anthem a Sepia Films production feature drama // runtime: 99:43 // format: dcp Film Sales: Public Relations: Creative Artists Agency Slash PR Christine Hsu Erica Gianchetti 1 424 288 2382 917.621.7588 [email protected] [email protected] cast and crew Cameron Monaghan Luke Hunter Peyton List Faith Taylor Juliette Lewis Mary Hunter Grayson Gabriel Fang Delaney Alex MacNicoll Stan Miller Spencer List Dwight Danny Woodburn Little Bob Director Robin Hays Writers Elisha Matic Josh Close Producers Tina Pehme Kim Roberts Cinematographer Todd Duym Costume Designer Liene Dobraja Casting Paul Weber Catharine Falcon Bim Narine Editor Austin Andrews Composer Andrew Harris 1 tagline Yes, we all die. But first we get to live. And that's big. That's beautiful. That's not to be missed. logline When 17 year old Luke Hunter predicts his friend’s death with freakish accuracy, his life gets complicated - FAST. synopsis Based on the award-winning novel by Joanne Proulx, Anthem is a coming-of-age story that nails contemporary youth culture. Hormonal and funny, exhilarating and wise, Anthem slyly explores the powerful brew of fear, truth, music and noise that plays inside us all. LUKE HUNTER is a small-town teenager torn between two worlds -- his stoner friends, including his childhood best friend FANG, and his new best friend STAN, the popular guy who loves life and has everything... including FAITH, the hottest girl in Stokum. Luke's two worlds collide one night when Stan gets high with Luke and his other friends. In a fog of weed and confusion, Luke has a disturbing premonition -- that Stan will be struck by a car and killed. Everyone laughs it off... until the next morning, when Stan dies exactly as Luke predicted. Luke is dubbed "The Prophet of Death" by a local reporter and everyone in town suddenly looks at him like a freak. Luke isolates himself, drowning out the world with hip-hop, keeping everyone at arm's length – his parents, Fang, even Faith -- telling no one that the premonitions keep coming. Luke tries to intervene, but it seems there's nothing he can do. As the media moves on to an exposé of gay men cruising in a local park, Luke and Faith grow closer, while Fang pulls further away. Fang accuses Luke of moving in on his dead friend's girl, which Luke angrily denies. But the truth is, Luke and Faith are falling in love -- until Faith accidentally calls him "Stan" at the school dance, confirming his worst fears and sending him into a tailspin of self- doubt. As things go from bad to worse, Luke foresees yet another death... this time, it's Fang. Desperate to intervene, Luke enlists Faith's help and drags Fang out to Gandy's 2 Rock, a massive stone cliff on the outskirts of town that for a young Fang represented the ultimate conquest. Faith nervously watches as Fang and Luke tentatively, then triumphantly scale the enormous rock face. As they drive home, Fang reveals the secret that caused him to retreat: he is gay – in fact, he is one of the men caught cruising in the park and is about to be publicly outed. With his friendship with Luke restored, Fang is able to face his worst fear – that life will end when the story breaks. Luke realizes that his visions are not the curse he believed them to be, but a life-affirming gift he can use to bring out the good in the world. director's statement Producer Tina Pehme and Director Robin Hays, on set. When [producers] Kim and Tina shared the script with me over three years ago, I was dealing with loss. I was drawn to the project because it dealt with life and death in a way I could relate to. Even though death is something that is going to happen to all of us, it’s a subject we tend to ignore. ANTHEM deals with death in a very direct, human way. As Luke says in the novel, yes, we all die - but first we get to live. And that’s big, that’s beautiful, that’s not to be missed. I needed that reminder and I knew that this was a story that needed to be told. My vision for Anthem was to bring it to life in a very authentic and visceral fashion. To me Luke’s premonitions are plausible and I wanted to keep everything firmly rooted in reality rather than veer into the supernatural world. 3 Another appeal of this project was the opportunity to have music play a major role in the story. I grew up in the 90s and the music that the defines these characters’ lives – from hip-hop, to grunge to R&B – is the very same music that dominated and defined my adolescence. In our teenage years, music guides the pain and catharsis and joy of our emotional lives. Showing the role of music in the teenage experience made this film all the more personal to me. I am very proud of how the actors rose to this challenge. Cameron [Monaghan] fully committed himself and brought Luke to life in the most beautiful, authentic way. Peyton [List] did not shy away from allowing herself to dive into this world and feel Faith’s heartbreak while being a beam of light and hope. Finding the right actor to play Fang was so crucial to this film and Grayson [Gabriel] truly transformed and immersed himself in the role. Having Juliette Lewis play Mary was beyond my expectations. The way she and Cameron brought Luke and Mary's relationship to life onscreen is truly beautiful. It’s been an incredible journey making this film with so many talented people on board to bring this story to life. The whole crew worked tirelessly to bring this film to life. We didn’t have a lot of time or money so we knew we wanted to be as prepared as possible. Todd Duym (DP) spent weeks in prep with me. I am very appreciative of the time and dedication Todd put into this film -- it shows. I have learned a lot through this process and I'm proud of what we all accomplished together. Finally, I am thankful to Kim and Tina for all their support creativity and tireless work ethic. I am grateful to them for bringing me onto this project, as a first-time feature director. There is so much heart and soul in this film and I can't wait to share it with the world. 4 producer's statement We loved Anthem from the moment we first read the novel. We were taken with its voice, characters and story and that it didn’t shy away from exploring themes of death and loss. But what also drew us in was that Luke ultimately discovers that where there is dark, there is also light. We just have to choose how we see -- and it’s in those moments of choice that there is hope. Hope is an important part of the message for us. We also appreciated that Anthem takes teenagers seriously, it’s not dumbed down. It explores the core questions without sugar-coating them -- Does life have a purpose? Where do I fit in? Will I belong if I dare to show the world who I really am? Anthem captures the energy of the teenage experience: first loves, first losses, rivalries, rebellion, experimentation, pain, forgiveness and daring to be who we truly are, all conveyed with real emotion. It is centered around a troubled protagonist and explores dark subject matter, yet is balanced with lightness and humor, even in the film's most emotional moments, much like in life. Music was also a big part of the attraction to the piece. Joanne’s novel used music both as a metaphor and to define character and place and it was exciting to be able to fully bring this aspect to life in the film; how the music we listen to is the soundtrack to our lives, allowing us to escape, tune out or to tune into the way we are feeling. Luke’s music is that of 90’s hip-hop and grunge and forms an intricate part of the tapestry that is Anthem. And our director – our experience of Robin was that she was a new voice with the vision and heart to bring Anthem to life in all the ways we envisioned. Because of its intricate character dynamics and delicate balance of tones, we knew this story needed a unique voice with a strong visual sensibility, a facility for dramatic storytelling and a strong connection to the era and the music. We are thrilled to be bringing this film out with her. Juliette Lewis, on set. 5 production notes Cameron Monaghan and director Robin Hays on location. Robin Hays (director): "Making this film was an incredible journey and something that I was apprehensive about. I think as a first time filmmaker you're always a little bit nervous about how the project is going to turn out. I feel fortunate to have been surrounded by so many amazing people and an incredible cast who everyday showed up and delivered more than I anticipated and were so giving and so thoughtful. It really was an incredible experience." Cameron Monaghan (Luke): "So much of this movie ended up being found in the moments. It was about making sure it was grounded -- moments were well rounded and realized.” Grayson Gabriel (Fang): "I've never been involved in a project that is this good.