News

February 28, 2008 - [ Los Angeles Times ]

... Executive producer [and Participant president] Ricky Strauss said he hopes that the film might inspire viewers -- particularly the under-30 crowd -- in this historic election year.

February 27, 2008 - [ Chicago Tribune ]

[Tom] Hayden, 68, the founder of Students for a Democratic Society ... said, "I think there are similarities between then and now that have reawakened the memory of Vietnam, and that becomes applied to Iraq," Hayden said.

February 25, 2008 - [ ABC ]

Who says politics is show business for ugly people? An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore's film on the perils of global warming, won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature and Original Song Sunday night.

February 17, 2008 - [ The Hollywood Reporter ]

... The Grand Jury Silver Bear went to Standard Operating Procedure, Errol Morris' documentary on torture in Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison. Morris' film was the first documentary to screen in competition in Berlin.

February 15, 2008 - [ Variety ]

Adrian Sexton has joined Participant Prods. as exec VP in charge of digital to oversee the banner's expansion into global media, the production of new programs and digital distribution.

November 28, 2007 - [ The Hollywood Reporter ]

Charlie Wilson's War is the anti-"Mr. Smith Goes to Washington." In Frank Capra's political fable, a naive and idealistic man gets appointed to fill a Senate seat, runs into corruption and hardball politics but perseveres through sheer goodness.

November 15, 2007 - [ Los Angeles Times ]

Author Khaled Hosseini's novel The Kite Runner became a runaway bestseller in 2003 based largely on positive word-of-mouth among readers throughout the world. But can Hollywood deliver a hit movie by persuading fans of the book to see the film?
 

November 7, 2007 - [ The Hollywood Reporter ]

Participant Prods. unveiled its social action campaign for its feature film documentary Darfur Now on Tuesday, including the release of a 30-second PSA starring Desmond Tutu, Barak Obama, Brad Pitt and Don Cheadle and its social action Web site at www.participate.net/darfurnow.

November 4, 2007 - [ Variety ]

"...Warner Independent Pictures' "Darfur Now enjoyed a per-screen average of $8,000 as it opened in three theaters in New York and Los Angeles, with an estimated gross of $24,000. Film, about the genocide in the Darfur region of the Sudan and narrated by Don Cheadle, expands by 20 runs in an additional 12 markets this weekend. It's directed by Ted Braun."
 

October 13, 2007 - [ Los Angeles Times ]

A great movie can get you a fabulous table in Cannes and maybe even an Academy Award, but it usually doesn't get you a spot at the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo.
 

September 11, 2007 - [ The Hollywood Reporter ]

In one of the most drawn-out and anticipated sales of the Toronto International Film Festival, new indie distributor Overture Films picked up all North American rights to writer-director Thomas McCarthy's The Visitor early Tuesday morning for more than $1 million plus boxoffice bonuses for the filmmakers.
 

September 14, 2007 - [ Variety ]

Ricky Strauss stands at the top of the escalator at Toronto’s Varsity Cinemas, surrounded by a circle of well-wishers. Tall and charismatic, he’s not a movie star. But as president of production at Jeff Skoll’s socially activist Participant Prods., he is a star of sorts in the Hollywood community.
 

September 7, 2007 - [ New York Magazine ]

... Hogarth’s touch is nearly undetectable, but it’s nothing short of wondrous to watch these scarred, abused children transform into sprightly, self-aware cherubs under Cloete’s unwavering care. (Critic's Pick)
 

July 3, 2007 - [ The Hollywood Reporter ]

Having backed the Oscar-winning An Inconvenient Truth, progressive-minded Participant Prods. said Monday that it is embarking on a new, environmentally friendly documentary inspired by Saturday's Live Earth concerts.

June 20, 2007 - [ The Hollywood Reporter ]

Participant Prods. has appointed former ICM exec Robert Murphy as CFO and Executive VP.
 

June 8, 2007 - [ The Hollywood Reporter ]

Participant Prods. is teaming with some strange bedfellows -- Broken Lizard comedy producers Jay Chandrasekhar and Julia Dray -- to develop the broad comedy Taildraggers.
 

June 1, 2007 - [ Los Angeles Times ]

If there's one thing activist Hollywood increasingly understands, it's the potential for turning a message-driven film into a political movement. And perhaps no one understands that better than Bonnie Abaunza, the founder of Artists for Amnesty.

May 24, 2007 - [ Variety ]

Chicago 10, the 2007 Sundance opener directed by Brett Morgen (The Kid Stays in the Picture), has been acquired by indie distributor Roadside Attractions.
 

April 11, 2007 - [ Variety ]

Jonathan King has ankled Focus Features for Participant Prods., where he'll be exec VP of production, just as he was at U's specialty arm. He'll report directly to Participant prexy of production Ricky Strauss.
 

January 21, 2007 - [ Los Angeles Times ]

They seemed so young. That's what Peter Hero remembers most about the day, nine years ago, when Pierre Omidyar and Jeff Skoll walked into his office at Community Foundation Silicon Valley with an odd idea to give away a fortune.