Events (LA)

Joined: 30 Oct 2006 Posts: 5

Back in November, HAPPY HOLIDAYS screened at the S.N.O.B. (Somewhat North of Boston) Film Festival in Concord, New Hampshire.

We did very, very well. Great laughs and an excellent audience response. (Thank you to anyone who attended!!)

The festival's host theater, The Red River Theaters, took notice and picked us up for an EXCLUSIVE THEATRICAL ENGAGEMENT December 21st - 23rd.

This is a HUGE opportunity for us. If we can pull a good per-screen average (Translation: If we can get butts in the seats) it would be very good for the film.

I therefore encourage you to send the screening info.(see below) to anyone you know in the New Hampshire or New England areas - friends, organizations (w/ newsletters), vendors, pals, loose associates, BLOGGERS, colleges, anyone.
Anyone who knows anyone... Anyone who knows anyone who - You get the idea.

Feel free to repost the info. below on your own sites, MySpace pages or BLOGS (If you want to be kept up to date with all HAPPY HOLIDAYS-related activites, subscribe to our MySpace BLOG (http://www.myspace.com/happyholidaysthemovie).

(We cut a new trailer just for the screenings. If you're curious, you can watch it HERE)

Here are the deets, followed by our press release.

RED RIVER THEATERS
Red River Theatres, Inc.
11 S. Main Street, Suite L1-1
Concord, NH 03301
Tel: 603/224-4600

SCREENING TIMES:

• Friday, December 21st - 7:00 & 9:15pm
• Saturday, December 22nd - 3:00 & 5:15pm (Co-wrirter Tom Misuraca will be doing a Q&A after the 3 PM screening.
he might even have swag, if we can get our act together.)
• Sunday, December 23rd - 3:00 & 5:15pm

Thanks for the support.
- James

(Here's the press release:)

----------

For Immediate Release
December 3, 2007

"HAPPY HOLIDAYS"

"Exclusive Run of Independent Feature Film at Red River Theaters Christmas Week"

A Comedy about Friendship, Family and Faith,
HAPPY HOLIDAYS is the Product of Local Talent

Burbank, CA –New England native and filmmaker James C. Ferguson must be on Santa's "nice" list, as he's already gotten his Christmas present this year: Ferguson's first independent feature film, HAPPY HOLIDAYS, has been gifted with a seasonal run at Red River Theatres in Concord, New Hampshire for December 21-23.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS is the story of three high school friends who unexpectedly reunite in their New England hometown the week before Christmas. Now in their mid-thirties, it's the first time Patrick, Alden and Kirby have all been in the same zip code since their high school graduation. Life has taken them in very different directions and now they have a hard time finding common ground, especially when it comes to matters of morality, responsibility and faith. While discussions about religious pluralism and lifestyle differences may seem out of place in a comedy, there's plenty of irreverent banter and humorous situations to lighten things up.

Still living in their hometown, Patrick (Paul Hungerford) has shifted away from Catholicism to become an atheist, thinking himself abandoned by the Church (as well as his family) when he came out of the closet in high school. "Patrick is kind of the keeper of the past, except that he's got a few chapters mixed up in his history book," says Hungerford. Kirby (Thomas Rhoads) would like everyone to believe he is an upstanding Catholic, if they could only overlook the fact that he's cheating on his wife—that's what penance is for, right? "Kirby is an actor's dream part—he seems like a total ass, but underneath the free-wheeling drunken frat boy lies a very deep, very sad person," states Rhoads. Alden (John Crye) has taken the path of Judaism as what he believes is the road to happiness, but his friends think it's just another detour along his drive of being uncommitted. "His religion-hopping is a symptom of his greater malady—the mistaken belief that changing anything but you can make you happy" says Crye of his character.

Ferguson hopes that HAPPY HOLIDAYS will give his audience something to think about besides eggnog this holiday season. "This film asks the question 'What does it mean to have faith?'" he explains. "It's about how and why we turn to religion, or why we don't. Are we hijacking or exploiting it for some personal agenda or are we truly, sincerely looking for insight? And doesn't our inherent selfishness effect all aspects of our lives, especially our relationships?" Co-writer Thomas J. Misuraca hopes that the audience will "be inspired to find their own paths, true to their own selves and not just what tradition, religion or family dictates." To help fuel any thoughtful discussions, Misuraca will be present for a Q & A session following the 3:00PM screening on December 22nd.

After entertaining audiences at this year's Woods Hole Film Festival and SNOB Film Festival, the success of HAPPY HOLIDAYS proves that wishes can come true at any time of the year, not just when Santa's sleigh is in flight. Ferguson, who served as the film's producer/director/writer, hopes that this ambitious theatrical effort will inspire other New Englanders to pursue their filmmaking dreams, as he wasn't the only local talent involved in the project. Lead actor Paul Hungerford was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut, make-up artist Sekinah Erskine is from New Haven, Connecticut, and many of the crew Ferguson gathered are fellow Emerson College alumni, including: actors Hungerford, John Crye, Mike D'Alonzo and Robyn Simms; co-writer Thomas J. Misuraca; director of photography Josh Blakeslee; editor Tim Stepich; and actress/unit photographer Molly Beck-Ferguson.

Much of HAPPY HOLIDAYS was shot in Ferguson's Rhode Island neighborhood. All of the most striking exterior images were filmed just after a fresh snowfall in March 2006, a gift from Mother Nature "that we lucked into, because the season had been snowless up until the day we started filming," recalls Ferguson. One of the most memorable interior scenes was shot in the gymnasium at the middle school where Ferguson, Blakeslee and casting director Kirk Moody attended together. "It was totally fun and comfortable, going back to our old stomping grounds to shoot the footage. Best of all, everyone we encountered was supportive and excited for us, which really motivated the cast and crew," claims Ferguson.

For additional information on HAPPY HOLIDAYS, including a teaser trailer, please visit www.happyholidaysthemovie.com. To purchase tickets to Red River Theatres screenings of HAPPY HOLIDAYS, visit www.redrivertheatres.org or call 603/224-4600.[url][/url]

Events (LA)

Events (NYC)

Events (BOS)

Events Others

MobCast

Jobs