Archive for June, 2010

OSCILLOSCOPE ACQUIRES RIGHTS TO RICHARD SHEPARD’S JOHN CAZALE DOC “I KNEW IT WAS YOU” / June 22nd, 2010

Venerable Actor Played ‘Fredo’ in THE GODFATHER: PARTS I and II
DVD release planned before 2010 holiday season

New York, NY (June 22, 2010) – Oscilloscope Laboratories announced today that it has acquired North American rights to Richard Shepard’s (THE MATADOR, Emmy® Award-Winning director of Ugly Betty pilot) documentary I KNEW IT WAS YOU, which explores the life of the exceptional but little-known actor John Cazale. The film premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival and aired on HBO June 1, 2010. The film was produced by Brett Ratner and Stacey Reiss. O-Scope will release the DVD in the fall of 2010.

Cazale’s film career consisted of just five movies, but all of them were Academy Award nominees for Best Picture: THE GODFATHER, THE GODFATHER: PART II, THE CONVERSATION, DOG DAY AFTERNOON, and THE DEER HUNTER. He is remembered by his colleagues as one of the brightest talents of his day, but three decades after his promising career ended with his untimely death, Cazale is largely unknown the general public.

Featuring interviews with Hollywood legends such as Al Pacino, Gene Hackman, Robert De Niro, Richard Dreyfuss, Meryl Streep, and Sidney Lumet, as well as actors and filmmakers from a younger generation inspired by Cazale, including Philip Seymour Hoffman, Sam Rockwell, Steve Buscemi, and Brett Ratner, and including clips from Cazale’s movies and rarely seen photos and home video, I KNEW IT WAS YOU seeks to remedy the disparity of Cazale’s success with his relative anonymity.

Richard Shepard said, “It’s a thrill to have Oscilloscope release the DVD of I KNEW IT WAS YOU. Their passion and commitment to quality projects is evident in the care and creativity they put into each of their releases. This documentary was a labor of love for everyone involved, and it’s really nice that it continues with the DVD release. I’m very excited that movie fans everywhere will have a chance to learn about John Cazale, and his incredible craft of acting.”

Adam Yauch, head of Oscilloscope, said, “Oscilloscope is the Fredo of independent film, so it’s an honor to put this film out.”