By Daily Press Staff
More than 50 soon-to-be-released feature films will be available for free viewing during the 23rd American Film Market, which takes place in Santa Monica, Feb. 19-26.
The screenings are available to all residents of Santa Monica and employees of Santa Monica businesses.
The films span a wide range of genres and feature some of Hollywood's best-known and up-and-coming talent, according to AFM officials. Among the films presented at last year’s screenings was then soon-to-be box office superstar, “My Big Fat Greek Wedding.”
Highlights of this year's program include: ■ Action sci-fi feature, “Bubba Ho-tep,” with Bruce Campbell and Ossie Davis. ■ Action/comedy, “Good Night To Die,” with Michael Rapaport and Ally Sheedy. ■ Drama, “The Heart of America,” with Maria Conchita Alonso and Michael Pare. ■ Romance,“Lexie,” with Richard Brooks and Ice-T. ■ Drama, “The Pearl,” with Richard Harris and Lucas Haas. ■ Family picture, “Time Changer,” with Gavin McLeod, Hal Linden, Jennifer O'Neill and Paul Rodriguez. ■ Horror/thriller, “The Wisher,” with Ron Silver. Complimentary badges to the AFM 2002 premiere screenings are available online at www.variety.com. A day-to-day listing of the AFM Premiere Screenings is available at the AFM's official website, www.americanfilmmarket.com. Screening passes also are available to members of Hollywood guilds and professional organizations, and to film school students.
Jonathan Wolf, managing director of the AFM, is excited about returning to Santa Monica.
“The premiere screenings are one of the many ways the American Film Market reaches out to the Santa Monica community,” he said. “We are delighted to once again open our doors to residents during the world's largest motion picture market.”
Officials expect more than 7,000 people to attend the event from more than 70 countries. All of Santa Monica’s 23 movie screens will be used by AFM during the event, showing a total of more than 600 screenings of more than 400 films — 23 different films every two hours.
The majority of the films are world or U.S. premieres.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on February 5, 2003. Read the original PDF.