Heart Of An Empire North American Premiere Posted By Dustin on February 19, 2007
This just in from Forsaken Sun Productions.
"ORLANDO, Fla. -- February 19, 2007 -- Forsaken Sun Productions, LLC today announced they will hold the North American premiere of their documentary film, HEART OF AN EMPIRE at the Orlando Science Center on May 12, 2007. The film premiere will also double as a Leukemia & Lymphoma Society charity event with proceeds from the ticket sales, as well as fundraising events coordinated on-site, benefiting this worthwhile cause.
"People have been waiting a long time to see this film," said Jay Thompson, Producer/Director of Heart of an Empire. "A charity event for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society is the perfect venue for this premiere. So much of the subject of this documentary deals with the charity work done by members of the 501st – when this opportunity presented itself, we had to make this happen."
"We’re pleased to say that a portion of the proceeds of each ticket sold will benefit the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society through a donation Forsaken Sun Productions will be making after the event. I feel that the awareness this film brings just isn’t enough. I wanted to make sure we could do something to help out, as well."
The feature-length documentary film, Heart of an Empire, chronicles the growth of the Star Wars costume group, The Fighting 501st, and their involvement in various children’s charities across the world. Five years in the making, this documentary focuses on the story of three children and the differences that the 501st made in their lives and the lives of their families as the children waged war with cancer, an invisible but deadly enemy.
"We hope that this documentary helps shed a little light on this grossly misunderstood and highly ridiculed section of sub-culture. They have taken their love of pop-culture icons and made something truly wonderful. They’ve taken these characters from Star Wars – using the persona of the ‘bad guys’ – and turned them into a force (pardon the pun) for great good."
The film has already garnished critical acclaim. Reel.com’s Jim Hemphill awarded the film a 4 out of 5 star rating. "One of the noblest achievements for any documentary filmmaker is to take a subject about which the audience has preconceived notions and reveal a completely different side of the story, and this is where Thompson excels," said Himphill. "Most viewers will likely enter Heart of an Empire assuming that the people under examination are social misfits at best and nutcases at worst. This point of view is essentially the one expressed in Trekkies, a hilarious 1997 documentary on obsessive Star Trek fans. Here, however, Thompson avoids the obvious approach by refusing to mock the Stormtroopers. Whereas most media outlets aggressively seek out the dorkiest possible members of clubs like the 501st in an attempt to elicit cheap laughs, Thompson provides a broader perspective on the varied men and women he follows."
Further details about Heart of an Empire can be found on the film’s website at http://www.HeartOfAnEmpire.com. Information concerning the 501st and their charity events can be found at http://www.501st.com."
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