Local Film to Premiere at 2011 Sundance Film Festival

Release:
Releasing blood, guts, and gore onto the world, Film Nova Scotia is proud to support Yer Dead Productions as they head to Sundance with its latest feature Hobo With a Shotgun, filmed in Halifax.

Directed by Jason Eisener and produced by Rob Cotterill, Hobo With a Shotgun will premiere at the 2011 Sundance Festival in Park City, Utah on Jan. 21. The gory feature film, starring Rutger Hauer (Blade Runner), is about a hobo fighting to clean up an out-of-control town with the help of only his 20-gauge shotgun.

Hobo With a Shotgun originated as a two-minute short film submitted to the Grindhouse Trailer Contest by the SXSW Film Festival and Robert Rodriguez. After winning the contest, and becoming a viral sensation on YouTube, it received massive industry support leading the team to write an extended feature film. That profile allowed the team to secure funding, including a Film Nova Scotia equity investment, to make the feature.

"We are thrilled with the success that Jason and Rob are experiencing," said Ann MacKenzie, president and CEO of Film Nova Scotia. "We strive to raise the awareness of our local talent and we couldn't be more proud of the profile that they will receive at the Sundance Film Festival."

This will be the second trip to Sundance for the Yer Dead Productions team. In 2009, its short film Treevenge, the story of Christmas trees exacting their revenge on the human race, received an honourable mention from the Sundance jury.

"Throughout the process of filming Hobo and Treevenge, we have always had the encouragement of the film community in Nova Scotia," said Mr. Eisener. "The support we have received from Film Nova Scotia since the very beginning has been vital in creating opportunities like this."

The Sundance Film Festival is considered the premier platform for independent filmmakers, featuring 200 films and more than 50,000 attendees each year. Founded by actor Robert Redford, the festival has introduced many acclaimed independent classics such as Reservoir Dogs, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, American Splendor, An Inconvenient Truth, Little Miss Sunshine, and The Cove.

Film Nova Scotia is a provincial Crown agency reporting to the Minister of Economic and Rural Development and Tourism. The corporation provides a wide range of programs and services to support the province's audiovisual industry. The industry is the fourth largest in Canada, regularly exceeding $100 million in economic activity annually.