LDS Films Weekend Box Office Report 24 May 2002

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Feature Films by LDS/Mormon Filmmakers and Actors Weekend Box Office Report (U.S. Domestic Box Office Gross) Weekend of May 24, 2002 [If table lines up improperly, use mono-spaced font, i.e. Courier]

Natl  Film Title                Weekend Gross
Rank  LDS/Mormon Filmmaker/Star   Total Gross Theaters Days
---  ----------------------------- -----------  -----  ----
 8   The New Guy                     4,410,899  2,374    17
     Eliza Dushku (lead actress)    24,388,438

16   Murder by Numbers                 421,292    752    38
     Ryan Gosling (lead male actor) 31,046,134
     R.D. Call (6th billed star)

22   ESPN's Ultimate X - The Movie     299,841     48    17
     Reed Smoot (cinematographer)    1,595,556

25   We Were Soldiers                  223,050    322    87
     Keri Russell (actress)         77,841,080

47   The Believer                       34,269     13    10
     Ryan Gosling (lead actor)          84,710

59   The Singles Ward                  
     Kurt Hale (writer/director)        14,682      9   115
     John E. Moyer (writer)            738,100
     Dave Hunter (producer)
     Cody Hale (composer)
     Ryan Little (cinematographer)
     Wynn Hougaard (film editor)
     Actors: Will Swenson, Connie Young,
        Daryn Tufts, Kirby Heyborne,
        Michael Birkeland, Robert Swenson,
        Lincoln Hoppe, Gretchen Whalley,
        Sedra Santos, etc.

60   The Other Side of Heaven           14,135     18   164
     Mitch Davis (writer/director)   4,508,604
     John H. Groberg (author/character)
     Gerald Molen, John Garbett (producers)
     Steven Ramirez (film editor)

62   China: The Panda Adventure         13,643      6   304
     Reed Smoot (cinematographer)    2,349,990

63   Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man   12,489      5   752
     Reed Smoot (cinematographer)   13,312,112

64   Galapagos                          12,212      7   941
     Reed Smoot (cinematographer)   13,323,194

88   Mark Twain's America 3D             1,206      1  1424
     Alan Williams (composer)        2,224,305

If you didn't see "The Other Side of Heaven" during its national release, you may have to wait for the video. Last weekend, the film only played in 18 theaters. Its weekend box office gross dropped for the first time below that of "The Singles Ward", which averaged $1,631 per screen - although it only played in 9 theaters.

Latter-day Saint cinematographer Reed Smoot's hit IMAX film "ESPN's Ultimate X" continues to perform amazingly well. Playing in 48 theaters now, the film's per screen average remains high. This week, it average $6,247 per screen, outperforming big new releases DreamWorks' animated "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron" and "Enough" (starring Jennifer Lopez) on a per screen basis.

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA AND OTHER SCI FI: SciFi.com's current weekly news roundup (http://www.scifi.com/sfw/current/news.html) includes an update on the "Ender's Game" feature film (information we sent out last week, about this adaptation of LDS writer Orson Scott Card's popular novel), as well as a report that the "pre-crime" forcasting techniques in LDS movie producer Gerald Molen's upcoming "Minority Report" are JUST science fiction, but computer-based techniques could lead to similar possibilities. The news roundup also includes the following report on the upcoming "Battlestar Galactica" miniseries (based on Latter-day Saint television writer/producer Glen Larson's popular 1980's TV series):

Screenwriter Ronald D. Moore filled in a few blanks about his plans for the SCI FI Channel's upcoming Battlestar Galactica miniseries. "I'm in the middle of working on the script," Moore wrote in an e-mail exchange with SciFi Pulse that was reported on Cinescape Online.

Moore added, "The basis of the miniseries will be a retelling of the origin story; that is, the events that cause [the ship] Galactica and the fugitive fleet to begin their journey. There will be familiar characters from the original show, and new ones as well. I'm trying to flesh out the backstory of what led up to these cataclysmic events as well as round out many of the characters and their relationships. I can tell you that both the studio and the network are very happy with the outline and that things are going exceptionally well with this project so far."

UNWOUND 2002 IS ALMOST HERE: Tucker Dansie's "Unwound 2002" short film exhibition is almost here. The popular annual event, still with free admission, will take place on June 15th at 7:00 p.m. at the Jewett Center for the Performing Arts at Westminster College below the corner of 1700 S. 1300 E. in Salt Lake City. There will be a "meet and greet" after the films are shown so that all in attendance can meet the director and many of the actors. Short films shown include "The Switch", "Chick Magnet", "A Chance Meeting", "Forget-Me-Not", "S.F.L." and "The Lesson." Most of the films are comedies, but "The Lesson" is a drama. There will also be sneak peaks from Dansie's upcoming comedy "The Dougs" and his feature length documentary "Finding Freedom" (about a political refugee from Rwanda). This is a fun event. Dansie's films are very well made and highly unusual. If you're not familiar with his work, just imagine that Dansie is Neil LaBute and Jack Weyland's love child. The films are challenging and edgy, yet appropriate for the whole family. For more information, see the official website at: http://www.tuckertdansie.com/unwound.htm

THE ACTOR CAST AS JOSEPH SMITH...: Although the official announcement still has not been made about which actor will be portraying Joseph Smith in Richard Dutcher's upcoming feature film "The Prophet", we can tell you that the role has NOT been filled by any of the following actors who have portrayed Joseph Smith in the past: Vincent Price (who played Joseph Smith in "Brigham Young - Frontiersman" in 1940), David Wetberg (who played the Prophet in "The Lost Manuscript" in 1974), and Richard Moll ("Bull" from the TV sitcom "Nighcourt", who also played Joseph Smith in "Brigham" in 1977).