VOD/Digital Archives - Unspool Hollywood

View New Trailer: FREE PUPPIES! Opens December 13th in U.S. and Canada on VOD and DVD

A film by Samantha Wishman & Christina Thomas
Run time: 1 hour 10
Language: English

A true story about the heartbreak and heroism of dog rescue in America

Releasing on VOD on major platforms and DVD in the US and Canada on December 13.

US VOD Platforms: iTunes/Apple, Amazon and key major platforms.
Canada VOD Platforms: iTunes/Apple

When Hurricane Katrina left more than 250,000 pets stranded, the infrastructure of a nation-wide dog rescue effort was born. Since then, millions of Southern rescue dogs have been transported to new homes thanks to the tireless efforts of a grassroots network of dog rescuers. And while the media has popularized the image of dogs climbing out of transport trucks into the arms of eager adopters, little attention has been paid to the other side of the story.

FREE PUPPIES! travels across the country's political divide to explore one of the many areas where no public animal services exist, and volunteers -- many of them women -- step in. The story follows rescuers Monda Wooten, Ann Brown, and Ruth Smith, and the network of independent “rescue ladies” who patrol vast rural counties in the Tennessee Valley caring for stray and surrendered dogs.

Their grassroots efforts to start up a spay-and-neuter program, rescue countless dogs from euthanasia and neglect, and place them in loving "forever homes" will pluck at the heartstrings of any dog person.

"Truly, truly inspiring in the most powerful sense of that word." -NPR's "Talking Animals"

Filmmaker Biography - Samantha Wishman
Samantha Wishman is a filmmaker from New York City. After graduating from Columbia Law School, she moved to LA to make a short film about pitching a script for a feminist softball comedy in Hollywood, which went on to play at a number of festivals. She adopted a rescue dog named Billie Hollydale before returning home to make FREE PUPPIES!.

Filmmaker Biography - Christina Thomas
Christina Thomas is a producer, director and editor from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After graduating from The University of Pennsylvania she moved to Los Angeles where she has worked on several productions including commercials, shorts and features. FREE PUPPIES! is her documentary directorial debut. She enjoys giving equal attention to her dogs Harvey and Ruphus.

RIVER’S END on VOD in the US, Canada and UK on November 2, 2021.

Director Jacob Morrison's feature documentary film RVER'S END will be released on VOD in the US, Canada and UK on November 2, 2021.

The VOD Platforms: Apple TV/iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, Vudu (US, Canada, UK)

Cable Platforms: In Demand TVOD (Comcast, Spectrum, Cox), DirectTV/AT&T and more (US)

RIVER’S END explores the global water crisis, using California as a microcosm. It reveals how water politics that led to the draining of the Owens Valley by Los Angeles, made famous by the film CHINATOWN, continue to this day in ongoing efforts to take ever more water from Northern California's San Francisco Bay estuary. Except this time, the water grab is at the hands of industrial agriculture and its powerful corporate investors. RIVER’S END inspires viewers to learn where their water comes from so that we can save our rivers and the ecosystems and communities that depend upon them.

JACOB MORRISON- WRITER/DIRECTOR/PRODUCER
Jacob Morrison is a filmmaker releasing his feature directorial debut, RIVER’S END. Morrison has produced series for VICELAND and Fullscreen, wrote and starred in a multi-episode explainer series for Vice, and directed a half-hour television pilot. He is a graduate of USC’s School of Cinematic Arts and a native of Southern California.

Website: https://www.riversendfilm.com/

CONNECT ON SOCIAL MEDIA:
Instagram:
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Twitter: https://youtu.be/MhsQTkf - 1BY

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Hashtag:
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GIANT PICTURES

Giant Pictures is a leading digital distributor that is committed to empowering filmmakers to own their distribution. With offices in New York and Los Angeles, we work directly with rights owners to distribute movies and TV shows to VOD and streaming platforms in North America and worldwide. Our content partners range from first-time filmmakers to award-winning independent producers, as well as notable studios Alamo Drafthouse Films, Abramorama Selects, Participant, Tribeca Enterprises, Utopia Distribution, and XYZ Films. A division of Giant Interactive, the award-winning digital media and technology services company, we distribute across 45+ platforms, including AppleTV, Netflix, Prime Video, The Roku Channel, Pluto TV, Tubi, and Peacock.

Learn more at: www.giant.pictures

VIEW TRAILER BELOW!

Director James Cullen Bressack’s Thriller ‘Survive the Game’ in Theatres, On-Demand and Digital on October 8th

Director: James Cullen Bressack
Starring: Chad Michael Murray and Bruce Willis

Director James Cullen Bressack’s upcoming Lionsgate action thriller 'Survive the Game' starring Chad Michael Murray and Bruce Willis, in theatres, on-demand and Digital on Oct 8th and on DVD and Blu-Ray on Oct 12th.

Bruce Willis as David in the action film, SURVIVE THE GAME, a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate SURVIVE THE GAME R) Simon P

Bruce Willis (Pulp Fiction) and Chad Michael Murray (“Riverdale”) star in this explosive crime-thriller. When cop David (Willis) is injured in a drug bust gone wrong, his partner, Cal, pursues the two criminals who shot him to a remote farm owned by troubled vet Eric (Murray). As Cal and Eric plot their defense, more of the gang arrives — along with a wounded David — and, outnumbered, the three heroes must use stealth, smarts, and marksmanship to take down the drug-dealing mob.

About the Director

Phillips an award-winning British actor, is probably best known for the Amazon Prime hit TV shows Age of The Living Dead (an incredible vampire series that embodies the Jack Ryan series and cult favorite Dawn of Dead), & No Easy Days and The Rise and Fall of a White Collar Hooligan Trilogy features films.

Chad Michael Murray as Eric in the action film, SURVIVE THE GAME, a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgate

He’s recently wowed audiences in the acclaimed diabolical dark comedy “Stealing Chaplin” featuring Mr. Las Vegas Himself Wayne Newton. Stealing Chaplin became the first comedy feature film to auction collectible NFT’s this summer. Phillips also cited and won awards for his gruesome portrayal of Santa Claus in Christmas Horror features Once Upon A Time At Christmas and The Nights Before Christmas.

Donna D'Errico as Carly in the action film, SURVIVE THE GAME, a Lionsgate release. Photo courtesy of Lionsgat

His 2021 Feature film Butchers, garnered high praise from The Guardian Newspaper stating "It's Phillips' performance that keeps the film's pulse going.” He has appeared in feature films with Bruce Willis, Danny Dyer, David O'Hara, Mark Hamill, Robert Englund, Rutger Hauer, Richard E. Grant, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, John Malkovich and Mel Gibson.

VIEW TRAILER BELOW!

Gravitas Ventures has acquired North America digital rights to filmmaker Panayioti Yannitsos’ Florian’s Knights

Gravitas Ventures, a Red Arrow Studios company, has acquired North America digital rights to filmmaker Panayioti Yannitsos (“Freedom Besieged”) powerful feature documentary “Florian’s Knights.” Crowbar Pictures, Inc has released the film in theaters across North America on beginning on September 10th,, 2021 timed to the 20th anniversary of 9/11. Markets to be included in the theatrical rollout –New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Detroit, Chicago, Denver, Phoenix, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Regina, and Saskatoon. Gravitas Ventures will release across all TVOD/Digital platforms & Blu-Ray/DVD throughout the North American continent beginning on November 23rd, 2021. A Canadian production, Yannitsos’ new documentary chronicles firefighters in both the US and Canada who form a controversial motorcycle club to cope with the crippling effects of PTSD. As the Florian’s Knights full patch motorcycle club, the freedom felt on two wheels inspires North American firefighters to speak truth against the stigma of first responder mental health and outlaw biker culture. From the impact of 9/11, to the front lines of the opioid crisis in Vancouver and Toronto, and across the bridge to the arson epidemic in Detroit, Florian’s Knights travel to the darkest pits of the human experience. The real traumas of firefighting are exposed in ways never-before-seen. Private screener links are available upon request for review, what to watch in theatres and what's streaming columns (timed to our upcoming November TVOD) and interview consideration!

In April of 2018, director Panayioti Yannitsos met with Crowbar Pictures founder Shawn Galvao to discuss the Florian’s Knights; a new firefighter motorcycle club making waves across North America. Driving home from that meeting, Pan found himself bumper-to-bumper with retired Vancouver Battalion Chief Rod MacDonald, who was riding his motorcycle, a Florian’s Knights patch on his back. Staring at the patch for several minutes in traffic, the serendipitous event convinced Yannitsos to sign on to direct the film. Over the course of three years, Yannitsos and a core team of only four fellow filmmakers slept in fire halls across North America, often in 24-hour shifts, responding to emergencies in real time.

“Florian’s Knights” follows the lives of a number of first responders and experts. All of the following documentary subjects will be available for press interviews – Firefighter Matthew Sabini (New York Fire Department / Florian’s Knights MC), Retired Captain Erik Bjarnason (North Vancouver Fire Dept / Florian's Knights MC), Retired Battalion Chief Rod MacDonald (Vancouver Fire Dept / Florian’s Knights MC), Acting Captain Bill Shokar (New Westminster Fire Department / Florian’s Knights MC), Captain Jack Cooper (Toronto Fire Service / Florian’s Knights MC), Battalion Chief Michael V. Nevin (Detroit Fire Department), Senior Lieutenant Darnell McLaurin (Detroit Fire Department / Axemen MC), and Dr. Don Vaughn, PHD (Neuroscientist, UCLA).

Dr. Don Vaughn, Michael Maggiora, and their team measured the brain activity, heart rate, and hormone levels of over 50 experienced motorcycle riders in “Project Free.” The study was peer reviewed and accepted by Brain Research. The study concluded that riding a motorcycle can decrease hormonal biomarkers of stress. The work was funded by a grant from Harley-Davidson.

“For over a century, firefighters in North America have grappled with the harsh reality of post-traumatic stress. In pursuit of making this movie, we were faced with a code of silence engrained in fire departments for generations. I knew that this moratorium on mental health was costing men and women their lives, whether through substance abuse, depression, or suicide and I felt a responsibility to shine a light on this very human struggle and bring it to audiences.” – filmmaker Panayioti Yannitsos.

“Florian’s Knights” is directed, edited & produced by Panayioti Yannitsos, executive produced by Shawn Galvao, with cinematography by Jon Thomas (“The Angel Tree”) & Blake Davey (“Someone Like Me,” “Rupture”), and sound design by Jamie Spittal (“Freedom Besieged”).

Where to follow the film and its journey:
Website: www.floriansknightsmovie.com
Facebook: @FloriansKnightsMovie
Instagram: @FloriansKnightsMovi
Twitter: @FloriansKnights

Hulu Announces Original Documentary From ABC News and Impact Partners

JACINTA
A Gripping Chronicle of Love, Family and Addiction Premieres October 8

Runtime: 1 hour 45 minutes
A Hulu Original Documentary

Jacinta and Rosemary at Maine Correctional Center, 2016. Photo © Jessica Earnshaw.

Hulu has added JACINTA, a powerful and intimate documentary from ABC News and Impact Partners, to its Originals slate. The film follows a young woman who struggles to find stability amid years of addiction and reconnect with the daughter she left behind, JACINTA earned its director, Jessica Earnshaw, the award for Best New Documentary Director at the 2020 Tribeca Film Festival. It has continued an impressive festival run at DOC NYC, AFI Fest, IDFA, the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival (Best Documentary), and more. The Hulu Original Documentary will premiere on Hulu and in select theaters on October 8 and will be eligible for awards consideration this season.

Jessica Earnshaw, 2020

Shot over three years, the film begins at the Maine Correctional Center where Jacinta, 26, and her mother Rosemary, 46, are incarcerated together, both recovering from drug addiction. As a child, Jacinta became entangled in her mother's world of drugs and crime and has followed her in and out of the system since she was a teenager. This time, as Jacinta is released from prison, she hopes to maintain her sobriety and reconnect with her 10-year-old daughter, Caylynn, who lives with her paternal grandparents. Despite her desire to rebuild her life for her daughter, Jacinta continually struggles against the forces that first led to her addiction. With unparalleled access and a gripping vérité approach, director Jessica Earnshaw paints a deeply intimate portrait of mothers and daughters and the effects of trauma over generations.

Jessica Earnshaw is a documentary photographer and filmmaker whose work focuses on criminal justice, familial relationships and women. Her photography has appeared in National Geographic, The Marshall Project, Mother Jones, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and NPR. JACINTA is Jessica’s first feature film and in 2020, she won Tribeca Film Festival’s Albert Maysles New Documentary Director Award.

“A searingly honest portrait of kinship and addiction… A hard-hitting and heartbreaking documentary… In a playing field usually occupied by men, the fact that
‘Jacinta’ focuses on three generations of women whose lives have been
upended by drugs and crime makes it a rare study.”
– Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter

“[A] gripping, characterful doc debut… remarkably engrossing… As a
snapshot of relapse, recidivism and remorse in a dead-end mill town in
Maine, ‘Jacinta' is perceptive and persuasive." – Jessica Kiang, Variety

"A profound meditation on the troubling intersection between addiction and incarceration… Overflowing with humanity… Earnshaw has made a deeply emotional and poignant film on the personal, familial horrors of addiction.” – Christian Gallichio, The Playlist

View New Trailer for TED BUNDY: AMERICAN BOOGEYMAN on VOD + DVD Friday, September 3rd

TED BUNDY: AMERICAN BOOGEYMAN will have its US VOD and DVD on September 3, 2021 (Dark Star Pictures).

VOD Platforms: iTunes and Apple TV, Amazon, Google Play, Vudu, Xbox/Microsoft, Comcast/Xfinity, Spectrum, Cox, Verizon Fios, Dish Network, Direct TV and through local cable providers.

A specter roams the highways of a gritty and decadent 1970s America, hunting for his next prey—his name is Ted Bundy (Chad Michael Murray). Tracking him down are the intrepid female detective Kathleen McChesney (Holland Roden), working out of the Seattle Police bureau, and rookie FBI profiler Robert Ressler (Jake Hays), the government agent who coined the term “serial killer.” This is the true story behind the manhunt that brought America’s most fearsome boogeyman to justice.

Daniel Farrands wrote and directed the project, which stars Chad Michael Murray (House Of Wax, The Haunting In Connecticut 2: Ghosts Of Georgia, and Riverdale) as Bundy. Rounding out the key cast are Genre actress Lin Shaye (Insidious franchise, The Grudge, Penny Dreadful: City Of Angels) and Holland Roden (Escape Room 2, Teen Wolf).

ABOUT DARK STAR PICTURES

Dark Star Pictures is a new-age North American distribution company, focused on bringing unique and targeted content to audiences across the country. We are committed to releasing auteur-driven, original cinema in the theatrical, digital and home video space. Our goal is to create original marketing campaigns directly catered to audiences who will embrace our brand of thought-provoking cinema. Recent releases include Tribeca Midnight Selection Honeydew, Sundance favorite Koko-di Koko-Da, Cannes Official Selection Enfant Terrible and the newly announced SXSW psychological drama Freeland.

Website: https://darkstarpics.com

#TedBundy #AmericanBoogeyman #TrueCrime

View New Trailer for ‘AILEEN WUORNOS: AMERICAN BOOGEYWOMAN’

Aileen Wuornos AmericanBoogeywoman_Poster

AILEEN WUORNOS: AMERICAN BOOGEYWOMAN will have its Fathom Release (Over 750 theaters nationwide for one night) on September 20 with a US VOD Release to follow on October 8, 2021 (Dark Star Pictures).

VOD Platforms: iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, Vudu, Xbox/Microsoft, Comcast/Xfinity, Spectrum, Cox, Verizon Fios, Dish Network, Direct TV and through local cable providers.

Companion piece and ‘Monster' Prequel, AILEEN WUORNOS: AMERICAN BOOGEYWOMAN focuses on serial killer Aileen Wuornos, whichisalso directed by Farrands and stars Peyton List in the title role (Cobra Kai , Tobin Bell ("Jigsaw"from the Saw Franchise), Lydia Hearst (The Haunting Of Sharon Tate), Nick Vallelonga (Green Book), Swen Temmel (In Time, Backtrace), Meadow Williams (Boss Level. Den Of Thieves), and Andrew Biernat (Shadow's Edge).

Based on Aileen Wuornos’s early life in 1976, the film follows America’s most notorious female serial killer in Florida when she marries an older wealthy Yacht Club president only to inflict mayhem within her new family and Florida’s high society.

Filmmaker Daniel Farrands

ABOUT DARK STAR PICTURES

Website:https://darkstarpics.com

Follow at: #AileenWuornos #AmericanBoogeywoman #TrueCrime

Ted Bundy: American Boogeyman Movie Review

Director and Writer: Daniel Farrands
Starring: Chad Michael Murray, Lin Shaye, Holland Roden, Jack Hays
Genre: Horror
Language: English
Runtime: 1 hour 50 minutes

Chad Michael Murray in Daniel Farrands' TED Bundy: American Boogeyman Photo Credit: Dark Star Pictures/Voltage Pictures

Director and writer Daniel Farrands new film 'Ted Bundy: American Boogeyman' tells the story of the 1970s murderer Ted Bundy (Chad Michael Murray), who terrorizes America with his senseless slaughter of women. but is unable to evade Seattle detective Kathleen McChesney (Holland Roden) forever with the help of FBI profiler Robert Ressler (Jake Hays).

Many stories have been told about Ted Bundy over the years, yet Farrands said his reason for adding another film about Bundy, "I wanted to show that Bundy, despite being somewhat smart and mildly charming was, in the simplest terms, an absolute monster."

Farrands makes no excuses for his behavior and does not focus on his childhood or the circumstances he endured growing up, instead he chooses to humanize his victims, giving a name to the faces of Bundy's victims.

Chad Michael Murray in Daniel Farrands' TED Bundy: American Boogeyman Photo Credit: Dark Star Pictures/Voltage Pictures

Ted Bundy: American Boogeyman is filled with the horror of a psychopath and the destructions left behind and the trauma inflicted on the families of his victims and America as a whole.

Director of Photography, Luka Bazeli captures the intense, gruesome nature of a serial killer. Dan Riddle, Editor weaves the various stories of the tragic demise of Bundy's victims bringing it all together in a compelling story.

Ted Bundy: American Boogeyman gives its viewers an opportunity to focus on those who lost their lives, all the girls and women who lives were cut short at the hands of Bundy.

Holland Roden in Daniel Farrands'TED Bundy: American Boogeyman. Photo Credit: Dark Star Pictures/Voltage Pictures

Runtime: 1 hour 50 minutes
Production Co.: Voltage Pictures Presents
A 1428 Films and Green Light Pictures Production
Distributor: Dark Star Pictures
Director and Writer: Daniel Farrands
Starring: Chad Michael Murray, Lin Shaye, Holland Roden, Jack Hays, Olivia Delaurentis, Diane Franklin
Executive Producers: Alan Pao, Luke Daniels, Nicolas Chartier, Jonathan Deckter
Producers: Lucas Jarach, Daniel Farrands, Daniel Davila
Director of Photography: Luka Bazeli
Editor: Dan Riddle
Music: Steve Moore

View Trailer Below!

FINDING KENDRICK JOHNSON Now Available on Digital + Video on Demand

Screening Nationwide in Theaters this Fall
Premiering on Starz - December 2021

A documentary by Jason Pollock
Narrated by Jenifer Lewis
Produced by Malcolm D. Lee
Runtime: 1 hour 42 minutes

On January 11th, 2013, Kendrick Johnson was found dead in his high school gymnasium rolled up in a gym mat. The state of Georgia ruled his death as an accident, having died from positional asphyxia. When the family hired their own Forensic Pathologist, not only did he find KJ’s organs missing from his body during the autopsy, he determined the cause of death to be from non-accidental blunt force trauma. To this day, no one knows where KJ’s organs have gone.. So what really happened to KJ?

FINDING KENDRICK JOHNSON is the feature documentary product of a 4-year undercover investigation into the facts of this case. From the creator of 'Stranger Fruit', this new documentary hopes to shed light on one of the most important American stories of our time.

Told through the eyes of KJ's family and close friends, Narrated by Hollywood legend, Jenifer Lewis, Directed by 'Stranger Fruit' creator, Jason Pollock, with an amazing team of Producers including Actor Hill Harper, and Space Jam 2 Director Malcolm D. Lee, FINDING KENDRICK JOHNSON shares this truly historic, heartbreaking, and unbelievable story with the world for the first time.

“The case of Kendrick Johnson is one the most important cases in U.S. history,” says writer/director Jason Pollock. “KJ deserves justice, and hopefully our film will help his family get one step closer to that outcome.”

"This is the most important film I've ever worked on,” says actor and activist Jenifer Lewis. “What this family has gone through is unspeakable but we must speak it so the public knows the truth. Jason has done a brilliant job on this vital story of injustice.”

FINDING KENDRICK JOHNSON is now available on digital and video on demand and will be heading to theaters nationwide this Fall, before premiering on Starz in December 2021.

View Trailer Below!

Dark Star Pictures New Films ‘Ted Bundy: American Boogeyman and Aileen Wuornos: American Boogeywoman’

Los Angeles-based Dark Star Pictures have announced upcoming US Release dates today for TED BUNDY: AMERICAN BOOGEYMAN and AILEEN WUORNOS: AMERICAN BOOGEYWOMAN.

The releases include a nationwide one- night Fathom release (In over 750 cinemas) for both titles, with VOD and DVD release to follow in September and October respectively.

TED BUNDY: AMERICAN BOOGEYMAN will have its Fathom Release on August 16 with a US VOD and DVD release to follow on September 3, 2021.

AILEEN WUORNOS: AMERICAN BOOGEYWOMAN will have its Fathom Release on September 20 with a US VOD/DVD Release on October 8, 2021.

Companion piece and ‘Monster' Prequel, AILEEN WUORNOS: AMERICAN BOOGEYWOMAN focuses on serial killer Aileen Wuornos, which is also directed by Farrands and stars Peyton List in the title role (Cobra Kai, Tobin Bell ("Jigsaw" from the Saw Franchise), Lydia Hearst (The Haunting Of Sharon Tate), Nick Vallelonga (Green Book), Swen Temmel (In Time, Backtrace), Meadow Williams (Boss Level. Den Of Thieves), and Andrew Biernat (Shadow's Edge).

"We are thrilled to be bringing these films to audiences across the country, director Daniel Farrands has taken two of America's most heinous serial killers and managed to spin their stories in a fresh way - introducing a genre film style to these familiar true crime stories. People will be able to experience these chapters of American history in a new way," commented Michael Repsch, President Dark Star Pictures

ABOUT DARK STAR PICTURES

Website: https://darkstarpics.com