Media Mikes to Co-Sponsor Kansas City Oscar Charity Benefit

It will be a movie lover’s dream come true when the Screenland Crossroads Theatre, ReelSmart Trivia, and MediaMikes.com present a benefit presentation of the 85th Annual Academy Awards on Sunday, February 24, 2013 at the Screenland Crossroads Theatre (1656 Washington Street, KCMO).

The event, which will feature a live presentation of the 85th Annual Academy Awards on the Big Screen, will benefit The Parent Project, an organization working to find a cure for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, the most common and fatal genetic disorder diagnosed in children.

Cost for the event is $20.00 per person, which includes hors d’oeuvres, popcorn & soda, and chances to win great prizes and celebrity autographed memorabilia. A cash bar will also be available. Doors open at 6:00 P.M.

For more information, call (816) 421-9700 or visit the following web sites: www.screenland.com, or www.reelsmarttrivia.com. For more information on The Parent Project, visit www.parentprojectmd.org.

"Lincoln," "Life of Pi" Lead Oscar Nominations

“Lincoln,” Steven Spielberg’s masterpiece about the last months of the 16th President of the United States, led all films this morning when nominations for the 85th Annual Academy Awards were announced. The film received 12 nominations including Best Picture, Best Director (Spielberg) and Best Actor (Daniel Day-Lewis). Right behind was Ang Lee’s “Life of Pi,” which received 11 nominations, among them one for Best Picture. Also racking up nominations: “Silver Linings Playbook” (8), “Argo” and “Les Miserables” (7 each), “Amour,” “Django Unchained” and “Zero Dark Thirty” (5 each). All of these films received Best Picture nominations. The final Best Picture nominee, the Sundance Festival fave “Beasts of the Southern Wild,” earned 4 nominations, including a nod for Best Actress for 9-year old Quvenzhane’ Wallis. The nomination makes Wallis, who was 6 when the film was made, the youngest nominee ever for an acting Oscar.

In the acting categories, there is a good mix of past winners and newcomers. Best Acting nominees include first time nominees Bradley Cooper for “Silver Linings Playbook” and Hugh Jackman for “Les Miserables.” A pair of two-time Oscar winners, Daniel Day-Lewis for “Lincoln” and Denzel Washington for “Flight,” are also on the list as is two time nominee Joaquin Phoenix for “The Master.” Besides Wallis, nominees for Best Actress include Jessica Chastain (“Zero Dark Thirty’), Jennifer Lawrence (“Silver Linings Playbook”), Emmanuelle Riva (“Amour”) and Naomi Watts (“The Impossible.”

In what I’m pretty sure is a first, the Best Supporting Actor category is the first acting category ever in which all five nominees already have at least one acting Oscar on their mantle. The nominees are: Alan Arkin (Best Supporting Actor for “Little Miss Sunshine”) for “Argo,” Robert DeNiro (Best Supporting Actor for “The Godfather Part II” and Best Actor for “Raging Bull”) for “Silver Linings Playbook, Philip Seymour Hoffman (Best Actor for “Capote”) for “The Master,” Tommy Lee Jones (Best Supporting Actor for “The Fugitive”) for “Lincoln” and Christoph Waltz (Best Supporting Actor for “Inglorious Basterds”) for “Django Unchained.” Best Supporting Actress nominees are Amy Adams (“The Master”), Sally Field (“Lincoln”), Anne Hathaway (“Les Miserables”), Helen Hunt (“The Sessions”) and Jacki Weaver (“Silver Linings Playbook”).

Besides Spielberg, the nominees for Best Director are: Michael Haneke for “Amour,” “Benh Zeitlin for “Beasts of the Southern Wild,” Ang Lee for “Life of Pi” and David O. Russell for “Silver Linings Playbooks.” A surprise non-nominee ( and I have to be honest I actually started this paragraph by listing him as a nominee) was Ben Affleck, the director of “Argo.” Affleck received a nomination from the Director’s Guild of America last week.

The 85th Annual Academy Awards will be presented on Sunday, February 24th.

“Sailcloth” starring Oscar nominee John Hurt, selected for 2012 Academy Short Film Award consideration

“Sailcloth” starring Oscar® nominee John Hurt, selected for 2012 Academy Short Film Award consideration
SAILCLOTH – starring world-renowned actor John Hurt – is a heartfelt story of an elderly gentleman who disappears from a nursing home. The 18-minute non-dialogue film, written and directed by Elfar Adalsteins, is already an award winning film having picked up the Grand Jury Prize for Best Short Film at the Rhode Island International Film Festival to a standing ovation. Subsequently, the film has gone on to get a recommendation for the 2012 Academy Short Film Awards.

Sailcloth shares the poignant story of an elderly widower, played by Hurt, as he sets in motion a series of events to hide his disappearance from a nursing home. After gathering necessities he heads to the local pier where a beloved companion awaits him – ready to take their last great journey.

John Hurt, one of the UK’s most legendary actors, stars in this emotional film portraying the widower with a natural ease that effortlessly pulls you into. Hurt, a two time Academy® Award Nominee, has won countless accolades during his extensive career, including three BAFTA’s and a Golden Globe.

This Oscar worthy film is written and directed by Elfar Adalsteins (www.elfaradalsteins.com) and produced by his company Berserk Films. Elfar’s began his career as a producer, working on feature films such as ‘Country Wedding’, the Oscar® longlisted ‘Mamma Gógó’ and ‘Black Rabbit Summer’ he developed in collaboration with Ruby Films. Elfar’s directorial feature film debut is currently in the final stages of development and is scheduled to move into production in 2012.

With John’s wonderful portrayal of the widower and Elfar’s expertly realized vision, it is no wonder that this emotional story of love and courage is causing such an Oscar Buzz.

 

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Oscar Worthy Award Winning Film “The Sea Is All I Know” starring Academy Award Winner Melissa Leo

Oscar worthy Award winning film ‘The Sea Is All I Know’ starring Academy Award Winner Melissa Leo

‘The Sea Is All I Know’ stars Oscar Winner Melissa Leo (The Fighter) and Peter Gerety (The Wire) and encompasses the controversial subject of assisted suicide.  Through this extraordinary journey the film shares a story of love in the face of death.

This wonderful picture has already won awards from Palm Springs International Film Festival ‘Best of Festival’ and the Rhode Island International Film Festival where Melissa won the ‘Grand Prize for Best Actress’.  Not surprisingly ‘The Sea Is All I Know’ is already receiving rave reviews; Darryl MacDonald, Executive Director of Palms Springs International ShortFest calls it “An Oscar Best Bet” and an “incredibly moving tale of family and faith” while praising the performances “Melissa Leo gives a heart-wrenching, typically brilliant performance.”   Jessica Gardner from BackStage praises the director Jordan Bayne saying she “allows the viewer to get pulled into the     characters’ inner conflict” as well as the stand out performance from Melissa “Leo’s raw, jaw-dropping performance can take an audience’s breath away” and Peter “Gerety is so perfectly cast, he turns in an outstanding and multilayered performance”.

‘The Sea Is All I Know’ is an honest portrait of a family coming to terms with their relationship to death. When estranged couple, Sara [Melissa Leo] and Sonny [Peter Gerety], come to the aid of their dying daughter, the experience sends them spiraling into spiritual crisis and brutal heartbreak. In the end, an act of selfless love, renews their lives, transcends their loss of faith, even death itself.

Jordan Bayne wrote, directed and produced this heartfelt film. Through excellent casting and classic story telling she has created an Oscar worthy unconventional love story  ‘The Sea Is All I Know’.

Official Website: www.seathefilm.com

Oscar Nominee Mickey Rourke to Become Immortalized in Famous Hollywood Ceremony

OSCAR(R)-NOMINEE MICKEY ROURKE TO BECOME IMMORTALIZED IN FAMOUS HOLLYWOOD CEREMONY

ROURKE WILL BE THE 254th CELEBRITY TO HAVE HANDS & FOOTPRINTS IN CHINESE CEMENT ON MONDAY, OCTOBER 31st

(Hollywood, Calif., October 18, 2011)–The most famous place in Hollywood, Grauman’s Chinese Theatre (www.chinesetheatres.com), is set to honor its 254th celebrity, Oscar(R)-nominee Mickey Rourke, with his own hand and footprints ceremony on Monday, October 31 at 11:00 AM. The masters of ceremony and guest speaker will be announced.

Up next, Rourke can be seen in the visually-stunning 3D epic adventure Immortals, starring Henry Cavill, Luke Evans, Kellan Lutz, Isabel Lucas, Freida Pinto, Stephen Dorff, and John Hurt. Directed by Tarsem Singh, written by Charles Parlapanides and Vlas Parlapanides and produced by Gianni Nunnari, Mark Canton and Relativity’s CEO RyanKavanaugh, Immortals tells the story of the ruthless King Hyperion (Rourke), who leads his bloodthirsty army on a murderous rampage across Greece to find a deadly weapon that will destroy humanity.  A mortal chosen by Zeus named Theseus (Cavill) must lead the fight against Hyperion and his evil army with the fate of mankind and the Gods at Stake. The film will be released by Relativity Media on November 11, 2011.

Rourke received widespread acclaim for his performance in Darren Aronofsky’s The Wrestler which earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor and wins for Best Actor at the Golden Globe Awards, BAFTAs and Independent Spirit Awards.  Rourke’s career is one marked by his ability to create riveting performances and to leave indelible impressions on audiences. His impressive list of feature credits includes John Madden’s Killshot, Tony Scott’s Domino and Man on Fire, Robert Rodriguez’s Sin City and Once Upon a Time in Mexico, Larry Charles’ Masked and Anonymous, Steve Buscemi’s Animal Factory and Francis Ford Coppola’s The Rainmaker. Rourke earned a place for himself in Hollywood with his stellar ability to mesmerize audiences in earlier films, including Michael Cimino’s Desperate Hours, Alan Parker’s Angel Heart, Mike Hodges’ A Prayer for the Dying, Adrian Lyne’s Nine 1Ž2 Weeks, Cimino’s Year of the Dragon, Stuart Rosenberg’s The Pope of Greenwich Village, Barry Levinson’s Diner, Lawrence Kasdan’s Body Heat, Francis Ford Coppola’s Rumble Fish, Cimino’s Heaven’s Gate and Steven Spielberg’s 1941. Rourke recently starred in the blockbuster sequel, Iron Man 2 and was also seen in The Expendables.

Grauman’s Chinese Theatre hands and footprints ceremony is rich in tradition and provides the four million plus people a year who visit the site an opportunity to experience the lore of Hollywood up close, for here lay the handprints and footprints of Hollywood’s most notable talents. Unlike any other award in Hollywood, be it an Oscar(R) or a sidewalk ceremony, Grauman’s Chinese Theatre handprints-footprints tribute is the most selective of all,since over the course of nine decades, only 250-plus such honors have been presented.

Movieexhibitor Sid Grauman, one of Hollywood’s best known and most creative showmen, opened The Chinese in 1927 and launched the handprints-footprints ceremony a year later. Among the first handprints and footprints were those of Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks. Recent celebrants have included: Brad Pitt,George Clooney, Johnny Depp and Jennifer Aniston.

Today, Grauman’s Chinese Theatre forecourt is among the world’s most photographed tourist sites, annually attracting as many visitors as the Taj Mahal in India and the Prado Museum in Madrid. In any given year, Grauman’s Chinese Theatre hosts over 40 red carpet film premieres and since it opened, it has hosted three Academy Award(R) ceremonies and numerous world premieres, including those for internationally-acclaimed film franchises, such as Star Wars and Harry Potter.

Mickey Rourke’s ceremony will be broadcast live via streaming video on: http://www.chinesetheatres.com.

About the Chinese Theatres

Since 1927, Grauman’s Chinese Theatre has been the home of the most important, star powered red carpet movie premieres and special events, where Hollywood’s biggest and brightest talents have come to watch their movies. The most famous movie theatre on the globe is world-renowned for its unique forecourt of the stars, featuring cement hand and footprints of major movie stars, from Marilyn Monroe to Brad Pitt, and numerous stars from all eras of Hollywood. In addition to being amajor international tourist destination, Grauman’s Chinese Theatre, and its six adjacent cinemas, the Chinese 6, are everyday working movie theatres, hosting millions of moviegoers year round. Grauman’s Chinese Theatre was declared a historic-cultural landmark in 1968, and there has always been a restorationprogram in process to maintain the theatre’s beauty. With its current, on-going facelift and new added amenities and event spaces, guided by a new and vigorous ownership team, the Chinese Theatres and its famed “hands in cement” forecourt will continue to be the preferred location for tourist visits and the entertainment industry’s most prestigious red carpet premieres for years to come.

IMMORTALS

Release Date: November 11, 2011

DIRECTOR: Tarsem Singh (The Fall, The Cell)
WRITERS: Charles Parlapanides and Vlas Parlapanides
CAST:  Henry Cavill- THESEUS (Superman: Man of Steel)
Stephen Dorff- STAVROS (Somewhere)
Isabel Lucas- ATHENA (Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen)
Freida Pinto- PHAEDRA (Slumdog Millionaire)
Luke Evans- ZEUS (The Raven, The Three Muskateers)
Kellan Lutz- POSEIDON (Twilight series)
John Hurt- OLD ZEUS (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Parts 1 & 2)
Mickey Rourke- KING HYPERION (The Wrestler)
PRODUCERS: Gianni Nunnari, Mark Canton, Ryan Kavanaugh
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Tucker Tooley, Tommy Turtle, Jeff G. Waxman

Visionary director Tarsem Singh (The Cell, The Fall) transports us in this epic tale of treachery, vengeance and destiny in Immortals, a stylish and visually spectacular 3D action adventure. As a power-hungry king razes ancient Greece in search of a legendary weapon, a heroic young villager rises up against him in a thrilling quest as timeless as it is powerful.
The brutal and bloodthirsty King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke) and his murderous Heraklion army rampage across Greece in search of the long lost Bow of Epirus. With the invincible Bow, the king will be able to overthrow the Gods of Olympus and become the undisputed master of his world. With ruthless efficiency, Hyperion and his legions destroy everything in their wake, and it seems nothing will stop the evil king’s mission.

As village after village is obliterated, a stonemason named Theseus (Henry Cavill) vows to avenge his mother, who was killed in one of Hyperion’s brutal raids. When Theseus meets the Sybelline Oracle, Phaedra (Freida Pinto), her disturbing visions of the young man’s future convince her that he is the key to stopping the destruction. With her help, Theseus assembles a small band of followers and embraces his destiny in a final, desperate battle for the future of humanity. Immortals is produced by Gianni Nunnari (300), Mark Canton (300) and Ryan Kavanaugh (The Fighter).   

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/immortals

Oscar Winner Cliff Robertson Dies at 88

Cliff Robertson, an Oscar winning actor whose career spanned seven decades, died earlier to day, one day after his 88th birthday. According to his secretary of 53 years, Evelyn Christel, Mr. Robertson passed due to natural causes.

Born in Los Angeles on September 9, 1923, Robertson began his acting career with small, uncredited appearances in low budget films. In 1952 he began working in early television programming, working up to the title role in “Rod Brown of the Rocket Rangers.” Other early appearances include “Hallmark Hall of Fame,” “Celebrity Playhouse” and “Robert Montgomery Presents.” In 1955 he made his first credited film appearance opposite William Holden and Kim Novak in “Picnic.” Other roles followed including “The Girl Most Likely,” “The Naked and the Dead” and “Gidget.” He also continued working in television, appearing on programs like “The Twilight Zone,” “Ben Casey” and “The Untouchables.”

In 1962 his star rose when he was personally chosen by President John Kennedy to portray him in “P.T. 109,” which was based on the true story of the sinking of Kennedy’s boat during World War II. After the release of “P.T. 109” Robertson’s roles got a little better. He played Charly Gordon, a retarded man who, because of a medical experiment, becomes a genius, in “Charly,” the film adaptation of Daniel Keyes’ best selling book “Flowers for Algernon.” For his performance in the film Robertson received the Academy Award for Best Actor. He was that success to direct a script he had written called “J.W. Coop,” about a rodeo cowboy who returned to the circuit after spending several years in prison.

Despite his Oscar, Robertson continued to work in television as well as films, including a tongue in cheek performance as the villain Shame on “Batman.” Though he appeared in some fine films in the 1970’s, including “3 Days of the Condor” and “Obsession,” it was a film he didn’t appear in that earned him notoriety. In 1977, while preparing his taxes, he noticed a $10,000 payment from Columbia Pictures that he never received. Upon investigating it was discovered that David Begelman, then head of the studio, had written a check to Robertson and others and cashed them himself. Begelman was quietly fired and, in 1995, committed suicide. Urged to keep the dirty business secret, Robertson went to the press. The resulting investigation became the basis for the book “Indecent Exposure,” one of the best “Hollywood” books I’ve ever read.

His film output wasn’t as great in the 80’s, with Robertson claiming to have been blacklisted because he spoke out about Begelman. He did appear in Bob Fosse’s “Star 80” and Douglas Trumbull’s “Brainstorm ,” but neither were popular at the box office. He worked sporadically the next two decades. In 2002 he became a star to a new generation of fans when he appeared as Uncle Ben in “Spider-man,” a role he would continue in the two sequels.