The Virginia Film Festival

Charlottesville, VA – October 15, 2007 – The Virginia Film Festival, set for November 1-4 at venues throughout Charlottesville, is expanding the guest list for its 20th annual event with the addition of famed actor/director John Turturro. Known to movie audiences for his roles in more than 60 films, Turturro will be coming to Charlottesville to present his work as a director, including his first film, Mac, and his latest, Romance and Cigarettes.

Also joining the impressive guest list will be actor Sean Patrick Thomas, a U.Va. alum known to audiences from high-profile roles in films including Save The Last Dance and the highly successful Barbershop franchise.

The pair join legendary American independent filmmaker John Sayles atop a list of more than 80 guests that will complement the 90 films being screened over the course of the festival’s four days.

The film lineup also received a boost with the addition of Persepolis, the acclaimed Sony Pictures animated release centered around the coming of age of a young girl in the midst of the Islamic Revolution. This film received the prestigious closing-night slot at this month’s New York Film Festival, and was cited by New York Times critic Stephen Holden as “an unqualified triumph.�

“John Turturro is one of the most talented and consistently adventurous actors in the film world today, �said Virginia Film Festival Artistic Director Richard Herskowitz. “ And in a year where we are focusing so much attention on filmmakers, it is particularly appropriate that he is coming here as a director. Audiences will get a chance to see and hear his perspective on his first directorial effort, Mac, and his latest, Romance and Cigarettes. This is a totally unique and engaging musical production featuring an incredible cast including James Gandolfini, Kate Winslet, Susan Sarandon and Christopher Walken.�

The project, Herskowitz said, is fueled by its director’s passion. “This is a film that Turturro is so passionate about that he is foregoing traditional studio routes and releasing it himself. We are delighted to be part of the first phase of this effort.�

John Turturro has appeared in more than 60 films and has had a close working relationship with Spike Lee (appearing in eight films including Do The Right Thing, Jungle Fever, Summer of Sam, Girl 6 and Mo Better Blues) and the Coen Brothers (Miller’s Crossing, Barton Fink, The Big Lebowski and O Brother Where Art Thou?). Other memorable movie roles include Quiz Show, Secret Window, and The Good Shepherd. His television credits include an Emmy-award-winning turn in Monk (as Adrian’s eccentric brother, Ambrose Monk) and the ESPN original miniseries The Bronx is Burning, in which he played the famously fiery New York Yankee manager Billy Martin.

Romance and Cigarettes will be presented at the Paramount Theater on Saturday, November 3 at 6:30 p.m. in a program that will include a post-film discussion with Turturro conducted by New York Magazine film critic David Edelstein. His earlier directorial effort, Mac, will be presented on Sunday, November 3 at 10:15 at Regal Downtown 3.

Sean Patrick Thomas is a University of Virginia graduate who first dipped his toe into the acting waters by auditioning for a role in a U.Va. Drama Department production of A Raisin in the Sun. He later appeared in a television production of the play with a cast including Sean Combs and Phylicia Rashad. He is coming to the Festival as a member of the cast of John Sayles’ Honeydripper, which will be presented on the Festival’s opening night, November 1, at 7:00pm in The Paramount Theater. Mainstream movie audiences first discovered Thomas through his pivotal role in Cruel Intentions, which starred Sarah Michelle Gellar, Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe. He then played a lead role in the 1999 film Save the Last Dance, a tale of interracial romance set in Chicago’s South Side in which the actor starred opposite Julia Stiles. Thomas reached a larger audience than ever before in his role as in the wildly successful films Barbershop and Barbershop 2: Back in Business. He was also hailed for his work in the CBS-TV show The District, which starred Craig T. Nelson.

Peresepolis, based on the graphic novel of the same name by Marjane Satrapi, is a look at the Islamic Revolution through the eyes of a precocious and outspoken nine-year old. Finding ways around the “social guardians� that were installed throughout the culture, Marjane somehow discovers punk, ABBA and Iron Maiden before leaving her country to face a new scrutiny in Europe. Torn between the home in which she was born and the reality of what it has become, she faces heart wrenching decisions as we watch her grow up with a series of unimaginably difficult challenges and choices. Introducing the film will be Farzaneh Milani, who teaches in Persian Studies and Studies in Women and Gender at U.Va.

The Virginia Film Festival is hosted by the University of Virginia.

Press Contacts:
John Kelly
434/296-5577
john@johnkellypr.com

Publicity photos available by visiting www.vafilm.com/category/images