BETTER MUS' COME
First Acquisition is Storm
Saulter’s Jamaican Epic
“Better Mus’ Come”
Los Angeles, CA, January 14, 2013
– African-American Film Festival Releasing Movement (AFFRM) today announced the
launch of its new label, ARRAY, dedicated to multi-platform distribution of
black independent film. The
label’s first acquisition is the award-winning drama, Better Mus’ Come, the debut feature from writer/director Storm
Saulter. ARRAY has acquired all U.S. distribution rights. The announcement was
made by AFFRM Founder Ava DuVernay.
A landmark in Caribbean
filmmaking, Better Mus’ Come is a
stunning love story unfolding at one of the most violent moments in Jamaican
history, when rival gangs were enlisted by warring political factions to disrupt
the democratic process - and bloodshed was unleashed on the streets. Winner of
Best Feature Awards at Trinidad & Tobago Film Festival and Bahamas Intl
Film Festival, Best Director Award at Pan-African Film Festival and Best Actor
Award at American Black Film Festival, the film has screened at Toronto International
Film Festival, Film Society of Lincoln Center and British Film Institute. The
producer is Paul Bucknor, with executive producers Joshua Bratter and Samantha
Bratter.
“AFFRM’s new label ARRAY is build
to serve the tremendous burst of black cinematic talent across the globe,
filmmakers who are embracing new technologies to tell their stories by any
means necessary. The goal is to
expand the brand cultivated over our first four theatrical releases by reaching
new audiences via both digital and traditional platforms,” explained DuVernay.
“Storm’s work on Better Mus’ Come as
director, writer and cinematographer is wildly impressive, incredibly important
and deserves to be seen by as many filmlovers as possible. We’re proud that his
gem will launch ARRAY.”
The deal was negotiated by Gordon
Bobb of Del, Shaw, Moonves, Tanaka Finkelstein & Lezcano on behalf of AFFRM
with the producers.
About AFFRM
Founded in 2011, AFFRM is the
African-American Film Festival Releasing Movement, a distribution collective of
black film organizations dedicated to quality black independent films. AFFRM’s
founding organizations include Urbanworld (NYC), Imagenation (NYC), Reelblack
(Philadelphia), Langston Hughes Film Festival (Seattle), BronzeLens (Atlanta)
and DVA (Los Angeles). AFFRM's theatrical releases to date include: 2012
Sundance Best Director Award Winner MIDDLE OF NOWHERE; 2011 Sundance World Cinema
Audience Award Winner KINYARWANDA, 2011 Sundance Film Festival Official “Next”
Selection RESTLESS CITY; and 2011 NAACP Image Award nominee for Best
Independent Picture, I WILL FOLLOW.
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