CONTACT: Don Early
Tel: (323) 319-3532
Email: don.early@deadgentlemen.com

The Gamers: Dorkness Rising to be Screened at San Diego Comic-Con

DVD on sale for the first time at Paizo’s booth at Gen Con

July 22, 2008 (TACOMA, Wash.) - Dead Gentlemen Productions announced today that their film The Gamers: Dorkness Rising will be screened at Comic-Con in San Diego, and make its DVD premiere in three weeks at Gen Con in Indianapolis. The DVD will be sold exclusively by Paizo Publishing at Gen Con, and is provided by the film’s domestic distributor, Anthem Pictures.

“Comic-Con is the ultimate convention in the US to reach our larger target audience,” said Dead Gentlemen’s Executive Director, Don Early. “We wanted to participate in Comic-Con, but our release date put us past their window. I thought we’d missed our chance. But then I got a call from the head of the films department at Comic Con. I was shocked and amazed!”

“I have been a fan of Dead Gentlemen for years,” said Joshua Glaser from Comic-Con Films Department International. “When I read that their long-awaited film, The Gamers: Dorkness Rising, was going to be released on DVD at Gen Con this year, I knew I had to try and get a screening at Comic Con.”

“The Gamers: Dorkness Rising is already one of the best selling products of all time on paizo.com and it’s not even released yet,” said Paizo’s Director of Marketing, Joshua J. Frost. “We have a full Dorkness Rising signing schedule planned for our booth at Gen Con, including appearances from many of the actors as well as members of the production team. Stop by our booth, buy yourself a copy, and get it signed!”

“Anthem has put together a fantastic DVD,” says Matt Vancil, writer/director of The Gamers: Dorkness Rising. “The fans have been supremely patient — they’ve been waiting for this for five years. Plus, a screening at Comic Con? The over-caffeinated heart of the empire of fandom? Holy wow! All is well with the universe.”

“It’s rare to find a gem of title like Dorkness in today’s marketplace,” says Chuck Adelman, president of Anthem Pictures. “The RPG audience is massive and a major driving force behind independent films. Being a gamer myself, it’s a great feeling to distribute a title that we feel will really capture a new generation of gamers and appeal to the mature RPG-gamers across the board.”

The Gamers: Dorkness Rising will screen at Comic-Con in San Diego on Friday, July 25th, 7pm at the Marriott in Marina Ballroom D. DVD sales premiere exclusively at Paizo Publishing’s booth #2221 at Gen Con on August 14, 2008, and then hit retailers on August 19, 2008.

ABOUT DEAD GENTLEMEN PRODUCTIONS

Dead Gentlemen Productions is an independent film company specializing in genre-comedies. Their short film, The Gamers, has been screened to rave reviews in dozens of film festivals and game conventions worldwide, garnering an award for Best Fan Film of 2003 at Gen Con Indy. Their Demon Hunters series was recently adapted into an RPG by Margaret Weis Productions. They are based out of Tacoma, WA with an office in Los Angeles, CA. Dead Gentlemen Productions’ website is located at www.deadgentlemen.com.

ABOUT ANTHEM PICTURES

As an independent studio and label, Anthem is always looking to push the envelope with quality original films and programming. With a growing retail presence in North America, Anthem is quickly becoming the choice of the independent film industry for distribution. Anthem Pictures website is located at www.anthemdvd.com.

ABOUT PAIZO PUBLISHING

Paizo Publishing®, LLC is a leading publisher of fantasy roleplaying games, accessories, board games, and novels. Paizo’s Pathfinder™ line of adventures and Pathfinder Chronicles™ campaign setting support materials combine decades of game design experience into one evocative system compatible with the 3.5 rules. Paizo’s GameMastery™ line offers easy-to-use tools for Game Masters of any fantasy roleplaying game to improve their gaming experience. Titanic Games™, Paizo’s board game imprint, unleashes fun, challenging games like Kill Doctor Lucky™ and Yetisburg™ that appeal to both families and casual gamers alike. Paizo’s Planet Stories line of science fiction and fantasy novel reprints promises a master class in the genre aimed at building the greatest fantasy and science fiction library ever assembled. Paizo.com is the leading online hobby retail store, offering tens of thousands of products from a variety of publishers to customers all over the world. In the five years since its founding, Paizo Publishing has received more than a dozen major awards and has grown to become one of the most influential companies in the hobby games industry.

ABOUT COMIC-CON INTERNATIONAL

Comic-Con International is a nonprofit educational organization dedicated to creating awareness of, and appreciation for, comics and related popular art forms, primarily through the presentation of conventions and events that celebrate the historic and ongoing contribution of comics to art and culture.

Contact: Chuck Adelman
818.597.2344 or
chuck@anthemdvd.com

Anthem Falls under the VUDU spell

VUDU SIGNS WITH INDEPENDENT STUDIO ANTHEM PICTURES

Los Angeles – July 22, 2008 – Anthem Pictures announced today that its new releases and its catalogue of library titles will now be available for download through the digital on-demand video service VUDU.

“As an independent studio we’re very excited to be able to offer VUDU customers an array of indie product in the ultimate in-home viewing experience, the living room,” said Charles Adelman, Anthem’s president. “The quality of the video available from VUDU is immediately apparent, and we believe this is the future of distribution. We are looking forward to working with VUDU in the next step of this evolution.”

“As a company founded by and for movie lovers, VUDU is dedicated to raising the bar for the home viewing experience,” said Patrick Cosson, VP of Marketing, VUDU. “Our partnership with Anthem signifies our commitment to offering the greatest depth and breadth of content to our users, instantly and with high quality.”

Anthem releases available to rent or purchase on VUDU include Mother Ghost, Truce, 911: In Plane Sight and Judges. Other popular titles now available include The Boston Strangler, An Ordinary Killer, Crime Fiction, The Naked Ape, Bloodshed, Tales from Beyond and Dorkness Rising.

About VUDU

VUDU is dedicated to bringing instant access to video entertainment, including thousands of mainstream movies, HD films and TV shows, to every living room. Through relationships with every major US movie studio and more than 50 independent studios and international distributors, VUDU offers the ultimate home entertainment experience. Consumers can finally watch what they want, when they want—no planning needed, no computer required, no software downloads, and no cable TV service or satellite subscription necessary. VUDU’s website is located at www.vudu.com.

About Anthem Pictures

As an independent studio and label, Anthem is always looking to push the envelope with quality original films and programming. With a growing retail presence in North America, Anthem is quickly becoming the choice of the independent film industry for distribution. Anthem Pictures website is located at www.anthemdvd.com.

There is.  First, the juicy stuff:

COMIC CON!

We will be there, and screening Dorkness Rising.

Marriott, Marina Ballroom D
Friday, July 25, 2008
6:00pm Room Opens - Q&A with the Dead Gentlemen
7:00pm-8:40pm The Gamers: Dorkness Rising

We are honored that Comic Con wanted to show our movie and actually ASKED us to bring it.  In attendance will be: Writer/Director, Matt Vancil.  Producer, Don Early. Actor, Jen Page (Luster Female). Production Designer, Matt DeMille (recently accepted to attend AFI for Production Design!!! CONGRATS MATT!!!!), and rumored appearance, actor Carol Roscoe (Joanna/Daphne).

Next up,

Gen Con!

Screening times are yet to be announced, but let me tell you folks, this one is the BIG one!  Not only is it really truly the FINAL and RELEASED version of The Gamers: Dorkness Rising, but you actually get to take home the DVD, available at Paizo Publishing’s booth, #2221!  Also, collect your autographs this year, because we’ve got a slew of DG’s attending this year.  In attendance at this year’s Gen Con will be:

Matt Vancil, Don Early, Nathan Rice, Steve Wolbrecht, Jen Page, Scott C. Brown, Brian Lewis, Christian Doyle, Chris Duppenthaler, Jimmy McMichael, Evan Shimono, Camille Mesmer, and Cindy Messler-Early.

You can find us at the Paizo booth, AND at the Margaret Weis Productions booth #1005, promoting the Demon Hunters Role Playing Game.

We will also be doing Q&A at each screening.  We’ll post up a schedule of our happenings once we get them.

Dorkness has Risen! Announcing The Gamers: Dorkness Rising distributed by Anthem Pictures!
Dead Gentlemen Productions signs with Anthem Pictures to distribute The Gamers: Dorkness Rising

May 26, 2008

Dead Gentlemen Productions, LLC, creators of the world famous cult hit The Gamers, announces today that they have signed with Anthem Pictures to be the exclusive domestic distributor for their long-awaited feature, The Gamers: Dorkness Rising.

“The guys at Anthem Pictures really enjoyed the film and are excited about it. That was really important for us in our search,” said Don Early, Executive Director for Dead Gentlemen Productions. “We were looking to form a long-term ally in distributing to the larger markets.”

“Working with the Dead Gentlemen has been an amazing experience,” says John Frank Rosenblum, an Executive Producer of the film. “Fantasy is more than just serious elves on serious quests and we at Epic Level are looking to tell all sorts of tales in a variety of ways. The Gamers: Dorkness Rising is an amazingly funny film which has a real heart. We are so proud to be involved with it!”

Charles Adelman, the president of Anthem Pictures, described their acquisition of The Gamers: Dorkness Rising in one word: “Awesome!” Adelman noted that Anthem Pictures sells to a number of retailers and rental companies, including Netflix, Blockbuster, Hollywood Video, Best Buy, Amazon.com, Target, and Borders. They will also be selling DVDs to Paizo Publishing, LLC, who will be the primary sub distributor for The Gamers: Dorkness Rising into the hobby game industry.

The Gamers: Dorkness Rising follows Lodge, Dungeon Master and budding writer, who wants his gaming group to finish their adventure. Unfortunately, they’re more interested in seducing barmaids, mooning their enemies, and setting random villagers on fire. Desperate to rein in his players, Lodge injects two newbies into the fray: a non-player character controlled by Lodge, who the power gamers immediately distrust, and the rarest gamer of all — a girl. Can the group overcome their bickering to save the kingdom, or will the evil necromancer Mort Kemnon triumph unopposed? A parody of fantasy films and the adventure gaming community, The Gamers: Dorkness Rising is a hilarious romp through the world of sword and sorcery — in this case, a world of exploding peasants, giant house cats, and undead roast turkeys. The trailer can be found at www.the-gamers.com.

Shot in high definition, The Gamers: Dorkness Rising is the most ambitious feature film that Dead Gentlemen Productions has produced to date. It was test screened in 2006 at the Gen Con game fair to standing ovations and standing room only. Creators of the Dragonlance novels & New York Times Bestselling authors, Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis, called it “A critical hit!… Original and funny - a real treat for fans of both fantasy and gaming.” You can find other responses to the film and add your own on their listing at IMDb.

The movie will be released for sale on DVD through Paizo at the Gen Con game fair in Indianapolis on August 14th, 2008.

Above this post is the first chapter from our brand new Demon Hunters: Brotherhood Orientation Video, which is packaged with every single copy of the Demon Hunters Role Playing Game! We’ll be posting sections of the video as time passes, but if you want to see the entire thing right now (and get a kick-ass game into the bargain) just click here and order the book. Or better yet, ask your local game retailer to order a copy. (You can also acquire a PDF of just the book right here.)

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Geek News Update

Dead Gentlemen Productions would like to offer a huge congratulations to our friends at Tough Cookie Productions, whose feature film “The Fellowship of the Dice” was just named Best Geek Movie of 2008 by those crotchety yet lovable humbugs over at Spewgilist. If you haven’t seen “Fellowship” yet, you can check it out at Netflix or Amazon. We look forward to seeing what madness Tough Cookie comes up with next.

Speaking of gaming films, a belated shout out to Scottish filmmakers Pure Magic, whose delightful movie “Gamerz” has also been acquired for US distribution. It’s a really beautiful indie movie with stunning animated fantasy sequences and a giant love for the game. Don’t miss it.

At this point, with all this talk of distributed gaming films, you’re probably wondering what’s going on with “Dorkness Rising”. Well, the press release is on the way, but until that arrives, Dead Gentlemen is thrilled to announce that we signed on the dotted line and “Dorkness Rising” is on track for release! Watch this space for more details, but rest assured that the long, dark wait is over. More soon!

We were off on a speedy road trip to Las Vegas to promote our new Demon Hunters Role Playing Game, published by Margaret Weis Productions. Our many thanks again to Jamie, Margaret, Digger and the rest of the gang for giving us a chance and making such a kickass and hilarious book. Current news on the book is that it’s left the printers and is in transit to the warehouses for distribution! Look for it on the shelves of your local gaming store by Memorial Day.

The response seems to be really great. The DVD packaged with the game was a big hit. We handed out a bunch of them to the retailers, so there might be an weird bad History Channel style program going on when you walk into your gaming store, but stick around, it’s hilarious. But then again, we made the movie so I guess we’re biased.

Speaking of making movies, there’s some great stuff coming out this year from our friends in the gaming industry. Fantasy Flight is releasing their Midnight Chronicles film this year, which looks AWESOME I might add. And my personal long awaited delight is getting close to being finished, Midnight Syndicate’s movie, Dead Matter. Much love and praises go out to you fellow filmmakers!

And speaking about movies coming out this year, I’d like to address the issue of The Gamers: Dorkness Rising. We’ve heard a lot of rumors going around and I’d like to clear a little bit of the air on this subject. The official news is this:

We have more than 3 offers on the table from distributors for Dorkness Rising. I’m not at liberty to say who they are yet. One in particular looks very promising, and they are excited and willing to release the film quicker than most.

The details are being ironed out and we are hoping to sign a deal in days to weeks, as opposed to longer.

I know it’s vague, but it’s more news than we’ve ever had on the subject.

On a different note, we also heard a rumor that apparently we are remaking The Gamers. You’d think we’d have heard of that before. We did create an improv sketch based on The Gamers. Someone wrote a stage version of The Gamers (and it wasn’t even us. They tried to make a musical but couldn’t make it work. WOW! Our fans are awesome!) We definitely have more The Gamers content kicking around, but nothing official to report on a remake.

And now I’m done with rumors. On to blatant LIES! Demon Hunters 3 commences filming on April 1st, 2009!!! Muahhahhahahahahaaaaggggg

The Demon Hunters RPG was sent to press last night, and the hardcover version, bundled with a DVD containing the brand new Brotherhood Orientation Video, will be available soon at your gaming retailer of choice. However, for those of you who just can’t wait, the PDF version is available right this very minute from DriveThru RPG. You are seconds away from savoring the fruit of our past year’s labor! What are you waiting for!?

For those looking to try before you buy, you can take a gander at a sampling from Chapter One. This snippet is particularly awesome, not only because it gives you a feel for the newly expanded world of the Demon Hunters, but because it’s from one of the sections that I wrote! Bask in its Glory!

We have had an awesome time working on the Demon Hunters RPG. It’s been seven years since we last saw the Brotherhood in action, and revisiting, revising, and revamping their world has just been a blast. A big thanks to everyone at Margaret Weis Productions, and an especially huge thanks to all of our fans. Those college students with the camcorder back in 1999 had no idea that this was even possible. You folks made it possible. Thanks for sticking with us through the years. We promise to give you Dorkness Rising someday!

In other news, our own Female Luster/Anti-Tank Sally, Jen Page is in the running to be an online correspondent for E! News Now. To get her the job, we’ve got to vote!

You have to register on the site before you can vote, but Jen promises us they won’t send you too much crap. Still, better sign up with your spam account, just to be safe. Good luck, Jen, we’re rooting for you!

• Land a kickass distribution deal for “The Gamers: Dorkness Rising” that satisfies our loyal and wonderfully patient fans.
• Completely redesign the DG website to clear out the last lingering vestiges of 1998.
• Launch the DG Group Blog in a desperate attempt at more frequent site updates.
• Cause rioting as hordes of gamers step over each other in a mad rush to be the first to own “Demon Hunters: The Role Playing Game.”
• Film something. Anything, really. We’re not picky. Personally, I’ve got a stack of Syphillitic Ninja Vampires sketches that I’d like to see get made.*hint hint*
• Continue to work on and maybe even finish some awesome secret projects that you people don’t even know about yet. Seriously. They’re awesome. Secretly awesome!

So Happy New Year folks! And stick around, 2008 is looking like a good year for us. Except for the riots. Those poor, pasty white bastards!

In the spirit of the holiday, I share with you now a macabre tale of eldritch horror. The worlds of H.P. Lovecraft and C.M. Schulz collide in the perennial holiday classic, The Great Old Pumpkin.