MR. SMITH GOES TO HEAVEN

“I went home and watched dailies of [Alan] Rickman walking on water,” Kevin Smith reports. The one-man indie industry (Chasing Amy, Mallrats) contemplates the infinite in Dogma: Rumor Control, which wrapped recently in Pittsburgh, PA. Smith’s tilted fantasy also stars Matt Damon and Ben Affleck as two beer-chugging fallen angels — Wings of Desire meets Clerks. “This movie will be outstanding!” Smith promises. And true to his fan boy roots, he adds, “Yes, there are Star Wars quotes in this movie.”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — JUNE 15, 1998

ONI PRESS, GRAPHITTI DESIGNS, VIEW ASKEW & COMIC BOOK EXPO JOIN FORCES TO CREATE LIMITED VARIANT EDITIONS OF KEVIN SMITH’S JAY & SILENT BOB TOYS & COMICS EXCLUSIVELY FOR EXPO RETAILERS

Oni Press, Graphitti Designs, and View Askew Productions are teaming up with the San Diego Comic Book Expo to give retailers a special gift for attending this very important retailer conference. The first 500 preregistered, qualifying retailers attending the Expo will receive variant editions of both the first issue of the JAY & SILENT BOB comic book and the Jay & Silent Bob action figures, created to celebrate Kevin Smith’s appearance as the keynote speaker at the show.

Graphitti’s action figures are based on the popular characters Jay & Silent Bob, created by writer/director Kevin Smith and featured in his films CLERKS, MALLRATS, and CHASING AMY. The figures were designed by comics artist Matt Wagner, and they will become commercially available in September. Both Jay and Silent Bob will come with a variety of accessories, including interchangeable hands, speaking devices, and decals that will allow you to change the image on Jay’s T-shirt. While the regular editions will contain accessories that are more adult-oriented, this limited edition casting has been dubbed the “Semi-Politically Correct Version,” with the more suggestive aspects toned down for mass consumption. There will be 1,000 of this variant made, with 500 of the run being made exclusively available in this promotion.

In addition to the figures, the first 500 qualifying retailers will also receive two variant copies of the first issue of the Oni Press miniseries JAY & SILENT BOB, written by Kevin Smith and illustrated by Duncan Fegredo. Smith, a long-time comics fan, teamed his View Askew Productions with Oni Press earlier this year for the best-selling CLERKS comic book and a Jay & Silent Bob story in ONI DOUBLE FEATURE. Advance orders on the JAY & SILENT BOB comic have placed it squarely at #70 of the top 100 comics shipping from Diamond that month, making it one of the few black-and-white comic book besides SIN CITY to achieve this ranking in this decade. There will be two different variant covers available at the Expo. The first will be a photo of Jason Mewes, the actor who plays Jay, holding the oversized prototype of the Silent Bob action figure; the second will be a photo of Kevin Smith, in his Silent Bob persona, holding the prototype of the Jay action figure.

“Retailers have been tremendously kind to us in our first year,” Oni Press Publisher and Editor Bob Schreck said of the promotion. “This is our chance to let them know that their efforts have not gone by unnoticed or unappreciated.”

This special gift package will be limited to one per store, and they are only available to qualifying retailers who actually attend the 1998’s Comic Book Expo in San Diego. They will be given on a first come, first served basis to the first 500 preregistered attendees at the show. The Comic Book Expo will take place in San Diego, CA, on August 10-12, and will be followed by the Comic-Con International on August 13-16, the country’s largest gathering of comic book and genre fiction and film fans.

“Bruce called me not long ago to ask if I’d do DH4 with him. I said to send me the script, which apparently is being written (Bruce claims, with me in mind for his partner). I liked him and would work with him again if it were the right vehicle. Apparently the next installment of the DH series is a low-concept, man-against-nature type thing in the jungles of Brazil.”

‘Good Will Hunting’ May Win Again

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are in the running to pick up another prize for their “Good Will Hunting” script.

The actors, who wrote and starred in the Academy Award-winning picture, are among the nearly 40 Humanitas Prize finalists announced Thursday. The prize honors scripts that illuminate life and foster respect and compassion.

The winners, who will share $120,000 in prize money, will be honored July 9 at a luncheon given by the Human Family and Educational Cultural Institute.

Along with “Good Will Hunting,” the finalists for a feature film screenplay are James V. Hart and Michael Goldenberg for “Contact” and Richard Friedenberg for “The Education of Little Tree.”

Basically, it’s a two-page spread talking about the opportunity that the FlixTour is giving young, independent filmmakers, who’s movies might otherwise not find audiences.

Pereira is quoted only once, really, and here’s what he has to say:

The story features three small pictures of movie posters for Guinea Men, Green and A Better Place, with Pereira’s poster featured most prominently.

A final note: MovieMaker on the tour – “It is only with the alternative methods like FlixTour, Fuel and self-distributing scrappy directors that innovative moviemaking can not only remain alive, but even flourish.