TWO ALUMS OF LOYOLA MARYMOUNT’S FILM PROGRAM
HAVE FILMS IN COMPETITION AT SUNDANCE FESTIVAL
Effie Brown’s Rocket Science and Ted Kroeber’s
Four Sheets to
the Wind to Have Their World Premieres at Park City
Kroeber Is Also Celebrating Three Independent Spirit Award Nominations
For His Recent Film ‘American Gun’
Los Angeles, Calif. – December 13, 2006 – The newest films by acclaimed independent filmmakers Effie Brown and Ted Kroeber, both graduates of the Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television in Los Angeles, have been accepted into the competition at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival, January 18-28 in Park City, Utah.
Rocket Science will be the second film produced by Ms. Brown to be in competition at the Sundance Film Festival, while Four Sheets to the Wind is Mr. Kroeber’s first to screen at the annual festival spotlighting the best independent cinema. Mr. Kroeber arrives at Sundance armed with three Independent Spirit Award nominations for his previous feature film, American Gun, including one for Best Feature.
“Effie and Ted both embody the values and goals of our program, and so it’s heartening to see that the Sundance programmers recognize their exceptional talent,” said Teri Schwartz, Dean of LMU’s School of Film and Television. “We aim to develop the next generation of great storytellers, and we need look no further than these two remarkable filmmakers. We couldn’t be happier that their latest work will be showcased at the premiere festival for new films.”
Dean Schwartz will lead a delegation from the LMU/SFTV community comprised of top graduate and undergraduate students at the festival. The young, aspiring, filmmakers will get a hands-on introduction to the high energy and unmatched networking opportunities that a top festival like Sundance provides.
They will certainly get a chance to share in the excitement around the new films from Ms. Brown and Mr. Kroeber, both of whom are members of LMU/SFTV’s Arts Council, an advisory board for Dean Schwartz.
Ms. Brown’s Rocket Science tells the story of a teenager with a terrible stutter who enters his high school’s debate team in hopes of impressing the girl of his dreams. It was directed by Jeffrey Blitz (Spellbound) and stars Reece Thompson. Previously, Ms. Brown produced the multiple award-winning film Real Women Have Curves, which starred America Ferrera (Ugly Betty). Among the honors it received was the Audience Award and Special Jury Prize at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival. She was also executive producer of Jane Campion’s In the Cut, which starred Meg Ryan and Jennifer Jason Leigh.
Mr. Kroeber’s Four Sheets to the Wind is about Cufe Smallhill who finds his Father dead, puts him in the family pond, and begins his life in the big city of Tulsa. It was written and directed by Sterlin Harjo and stars Cody Lightning.
Earlier this year, Mr. Kroeber’s American Gun generated much praise during its theatrical release for its multi-part tale of the impact gun violence has on America. Directed by fellow LMU alum Aric Avelino, the film starred Independent Spirit Award nominees Forest Whitaker and Marcia Gay Harden as well as Donald Sutherland and LMU alumna Linda Cardellini.