Nation's Premiere Showcase For Multicultural
Cinema To Be Held in New YorkSeptember 17 - 21, 2014
NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
The 18th Annual Urbanworld® Film Festival (www.urbanworld.org),
presented by BET Networks with founding sponsor HBO, announced the
addition of an exclusive look at scenes from
the upcoming Lionsgate/Codeblack Films release, Addicted
and a Q & A with the stars and filmmakers today.
Addicted, based on the best-selling novel by Zane and a
screenplay by Christina Welsh and Ernie Barbarash, is a sexy and
provocative thriller about desire and the dangers of indiscretion.
Successful businesswoman Zoe Reynard (Sharon Leal) appears to have
attained it all - the dream husband she loves, two wonderful children
and a flourishing career. As perfect as everything appears from the
outside, Zoe is still drawn to temptations she cannot escape or resist.
As she pursues a secretive life, Zoe finds herself risking it all when
she heads down a perilous path she may not survive. Boris Kodjoe,
Tyson Beckfordand William Levy star in the film and will
join Zane and director Bille Woodruff at a Q & A
and exclusive look at scenes from the film on Friday, September 19, 2014
at 7:45pm at Manhattan's AMC Loews 34th Street 14. Addicted will
open nationwide on October 10.
Also of note, the four finalist scripts selected for the best screenplay
competition are Just Downsized - written by Pauline Gray, The
Jumbie - written by H.M. Coakley, Noor - written by Nijla
Mumin and Summer Break - written by Cathleen Campbell. In
addition to awarding $5,000 to the winner, BET Networks will review the
finalist scripts with an eye for potential development at the network.
Spotlight films and programs at this year's festival also include Urbanworld®
Digital, which will be hosted by HBO for the fifth year. "More than
ever, we recognize the importance of technology as it relates to content
creation and distribution," said Dennis Williams, vice president of
Corporate Social Responsibility at HBO. "We are proud to support
Urbanworld Digital, as it provides a unique opportunity to connect
content creators and industry influencers within a rapidly evolving
digital landscape." The program will feature workshops and sessions
presented by HBO, Comcast NBCUniversal Telemundo, Interactive One, Seed
& Spark and Project Catalyst, among others in the digital space.
Issa Rae, best known for her hit web-series, The
Mis-Adventures of Awkward Black Girl, is a featured guest for the
Urbanworld® Digital Fireside Chat with Roland Martin sponsored by
NewsOne. Rae will also premiere her latest venture, Issa Rae
Presents: ColorCreative.TV, at the festival. Through Color
Creative.TV, Issa Rae - along with her producing partner Deniese
Davis, who will also join her in the Urbanworld® Digital Fireside Chat -
strives to discover new writing talent and diverse stories via national
workshops, improve the TV pilot development process; and produce and
package low-cost TV pilots with an indie familiarity.
The festival's nightlife will feature special editions of Urbanworld®
Music presenting a mix of eclectic live performances in partnership
with Que Bajo?! and Everyday People — two leading NYC event franchises -
to create unique after-dark experiences for festival goers. On Saturday,
September 20, Urbanworld® Music and Everyday People will present the
8-piece rock/soul band, Condola and the Stoop Kids, in an edgy, live
performance that features lead singer and Tony® nominated actress Condola
Rashad.
Additionally, Urbanworld® will host free community screenings on
Sunday, September 21 in Brooklyn, Queens, and Harlem to engage the
broader New York community with the Urbanworld® experience. In
partnership with Bed-Stuy Restoration Corporation in Brooklyn, The
Museum of Moving Image in Queens, ImageNation and The Schomburg Center
for Research in Black Culture in Harlem, Urbanworld® will curate
customized evening screening programs for each community. The full
schedule will be announced on the festival website next week.
Along with presenting sponsor BET Networks and founding sponsor HBO,
another key supporter of the nation's largest competitive multicultural
film festival September 17-21, 2014 in New York is premiere
sponsor Comcast NBCUniversal Telemundo. Industry circle supporters
include Fox Global Directors Initiative, Cinemax, Interactive One,
Panavision, MoviePass, Moguldom, RLJ Entertainment, the Directors Guild
of America and AMC Theatres.
For the complete slate of films, film synopsis, ticket information,
additional Urbanworld® Digital and Urbanworld® Music details and daily
updates, visit www.urbanworld.org.
ABOUT URBANWORLD® FILM FESTIVAL
The Urbanworld® Film Festival, founded in 1997 by Stacy Spikes, is the
largest internationally competitive festival of its kind. The five-day
festival includes narrative features, documentaries, short films,
spotlight screenings, events, live staged screenplay readings, the
Urbanworld® Digital track focused on digital and social media panels and
workshops and Urbanworld® Music, which highlights emerging talent in
live performances during after party events. Over the last 18 years,
Hollywood studios, indie film distributors, and established and emerging
filmmakers have consistently chosen Urbanworld® to premiere box office
and award-winning hits. Urbanworld® has also provided a platform for
some of today's leading brands seeking to reach key influencers across
the industry and within the consumer marketplace. The Urbanworld® Film
Festival is an initiative of the Urbanworld® Foundation Inc., a
nonprofit organization that endeavors to consistently manifest its
mission of redefining and advancing the presence and impact of the
multicultural community in cinema and cross-platform media. By
implementing initiatives that actively support and develop content
creators of color, Urbanworld® significantly contributes to the
evolution of the media and entertainment landscape and the diversity
that it reflects. Gabrielle Glore serves as Executive Producer & Head of
Programming for the Urbanworld® Film Festival. The festival website is www.urbanworld.org.
ABOUT BET NETWORKS
BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIA.B), is the
nation's leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and
public affairs television programming for the African-American audience.
The primary BET channel reaches more than 90 million households and can
be seen in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom
and sub-Saharan Africa. BET is the dominant African-American consumer
brand with a diverse group of business extensions: BET.com, a leading
Internet destination for Black entertainment, music, culture, and news;
CENTRIC, a 24-hour entertainment network targeting the 25- to
54-year-old African-American audience; BET Digital Networks - BET Gospel
and BET Hip Hop, attractive alternatives for cutting-edge entertainment
tastes; BET Home Entertainment, a collection of BET-branded offerings
for the home environment including DVDs and video-on-demand; BET Event
Productions, a full-scale event management and production company with
festivals and live events spanning the globe; BET Mobile, which provides
ringtones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET
International, which operates BET in the United Kingdom and oversees the
extension of BET network programming for global distribution.
Media
The Collins Jackson Agency
Staci R. Collins
Jackson, 312-600-7774
StaciRCollinsJackson@TheCollinsJacksonAgency.com
or
BET
Networks
Terrece Walker, 212-205-3264
Terrece.Walker@BET.net
Source: BET Networks
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