The night before the Cannabis Film Festival at the Garberville Theatre.
Showing posts with label HighTherethemovie. Show all posts
Showing posts with label HighTherethemovie. Show all posts
Mysteries Beyond: THE MIND-BOGGLING POWER OF A MARIJUANA DOCUMENTARY!
by Dr. Franklin Ruehl, Ph.D.
Renowned tabloid journalist and television producer Wayne Darwen directed and stars in the new marijuana documentary,"High There," which follows the exploits of producer/journalist Dave High, as he attempts to film a television pilot but winds up stumbling into a real-life government scandal and cover-up—a plot to keep local marijuana advocate Roger Christie in prison for four years.
Intriguingly, due in large measure to the PR generated by Darwen and the film, Roger Christie was released to a halfway house a few weeks after "High There" debuted at the Action On Film International Film Festival in Monrovia, CA. This certainly demonstrates the potential power of a documentary to influence public opinion and political action.
The twist in the film is that Dave High is portrayed by Darwen himself! Darwen delivers such a convincing rendition of a stoned-out television producer that I — and others— actually believed that part of the production was true! In fact, Darwen was merely acting out a role that he had created as writer and director (with Henry Goren) of the film, and I wish to apologize for mistaking his fine acting for the real deal!
Indeed, "High There" has been categorized as a documentary comedy, but I took it quite seriously!
Fascinatingly, Darwen has been compared not only to great “gonzo” journalist Hunter S. Thompson, but to Sacha Baron Cohen, who created Ali G and Borat. Just as the TV show "Almost Royal" was described as "Borat without X-rated humor and humiliation," so Dave High has been characterized as Borat with a dose of political and social activism!
"High There" is being taken on the film festival circuit ranging from Oklahoma to Australia . And, as a result of its success, a sequel is now being filmed, starring Darwen once again as Dave High and co-director Goren as his straight-laced cameraman Roland Jointz. This time, they head to Las Vegas where they again take a wrong turn and wind up in the UFO/weird capital of Pahrump — and Area 51. Perhaps this venture will yield some important revelations about that secret UFO base!
Download the latest High There news release!
Click here!
High There premieres Monday Aug 25
at the Action on Film Festival
2014-08-19 18:03:21 Hunter S. Thompson meets Cheech & Chong in Hawaii in this nonfiction comedy about tabloid journalism and the marijuana wars!
August 18 ( Hollywood) High There, the new documentary comedy directed by and starring tabloid television legend Wayne Darwen, makes its world premiere Monday August 25th at the Action on Film International Film Festival in Monrovia, California.
The film, co-directed by veteran cinematographer Henry Goren, documents the pair's trip to the island of Hawaii in an attempt to film a reality television series focusing on the world's marijuana meccas pilot. Instead, Darwen becomes immersed in the island's drug culture while uncovering a government plot to incarcerate local marijuana advocate Roger Christie.
The film has been two years in the making and has already made waves during the initial promotion and development process. An early preview of the film generated more than one and a half million views on YouTube. Darwen's appearance on TheLipTV.com's Buzzsaw program shattered download records.
High There, in which Darwen takes on the character of Dave High, is the latest transfornation for the celebrated television producer who began his career as a 17-year-old newspaper reporter in Sydney, Australia. Already known in media circles as the model for Robert Downey Jr.'s tabloid reporter in Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers, Darwen's become a hero to marijuana advocates and hailed in some quarters as the successor to Hunter S. Thompson.
High There is directed by Darwen and Goren, written by Darwen, and produced by Darwen, Goren and Burt Kearns, the award-winning documentary film and television producer who immortalized Darwen as a tabloid television innovator in his book, Tabloid Baby.
The film is a Sam Peters International Productions Unlimited and Good Story Productions presentation of a Rat Lung picture.
High There is an official selection of the Action on Film International Film Festival. It will screen at 10 p.m. at the Krikorian Monrovia Cinema 12, along with the award winning short, The Low Road, Baby. More film festival screenings will be announced in the near future.
Tickets are available at http://www.aoffest.com/#!product/prd12/2609055121/high-there-and-low-road-baby--8-25-10pm
The film, co-directed by veteran cinematographer Henry Goren, documents the pair's trip to the island of Hawaii in an attempt to film a reality television series focusing on the world's marijuana meccas pilot. Instead, Darwen becomes immersed in the island's drug culture while uncovering a government plot to incarcerate local marijuana advocate Roger Christie.
The film has been two years in the making and has already made waves during the initial promotion and development process. An early preview of the film generated more than one and a half million views on YouTube. Darwen's appearance on TheLipTV.com's Buzzsaw program shattered download records.
High There, in which Darwen takes on the character of Dave High, is the latest transfornation for the celebrated television producer who began his career as a 17-year-old newspaper reporter in Sydney, Australia. Already known in media circles as the model for Robert Downey Jr.'s tabloid reporter in Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers, Darwen's become a hero to marijuana advocates and hailed in some quarters as the successor to Hunter S. Thompson.
High There is directed by Darwen and Goren, written by Darwen, and produced by Darwen, Goren and Burt Kearns, the award-winning documentary film and television producer who immortalized Darwen as a tabloid television innovator in his book, Tabloid Baby.
The film is a Sam Peters International Productions Unlimited and Good Story Productions presentation of a Rat Lung picture.
High There is an official selection of the Action on Film International Film Festival. It will screen at 10 p.m. at the Krikorian Monrovia Cinema 12, along with the award winning short, The Low Road, Baby. More film festival screenings will be announced in the near future.
Tickets are available at http://www.aoffest.com/#!product/prd12/2609055121/high-there-and-low-road-baby--8-25-10pm
High There, in which Darwen takes on the character of Dave High, is the latest transfornation for the celebrated television producer who began his career as a 17-year-old newspaper reporter in Sydney, Australia. Already known in media circles as the model for Robert Downey Jr.'s tabloid reporter in Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers, Darwen's become a hero to marijuana advocates and hailed in some quarters as the successor to Hunter S. Thompson.
High There is directed by Darwen and Goren, written by Darwen, and produced by Darwen, Goren and Burt Kearns, the award-winning documentary film and television producer who immortalized Darwen as a tabloid television innovator in his book, Tabloid Baby.
The film is a Sam Peters International Productions Unlimited and Good Story Productions presentation of a Rat Lung picture.
High There is an official selection of the Action on Film International Film Festival. It will screen at 10 p.m. at the Krikorian Monrovia Cinema 12, along with the award winning short, The Low Road, Baby. More film festival screenings will be announced in the near future.
Tickets are available at http://www.aoffest.com/#!product/prd12/2609055121/high-there-and-low-road-baby--8-25-10pm
HIGH THERE PRESS KIT MATERIAL! DIRECTORS' BIOS
WAYNE DARWEN
Director/Writer/Producer
Immortalized in
the book Tabloid Baby as one of the
innovators of the tabloid television genre, Wayne Darwen rewrote the rules of television news, developed the
template for the modern entertainment news package, changed the way stories are
told on television and opened the gates for the reality television
revolution. All the while, he was
developing and cultivating the role of the brilliant Aussie pirate in an
increasingly corporatized industry. Starting out as a 17-year-old reporter for
a newspaper in Sydney, Australia, he traveled the world as a reporter for the
likes of the Sydney Daily Mirror, Star magazine and the New York Post, before
scorching the earth of popular culture when he made the move to television on
influential shows like A Current Affair,
Hard Copy, Geraldo Rivera’s Now It Can be Told and Inside Edition. He saw his reputation reach legendary status
when he inspired the character of newsman Wayne Gale in Oliver Stone’s film, Natural Born Killers, mellowed
considerably during an extended stay in Nashville, and washed up in Los Angeles
at the dawn of the 21st century to write and produce for network,
cable, and the syndicated television series, Extra, while a new generation of television producer and executive
looked upon him with awe -- and a bit of
fear. In his most recent venture, Darwen
confronted his own legacy as well as the devolution of modern journalism in the
service of television entertainment when he wrote, directed, and took on the
guise of Dave High in the documentary film High
There. It is the first leg of a
filmic journey that picks up where his colleague and inspiration Hunter S.
Thompson left off.
HENRY GOREN
Director/Director of Photography/Producer
Henry Goren was born in Hollywood, California, with his future career as a
photographer first taking shape when he was given the family Kodak 8mm movie
camera at age eight to document a family vacation through some 35 states over
42 days. His father, an electrical engineer and writer, was amazed how well his
son did the job, and an inspired young Henry continued to make small one-reel
animation films. He broke into the film industry in the post production
department of Schick Sunn Classic Pictures and was promoted to assistant film
editor before breaking into the television news business as cameraman and director
of photography for shows including Dateline,
Extra, Celebrity Justice, TV's
Practical Jokes & Bloopers and the NBC’s Olympic coverage. Goren was a
stunt driver on Stingray, appeared
onscreen as a footballer on HBO's 1st and
Ten and as a police officer with a whole five lines on General Hospital. He first worked with
Darwen while freelancing for Telepictures in 2002, beginning a long
collaboration that culminated in High
There.
MEET DAVE HIGH & ROLAND JOINTZ
DAVE HIGH
"I used to be somebody. Well, let me put it this way:
I used to be a tabloid television producer.
The dirtiest, most unethical bastard in the business.
That means I was one of the best."
ROLAND JOINTZ
"He could use a gig, too.
Only problem? He doesn't drink, smoke,
Only problem? He doesn't drink, smoke,
or do any drugs at all. Ah, I could tolerate that."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)