Starring Billy Crudup, Anton Yelchin, Felicity Huffman, Jamie Chung,
Selena Gomez and Laurence Fishburne
HOLLYWOOD--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Paramount Home Media Distribution and Samuel Goldwyn Films announced
today a collaboration to bring RUDDERLESS to theatrical and home viewing
audiences. The feature directorial debut of Academy Award® and Golden
Globe® nominee* William H. Macy, RUDDERLESS was produced by Keith
Kjarval (Unified Pictures) and Brad Greiner in association with Aaron L.
Gilbert's Bron Studios and had its world premiere as the Closing Night
Film at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival. The film stars Billy Crudup (Almost
Famous), Anton Yelchin (Star Trek Into Darkness), Felicity
Huffman ("Desperate Housewives"), Jamie Chung ("Believe"), Selena Gomez (Spring
Breakers) and Laurence Fishburne (The Matrix).
Samuel Goldwyn Films will handle U.S. theatrical distribution
day-and-date with Paramount Home Media Distribution's VOD release.
Paramount will also handle other U.S. ancillary platforms and all
distribution in Canada, the UK, Russia and certain territories in Asia.
After a man has his life torn apart when he loses his son, he is content
wasting the rest of his days until he discovers a box of unpublished
music. Coming from such an unexpected source, the music is a revelation.
He begins obsessively learning the songs, until one day he decides to
play one of them at a local bar. The song captivates a young musician in
the audience and the two unlikely friends decide to form a local band
that gains sudden popularity and changes both of their lives.
"After seeing such a fabulous response at Sundance, we are thrilled to
be partnering with two of the most prestigious distributors in our
business on my directing debut," said director William H. Macy. "When I
first moved to LA, many years ago, I lived just off of Melrose, and I
passed those beautiful gates to Paramount almost every day. Seeing them
become our partner on RUDDERLESS and adding the storied Goldwyn Company
into the mix excites me to no end."
"William H. Macy has always been a true talent in front of the cameras
and now also proves to be a major force behind the scenes. Billy Crudup,
Felicity Huffman and the rest of the cast deliver stellar performances.
We are excited to again partner with Paramount Home Media Distribution
in bringing Macy's remarkable first feature to theaters," said Peter
Goldwyn, Senior Vice President, Samuel Goldwyn Films.
"RUDDERLESS is an incredibly powerful and moving film and we are
extremely excited to bring it to audiences around the world," said
Syrinthia Studer, Senior Vice President, Marketing and Acquisitions,
Paramount Home Media Distribution. "William H. Macy has delivered a
terrific first feature with extraordinary performances by his stellar
cast, a compelling story and wonderful original music. We feel confident
that it will be embraced by audiences both in the U.S. and
internationally."
The deal was negotiated by Paramount Home Media Distribution, WME Global
and Peter Goldwyn, Senior Vice President of Samuel Goldwyn Films, with
Radiant Films handling international.
About Samuel Goldwyn Films
Samuel Goldwyn Films is a major, independently owned and operated
motion-picture company that develops, produces and distributes
innovative feature films and documentaries. The company is dedicated to
working with both world renowned and emerging writers/filmmakers and
committed to filmed entertainment that offers original voices in
uniquely told stories. This is best exemplified by the Academy Award®
nominated THE SQUID AND THE WHALE and SUPER SIZE ME; AMAZING GRACE and
Julie Delpy's hit comedy 2 DAYS IN PARIS. Past Goldwyn titles include
the critically hailed ELEGY starring Academy Award® winner Penélope
Cruz, HARRY BROWN starring Michael Caine and the box office smash
FIREPROOF. MAO'S LAST DANCER, directed by Academy Award® nominee Bruce
Beresford was one of the top grossing independent films of 2010. Samuel
Goldwyn Films released THE WHISTLEBLOWER, a powerful, ripped from the
headlines thriller starring Academy Award® winner Rachel Weisz and the
2012 critics' darling, ROBOT & FRANK, starring Academy Award® nominee
Frank Langella, James Marsden, Liv Tyler and Academy Award® winner Susan
Sarandon. Additional Samuel Goldwyn Films releases include DIANA
VREELAND: THE EYE HAS TO TRAVEL, an acclaimed documentary about the late
fashion icon, Gilles Bourdos' RENOIR, the lush film about the famous
painter's later years and France's official submission for the 2014
Academy Awards®, Academy Award® nominee James Cromwell starrer, STILL
MINE, and the Jason Wise much buzzed about film SOMM. Upcoming releases
include Academy Award®-winner Freida Mock's critically acclaimed
documentary ANITA featuring intimate and in-depth interviews with Anita
Hill and filmmaker Lucia Puenzo's haunting film and Argentina's official
submission to the 2014 Academy Awards® THE GERMAN DOCTOR.
About Paramount Home Media Distribution
Paramount Home Media Distribution (PHMD) is part of Paramount Pictures
Corporation (PPC), a global producer and distributor of filmed
entertainment. PPC is a unit of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIAB, VIA), a leading
content company with prominent and respected film, television and
digital entertainment brands. The PHMD division oversees PPC's home
entertainment, digital and television distribution activities worldwide.
The division is responsible for the sales, marketing and distribution of
home entertainment content on behalf of Paramount Pictures, Paramount
Animation, Paramount Vantage, Paramount Classics, Insurge Pictures, MTV,
Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and CBS and for providing home entertainment
fulfillment services for certain DreamWorks Animation Home Entertainment
titles. PHMD additionally manages global licensing of studio content and
distribution across worldwide digital and television distribution
platforms including online, mobile and portable devices and emerging
technologies.
About Unified Pictures:
Unified Pictures operates as an independent film production and
distribution company dedicated to the development, financing, production
and distribution of top-tier filmed entertainment. With several
cutting-edge and artistically innovative films, Unified Pictures has
established an impressive presence in a wide variety of film genres.
The company has completed seven films in the past two and a half years.
Unified's latest film "Loitering with Intent," starring Sam Rockwell,
Marisa Tomei and Natasha Lyonne is world premiering at the upcoming
Tribeca Film Festival.
Additional films include William H. Macy's directorial debut
"Rudderless," which closed this year's Sundance Film Festival; "The
Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete" (dir. George Tillman Jr., starring
Jennifer Hudson, Jordin Sparks), which opened the 2013 Sundance Film
Festival; "A Single Shot" (dir. David Rosenthal, starring Sam Rockwell,
William H. Macy, Jeffrey Wright), which premiered at the 2013 Berlin
Film Festival; and "Trust Me" (dir. Clark Gregg, starring Gregg, Sam
Rockwell, Amanda Peet, Molly Shannon, and William H. Macy) which had its
world premiere at the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival.
For more information please visit www.unifiedpictures.com.
About Bron Studios
Bron Studios is a British Columbia based producer of original motion
pictures. Bron co-‐produced the Sundance closing night film Rudderless,
starring Billy Crudup, Anton Yelchin, Selena Gomez and Laurence
Fishburne and directed by William H. Macy. Bron's recent productions
include: Welcome to Me, starring Kristen Wiig, Tim Robbins, Wes
Bentley and James Marsden; Trust Me, starring Clark Gregg, Amanda
Peet, Sam Rockwell, and Alison Janney, and A Single Shot,
starring Sam Rockwell, Jeffrey Wright, Jason Isaacs, and William H.
Macy. Bron is led by Managing Director Aaron L. Gilbert, Executive
Producer and/or Producer of recent films Kill Me 3 Times, Son of a
Gun, Miss Julie, Elsa & Fred, Ginger and Rosa, The English Teacher,
Lullaby, and others. For more information please visit www.bronstudios.com.
*Academy Award nominee Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Fargo, 1996;
Golden Globe nominee Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role
in a Motion Picture, Seabiscuit, 2004; Golden Globe nominee Best
Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for
Television, The Wool Cap (2005) and Door to Door (2003)
Samuel Goldwyn Films
Veronica Van Pelt, (212) 367-8937
Veronica@idpfilm.com
or
Paramount
Home Media
Brenda Ciccone, (323) 956-8091
Brenda_ciccone@paramount.com
Source: Paramount Home Media Distribution
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