…and bold in their imaginative destinations. Our five finalists embody many creative mysteries, explore broad intellectual and emotional territory, and invite us into worlds that are all the more entrancing for being so foreign to our everyday experience.”

Foner spoke of the craft of film adaptation. “When done best,” she said. “It is more than a translation, but a new form. For film tells its stories in different ways. It engages its audience in a different kind of relationship.”

Glenn Sonnenberg, president of the Friends of the USC Libraries and a former USC trustee, co-founded the Scripter Award with Marjorie Lord Volk in 1988. Past Scripter winners include the authors and screenwriters of Slumdog Millionaire, No Country for Old Men, Million Dollar Baby, The Hours, A Beautiful Mind, L.A. Confidential, The English Patient and Schindler’s List.

The USC Libraries welcomed Audi of America as the transportation sponsor for Scripter 2010. Audi generously made available a fleet of Q7 TDI clean-diesel vehicles to transport special guests to the black-tie gala. The Audi Q7 TDI clean diesel is one of America’s first highly efficient, seven-passenger luxury SUVs, offering U.S. drivers improved fuel economy and cleaner emissions. Visit www.audiusa.com for more information about the Q7 TDI and other Audi vehicles.

Final Draft, Inc. also supported Scripter 2010 by providing copies of Final Draft 8 to USC students. The libraries will make the script writing software available through the Leavey Library Multimedia Commons. Final Draft will complement the suite of authoring software the Multimedia Commons offers students and will provide a valuable tool for storytelling and completing coursework while drawing on the riches of the libraries’ collections. [END]