At a time when the feature-length documentary has firmly established itself as a force at the box office, acclaimed filmmaker Michael Almereyda and celebrated humorist, poet and pundit Andrei Codrescu are embarking upon a unique journey of discovery along the entire length of the Mississippi River---creating an edgy and exciting new feature film that promises to strike a deep chord with audiences eager for meaningful, thought-provoking entertainment at the Cineplex.
The next great American story, Big River Blues shines a new light on the magnificent waterway that is our greatest river. The Mississippi: dividing line of the country, power source, mega-highway, drainpipe; the lowest, deepest channel that can separate or bring us together. The River will be Codrescu's co-star.
Master social commentator Codrescu will share his fabled wisdom and wit, at once sympathetic and razor-sharp, seeking out the good, the bad and everything in between, all with an eye to taking the pulse of contemporary America as he travels its main artery. The unfolding story of the destruction of his beloved New Orleans by hurricane Katrina has become part of our film, revealing much about our frailty in the face of nature's power, exposing both the best and the worst in human behavior.
Director Michael Almereyda is a distinct and powerful voice in American cinema, with more than 11 produced titles behind him, he has a particular love for the documentary. The Washington Post credits him with "a great sense of postmodern comic inflection" and with "Cocteau's sense of film as a magic plaything." Joining his unique talents with the razor sharp wit and blazing intelligence of celebrated humorist, Codrescu, has all the earmarks of a marriage made in movie goers' heaven.
Codrescu doesn't just interview---he interacts, diving in to situations, becoming part of them—and the results can be wildly humorous or painfully serious, or some combination of the two, but always thought-provoking and revealing in often unforeseeable ways. He'll take on the polluters, the politicos, the saints and the sinners providing us with a look in the mirror as reflected by the River and those who live on its shores.
The musical soundtrack will have a life of its own. Drawing on a legacy of blues greats, from Robert Johnson, Mississippi John Hurt, and Honey Boy Edwards, to the work of top contemporary artists, the compilation CD presents an inspired anthology, emblematic of the diverse world of music that the river has inspired and nurtured for more than 200 years. The soundtrack gives a voice to the song of the river, its people, and its stories.
Multiple-award winners on the crew include Brian Doubleday as Producer and Rich Lerner as Director of Photography. Columbus Baker, former Senior Producer and Director of Development for the Hallmark Entertainment Networks is Executive Producer.
After theatrical release of Big River Blues, the producers will secure broadcast and cable television distribution and release to the home video and DVD markets. There is a substantial audience to be reached across America and around the world, who will discover Codrescu's gift for unexpected, mind-bending observation of all things American through this film.
Management and Key Personnel
Andrei Codrescu Producer/Writer/Host
Andrei Codrescu wrote and starred in the Peabody Award-winning movie, Road Scholar, winner of Best Documentary at the San Francisco and Seattle film festivals. He is a regular commentator on National Public Radio's All Things Considered.
He is MacCurdy Distinguished Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where he edits Exquisite Corpse: a Journal of Letters & Life (www.exquisitecorpse.org). He has appeared on the Today Show, the Tonight Show, the David Letterman show, Nightline, the Charlie Rose Show, CNN, NBC news, and CBS news.
Codrescu writes commentary and book reviews for the Boston Globe, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Chicago Tribune, and Playboy and others. His most recent novel is Wakefield, Algonquin Books, 2004. He has published poetry, memoirs, fiction, and essays. Among his books are:: Alien Candor: Selected Poems 1970-1997; the novels The Blood Countess (1995); Messiah (1999); The Hole in the Flag: An Exile's Tale of Return and Revolution, about the dramatic collapse of Romania's dictatorship in 1989; Ay, Cuba: a Socio-Erotic Journey, and Hail, Babylon: Looking at American Cities.
Michael Almereyda Director
Michael Almereyda has been an acclaimed independent film director since writing and directing Twister in 1990. He is accomplished in both documentary and dramatic formats. Almereyda's dramatic feature films include Another Girl, Another Planet, Nadja, Hamlet (starring Ethan Hawke and Sam Shepard and distributed by Miramax) and for IFC flims, Happy Here and Now.
In 2006 he wrote and directed two features, Tonight at Noon, and New Orleans Mon Amour, shot in New Orleans in August.
His documentary works include At Sundance, Aliens, This So-Called Disaster and William Eggleson in the Real World.
In 2004 Almereyda was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship for filmmaking, the same year he directed an episode of the HBO hit series DEADWOOD.
Almereyda's writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Village Voice, The Believer, Film Comment, and the British film journal Projections.
He divides his time between New York and New Orleans.
Brian Doubleday Producer
Brian Doubleday has been a film and video producer/director since 1973. He recently co-produced Instinct, a Touchstone production starring Anthony Hopkins and Cuba Gooding, Jr. through Disney Productions. He was producer/director for the regional Emmy award-winning Venturing, the regional Emmy-nominated The New Workplace, both shown nationally on PBS. He was co-writer and director of 26 half-hour episodes of the nationally syndicated Joy of Gardening television series. Doubleday wrote, produced and directed the HBO/Cinemax satire Guide to Deer Hunting, and he also wrote, produced and directed the one hour documentary, Worldwalker, the story of the first solo walk around the world.
Columbus Baker Executive Producer
Mr. Baker began his career as a folk musician in the Deep South during the Civil Rights Movement and moved on to become a singer/songwriter and recording artist with the seminal 1960's Jazz/Rock group, The Free Spirits. He was Vice President in charge of Production with Excalibur Records founder/owner/general manager of KSPK-FM and President and Executive Producer for his production company, Baker Communications, Inc. From 1996 through 2001, he was Senior Producer and Director of Development for the international division of the Hallmark Channel, from its early days through syndication in 90 million households in 100 countries worldwide. He produced more than 100 episodes in support of high-profile films and miniseries titles from Hallmark Entertainment in New York.
Neal Lemlein Production Representative and Executive In Charge of Marketing
Mr. Lemlein has had a long and successful career in the marketing of film properties. He was Vice-President, Marketing and Media Services at Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. He developed media-marketing campaigns and spending levels for each picture released. He was also charged with modeling, implementation and application of all marketing research activities for all Fox films. Mr. Lemlein served as Executive Vice-President of Marketing and Programming and Production for the New York Times/Toronto Star co-venture, Popcorn Channel: Television for Moviegoers
His extraordinary career includes involvement in over 100 film marketing campaigns including Star Wars, Aliens, and Hunt for Red October. Since 1989 Neal has been a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (The Oscars). Additionally, Neal has served as an executive at some of the most powerful media outlets in the world including Executive Vice President of Marketing for Universal Studios.
GoCup, Inc. Managing Member
The Managing Member is GoCup, Inc., a Colorado corporation to serve as the Managing Member of the Company. The Managing Member will manage the business affairs of the Company. The address of the Managing Member is 7623 E. Bates Drive, Denver, Colorado 80231-6016 and the telephone number is 303-337-1310.
