Woody Allen Goes to the Net With Match Point  12/27/05

GLENDALE, Calif., Dec. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Woody Allen -- who is famously low-tech in his life as in his films -- is venturing into some of today's state-of-the-art technologies to help publicize his Golden Globe-nominated drama "Match Point," to be released domestically by DreamWorks. The film opens in New York and Los Angeles on December 28, and will be released wide beginning in January 2006. Allen, who owns neither a computer nor an iPod, has participated in downloadable video and audio podcasts, while his remarkable career will also be celebrated in a four-week program series on XM Satellite radio.

In a first for Allen, the filmmaker has participated in a series of five video podcast interviews, which will be available for free downloads at iTunes.com. This also marks the first time any studio has created video podcasts for iTunes as part of a film marketing campaign. In addition, Allen can be heard in exclusive audio podcasts, produced and directed by entertainment journalist Andy Marx, in which the filmmaker addresses a variety of subjects, beginning with the acknowledgement that he is technologically challenged: "I'm not technological. I don't have an iPod, I don't have a word processor ... I have an old typewriter, which I've had since I was 16 years old, and I can't change the ribbon on it, because I have such little technological proficiency ... I don't have any flair for it."

In the podcasts, Allen also talks about the making of "Match Point," what drew him to film it in England, and the challenges of making a movie in today's blockbuster-oriented movie industry. In keeping with one of the main themes of "Match Point," he also talks about the role luck played in his own life and career: "You go through life playing the cards you're dealt and I feel I've been dealt two high pair. You know, I can be beaten by any low three of a kind or anything above that, but two high pair is not terrible."

Apart from the exclusive podcasts, Allen -- who worked in radio more than half a century ago -- will come full circle in his career when he makes his entrance into the new realm of XM Satellite Radio. DreamWorks and the XM team collaborated to develop a four-week series of programs celebrating Allen's illustrious career from his first breakthrough films right up to his latest drama, "Match Point." Featuring interview segments, movie clips, music and more, the series will launch on December 26, 2005, and will run through January 22, 2006.

Together, the podcasts and XM Satellite series will give audiences unprecedented access to the observations, reflections and viewpoints of the normally reticent filmmaker, who is arguably better known for eschewing public appearances.

Allen was recently honored with dual Golden Globe nominations for Best Director and Best Screenplay for his work on "Match Point." The critically acclaimed film was also Golden Globe-nominated for Best Picture -- Drama, and cast member Scarlett Johansson earned a Best Supporting Actress nod.

"Match Point" is a drama about ambition and obsession, the seduction of wealth, and the often irreconcilable relationship between love and sexual passion. Perhaps most importantly, however, the story reveals the huge part luck plays in the events of our lives, refuting the comforting misconception that more of life is under our control than really is.

Written and directed by Academy Award(R) winner Woody Allen ("Annie Hall," "Hannah and Her Sisters"), "Match Point" stars Jonathan Rhys Meyers ("Bend It Like Beckham," TV's "Elvis"), Scarlett Johansson ("Lost in Translation," "Girl With a Pearl Earring"), Emily Mortimer ("Lovely and Amazing," "Dear Frankie"), Matthew Goode ("Chasing Liberty"), Brian Cox ("The Bourne Identity," "Red Eye") and Penelope Wilton ("Iris," "Pride & Prejudice").

DreamWorks SKG was formed in October 1994 by its three principal partners -- Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen. The studio is actively involved in the production of live-action motion pictures and network and cable television programs, and the distribution of live-action and animated feature films, as well as home video entertainment. 

SOURCE DreamWorks SKG

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