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Critically-Acclaimed Film 'Darkon' - 2006 SXSW Audience Award-Winner - to Stream for Free on AOL 'True Stories'

Posted on: Tuesday, 9 January 2007, 09:00 CST

The critically acclaimed documentary Darkon, 2006 winner of the SXSW Film Festival Audience Award, premieres today on AOL's documentary site True Stories (http://truestories.aol.com) prior to its theatrical release later this month. During January, Darkon will be available online to stream free, as well as pay-per-download. After the free preview month, the film will be available for transactional download only.

Cactus Three brokered the partnership with AOL on behalf of Darkon producers Ovie Entertainment, and also secured the theatrical distribution with Porchlight Entertainment, broadcast distribution by IFC and a narrative remake deal with a major Hollywood studio.

Darkon follows the fantasy adventures of real people who gather in parks in the Baltimore/Washington, D.C. area dressed in full costume and armor to play their roles in the make-believe medieval world called Darkon. Darkon enters the imaginations of these live action role-playing participants and reveals their yearnings for heroism in their own lives.

"We are proud to present Darkon on True Stories before it hits theaters and TV, further establishing the channel as an effective platform to build word-of-mouth support for first-run documentaries," according to Jordan Kurzweil, Vice President, Programming and Production for AOL. "Darkon taps into the popularity of fantasy role-playing gaming and fits perfectly with our strategy of presenting films that have niche audiences that are active online."

"Darkon pushes boundaries of documentary filmmaking and warrants an equally innovative approach to its distribution in all venues. We are excited to make Darkon available to the public before its theatrical release," said Cherise Wolas, co-president of Ovie Entertainment. "The interactive nature of the Web offers a perfect initial platform."

Through AOL's suite of community tools, such as blogs, live chat, message boards, and UnCut Video, True Stories provides a forum where viewers can share their thoughts on each film. AOL users will be able to watch Darkon for free this month, participate in its online community and then spread the word about the film.

"Tapping into AOL's cutting-edge community of users makes sense to broaden awareness for our documentary which has already proven on the festival circuit to have a surprisingly wide appeal to diverse audiences," said Andrew Neel and Luke Meyer of See Think Productions, the directors of Darkon.

"As technology changes, so have the means by which we must look to market our films," said Doug Zwick, head of reality programming for Porchlight Entertainment. "True Stories' unique community platform and accessibility to a mass audience opens markets that may not have immediate access to the film. AOL has given us a new and powerful tool to create a buzz for our movie prior to its theatrical release."

True Stories and each individual documentary, including Darkon, will also be accessible as part of the movie offerings on AOL Video (http://video.aol.com) as part of AOL Video Search. The films will be accessible in DVD quality AOL Hi-Q™ video format for all pay-per-download to own videos.

About AOL Video

AOL® Video (http://video.aol.com) is a one-stop online resource to find, watch and share millions of the best videos from across the Web, broadcast and cable television, and entertainment including movies, music videos, news, user-generated content and full-length TV shows. AOL Video features free streaming videos as well as the ability to purchase and download full-length content that can be viewed on multiple devices and PCs, online or offline. At the center of the AOL Video portal is one of the Web's first online interactive programming guides which brings together thousands of hours of video programming and organizes it into more than 50 branded video-on-demand channels. AOL Video also features video search powered by technology from Truveo™ and a video player that can go full screen without losing picture quality and that supports AOL's exclusive Hi-Q™ video format to watch up to DVD-quality videos online.

About AOL

AOL is a global Web services company that operates some of the most popular Web destinations, offers a comprehensive suite of free software and services, runs the country's largest Internet access business, and provides a full set of advertising solutions. A majority-owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc., AOL LLC is based in Dulles, Virginia. AOL and its subsidiaries also have operations in Europe, Canada and Asia. Learn more at AOL.com.

Source: Business Wire

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