March 28, 2024
Annapolis, US 51 F

Director Rob Reiner to attend Annapolis Film Festival in support of latest film, LBJ

The multi-faceted film industry icon Rob Reiner, who directed AFF Opening Night Film LBJ, and his wife Michele Singer Reiner, are expected to attend AFF’s Opening Night, along with actor Jeffrey Donovan (Burn Notice, Fargo), who plays President John F. Kennedy in the film. 

Reiner is a celebrated actor, writer, director, producer, and activist. As an actor, Reiner first came to national prominence with the role of Michael Stivic on All in the Family. That role earned him two Emmy Awards during the 70s. As a director, Reiner was recognized by the Directors Guild of America with nominations for the coming of age comedy-drama film Stand by Me, the romantic comedy When Harry Met Sally…, and the military courtroom drama A Few Good Men. He also directed the psychological horror thriller MiseryAn American President and the romantic comedy fantasy adventure The Princess Bride and the heavy-metal mockumentary, This Is Spinal Tap, among others, including AFF’s 2016 film selection, Being Charlie. His latest film, LBJ, will be released in the Fall of 2017.

Other opening night guests are expected to include LBJ producer Matthew George, scriptwriter Joey Hartstone, as well as Annapolis natives Tim and Trevor White, who developed LBJ and also were producers of the film.

LBJ chronicles the life and times of the legendary and controversial Texan who would inherit the Presidency at one of the most fraught moments in American history. The Opening Night screening is Thursday, March 30 at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, 801 Chase St., Annapolis, 21401.

Starring Woody Harrelson as LBJ, Donovan as JFK, Richard Jenkins as Senator Richard Russell, Jr., and Jennifer Jason Leigh as Lady Bird Johnson, this film with contemporary relevance is slated for theatrical release this summer. LBJ shows Johnson confronting the challenge of leading a nation still grieving its beloved President Kennedy, even as he grapples with urgent calls for social justice led by Martin Luther King Jr.  Shrewd by nature even when he was appallingly coarse, Johnson emerges in Harrelson’s full-blooded characterization as a man willing to drive through landmark legislation partly on principle and largely on guts.

Says George, “Tim and Trevor White did a great job developing this project and Joey’s screenplay truly captures the soul of Johnson as he navigates this turbulent time with a government and a country in crisis.”  

Matt Spicer‘s Ingrid Goes West, starring Aubrey Plaza, Elizabeth Olsen and O’Shea Jackson Jr., joins the lineup as the Annapolis Film Festival (AFF)’s Saturday evening Spotlight film following its award-winning run at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.  Ingrid Goes West was one of the most sought after titles at Sundance and was ultimately acquired by NEON in a bidding war.

Ingrid Goes West’s producers also include Key School graduates Tim and Trevor White, sons of Patti White, co-founder of the Annapolis Film Festival and co-owner of local production company Filmsters. The White brothers helm Los Angeles-based Star Thrower Entertainment, a film and television finance and production company.

Ingrid Goes West follows Ingrid Thorburn, a mentally unstable young woman who becomes obsessed with Taylor Sloane, a social media ‘influencer’ with a seemingly-perfect life in Los Angeles. When Ingrid decides to drop everything and move to the West Coast to befriend Taylor in real life, her behavior turns unsettling and increasingly dangerous.

The film’s screenwriters, Matt Spicer and David Branson Smith won the prestigious Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award for Ingrid Goes West at the Sundance Film Festival.  The film is slated to be released in theaters this summer. Spicer is expected to attend the festival to represent Ingrid Goes West, in addition to Tim and Trevor White.

Annapolis Film Festival tickets cost from $12.50 for a single screening or panel to $125.00 for a general festival pass. The pass includes the Opening Night Film and After Party and unlimited films and panels for four days. Student and senior tickets are $10.00. Day Passes are $40.00 each and Student Passes are $50.00 for all four days.

A limited number of festival passes are still remaining, which include attendance to the Opening Night movie and the After Party, along with unlimited films and panels and Best of the Fest on Sunday, April 2. Tickets for Opening Night have been placed on hold until AFF can assure that passholders are accommodated. Some additional tickets ($40 each) may then be released and made available online. There will also be a RUSH line for all remaining seats at  Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts on March 30th – 6:30 pm. All seating is General Admission and attendees must arrive 15 minutes prior to the show to be seated, even with a pass.

Festival passes and individual tickets for all the other films can be obtained from www.annapolisfilmfestival.com. Check the website for times and locations of all events and screenings. Up-to-the minute changes in schedule can be followed on the AFF Facebook Fanpage and on Twitter. Use the “Subscribe to Updates” button on the site to receive regular email updates.

Previous Article

MSP searching for woman missing from Jessup

Next Article

Medical marijuana dispensary looks to open on West Street in Annapolis

You might be interested in …