(Mid Hudson Valley, April 10, 2019)
Mid Hudson Valley Zombies Heading to Cannes
The 72nd Festival de Cannes will open with the Competition screening of Jim Jarmusch's new film, The Dead Don’t Die . The film by the American director and screenwriter will be this year’s first Palme d'Or competition screening, on Tuesday May 14, on the screen of the Grand Théâtre Lumière.
In the sleepy small town of Centerville, something is not quite right. The moon hangs large and low in the sky, the hours of daylight are becoming unpredictable and animals are beginning to exhibit unusual behaviors. No one quite knows why. News reports are scary and scientists are concerned. But no one foresees the strangest and most dangerous repercussion that will soon start plaguing Centerville: The Dead Don’t Die -- they rise from their graves and savagely attack and feast on the living -- and the citizens of the town must battle for their survival.
Carter Logan, Laurent Rejto and Jim Jarmusch
The Dead Don’t Die was produced in the mid-Hudson Valley during the summer of 2018. Featured locations include the Town of Ulster, Margaretville, Ancram, Elizaville and Fleischmanns, which became the fictionalized Centerville. Over 575 local background actors appear in the film and over 40 local crew members were hired.
Producers Joshua Astrachan and Carter Logan commented that, “Shooting our film in the Hudson Valley was a truly wonderful experience. The cities and towns welcomed us with open arms, the people were kind and generous, and our local crew of remarkably talented artists and professionals were simply incredible. The Hudson Valley Film Commission was a fantastic resource, standing by for assistance every step of the way. We are so grateful for the support!"
“We’re very excited,” said Hudson Valley Film Commission director Laurent Rejto. “We’ve worked on over 500 films since 2000, and this will be the first film to kick off the legendary Cannes Film Festival. It’s been a remarkable few years with the Mid Hudson Valley serving as production central for projects including A Quiet Place and Maniac. Currently, we’re hosting seven productions, including Derek Cianfrance’s HBO mine series I Know This Much Is True, and the Netflix film I’m Thinking of Ending Things by Charlie Kaufman. In additional to massive economic development, the PR that results from these productions is enormous for the region.”
Jim Jarmusch’s newest foray into genre film (after the western with Dead Man, Samurai/crime film with Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, and his vampire film, Only Lovers Left Alive) promises to be "the greatest zombies cast ever disassembled": Bill Murray, Adam Driver, Tilda Swinton, Chloë Sevigny, Steve Buscemi, Danny Glover, Caleb Landry Jones, Rosie Perez, Iggy Pop, Selena Gomez, RZA, Sara Driver, Austin Butler, Luka Sabbat, Eszter Balint, Larry Fessenden, Carol Kane and Tom Waits. The Dead Don’t Die also reunites Jarmusch with many of his frequent collaborators including Director of Photography Frederick Elmes (Night on Earth, Paterson, Broken Flowers) and Editor Affonso Gonçalves (Only Lovers Left Alive, Paterson). The Dead Don’t Die is Jim Jarmusch's thirteenth feature film and stands as not just a humorous and sometimes scary subversion of the genre (with a nod to George Romero’s seminal film, Night of the Living Dead) but also a tribute to cinema itself.
Since Stranger Than Paradise, Caméra d'or winner at the Festival de Cannes in 1984, which was a landmark in the history of new independent American cinema, Jim Jarmusch has been sharing with us his artful, soulful universes, inspired soundtracks, offbeat humour, and the meanderings of his anti-heroes in an always slightly strange world. At Cannes, his elegant, rock and roll cinema, often presenting an alternative America, has been honoured with four awards, including the Short Film Palme d'or in 1993 for Coffee and Cigarettes: Somewhere in California and the Grand Prix in 2005 for Broken Flowers.
In 2016, Jim Jarmusch had two films in the Official Selection: Paterson with Golshifteh Farahani and Adam Driver, in Competition, and Gimme Danger, the music documentary on Iggy and the Stooges as part of the Midnight Screenings.
Hudson Valley Film Commission director Laurent Rejto with Alejandro González Iñárritu at 2016 Woodstock FIlm Festival
A Focus Features presentation produced by Joshua Astrachan and Carter Logan, The Dead Don’t Die will be distributed by Focus Features and Universal Pictures International around the world – alongside Longride in Japan. The film will be released in France on the same day as its Cannes screening in the evening of May 14th, in the United States on June 14, 2019 and then worldwide.
The Opening Ceremony of the 72nd Festival de Cannes will take place on May 14, 2019. It will be broadcast free-to-air by Canal +, as well as in partner cinemas. Actor and director Edouard Baer will be the Master of Ceremonies.
The Competition Jury, chaired by Alejandro González Iñárritu, will present the Palme d'Or at the Closing ceremony on Saturday May 25.
The line-up of the Official Selection will be announced on Thursday 18 April.