PRESS . . . |
| . FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
| April 21, 2003 |
| Armageddon Jones binds students/filmmakers |
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SAN DIEGO—Mnemosyne Pictures has announced that Armageddon Jones, shooting this summer in San Diego, will
include area high school and college students on its production team selected from Alliant International University's
new Summer Film Institute. The program, the brainchild of AIU Filmmaker in Residence Michael Steven Gregory, is a
first step in reshaping the perception of San Diego as merely "Hollywood's backlot" into that of being "the training
ground for Hollywood."
Described only as an ensemble drama, Armageddon Jones factors heavily in achieving that goal, according to
Gregory, director and co-writer (with Anna Gilson) of the film. "Mnemosyne Pictures' commitment to sustaining
quality motion picture production in San Diego, in part, by investing in the potential of students seeking real-world
filmmaking experience, is very much what the program we're developing at AIU is about," said Gregory. "Have
professional filmmakers train students to be filmmakers by putting them to work making films, right alongside and
with the guidance of their mentors."
To that end, the Indie Filmmaker's Bootcamp, taking place on AIU's Scripps Ranch campus June 23rd through July 3rd,
aims to provide students such hands-on training opportunity from key personnel on the AJ shoot. Completion of
the program entitles participants to certification from the American Academy of Arts, and up to 25 will be eligible
to then intern and earn full professional production credit on the AJ shoot. Two student filmmakers competing
in the upcoming BestFest San Diego film festival (the largest student film festival in the country) will be awarded
full scholarships to the Bootcamp from Mnemosyne Pictures.
Mnemosyne's Claudia Bologna explained, "Filmmakers have few options when first starting out — try to get into one of
the highly competitive film schools, volunteer to work as a lowly assistant on somebody else's film, or go and make a
movie of your own, which most lack the money and experience to do well to begin with. Now we have a rare opportunity
to demonstrate the potential of local filmmakers to produce quality films outside of Hollywood, and at the same time
help establish San Diego as the place to go before going to L.A. to learn how to do so."
The American Academy of Arts and the Visual Arts Foundation, which sponsors the BestFest San Diego Student Film
Festival, are providing support to Mnemosyne Pictures, AIU, and Gregory's company, Random Cove by engaging San Diego
high school and college students to participate in this unique experience.
"When we heard that Mnemosyne and Gregory were working with AIU to put this together, we couldn't wait to let local
students and teachers know about it," remarked David Larson, Visual Arts Foundation President. "This new, living
classroom, going on in San Diego this summer, takes filmmaking education to a new level."
Visit Alliant International University's Web site at www.Alliant.edu/ce/bootcamp.htm, or call 800-457-1273 for Indie
Filmmaker's Bootcamp registration information.
Michael Steven Gregory can be reached at (858) 635-4428.
>> Visit AIU for Indie Filmmaker's Bootcamp information
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