{"id":67125,"date":"2013-10-15T15:25:52","date_gmt":"2013-10-15T15:25:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/0de2709a84.nxcli.net\/0-kjasnb\/2013\/10\/15\/simonsays-ent-to-produce-mike-brown-hiv-doc-25-to-life\/"},"modified":"2018-12-18T08:52:35","modified_gmt":"2018-12-18T08:52:35","slug":"simonsays-ent-to-produce-mike-brown-hiv-doc-25-to-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.blackfilm.com\/read\/simonsays-ent-to-produce-mike-brown-hiv-doc-25-to-life\/","title":{"rendered":"SimonSays Ent. to produce Mike Brown\u2019s HIV doc 25 TO LIFE"},"content":{"rendered":"

SimonSays Ent. to produce Mike Brown\u2019s HIV documentary 25 TO LIFE<\/strong>Posted by Wilson Morales<\/p>\n

October 15, 2013<\/p>\n

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SimonSays Entertainment<\/strong> announced today it is coming on board to produce Mike Brown<\/strong>\u2019s documentary 25 TO LIFE<\/strong>, a gripping and deeply moving portrait of a Philadelphia man\u2019s struggle with HIV.<\/p>\n

SimonSays Entertainment has had a very busy year, as one of the companies behind two of the most celebrated and critically acclaimed independent films of 2013: Alexandre Moors’ BLUE CAPRICE<\/strong> and Andrew Dosunmu’s MOTHER OF GEORGE<\/strong>. Both films (released by Sundance Selects and Oscilloscope Laboratories respectively) premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and are currently playing theatrically across the country.<\/p>\n

Film and theater production company SimonSays Entertainment, was founded in 2009 by actor and Tony Award-winning producer Ron Simons<\/strong>. With the simple motto — Tell Every Story \u2013 SimonSays focuses on projects that explore the oft-ignored outsider\u2019s struggle for dignity and acceptance with an eye towards cultural preservation.<\/p>\n

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Ron Simons also produced the Tony award-winning Broadway show VANYA AND SONYA AND MASHA AND SPIKE<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

25 TO LIFE, directed by Howard University alum Mike Brown, is a deeply personal and moving portrait of William Brauner – a Philadelphia based man who kept his HIV status a secret for over 25 years. The film follows Brauner as he seeks redemption from his promiscuous past and embarks on a new phase of life with his HIV negative wife. A 2014 festival launch is anticipated for the film which was funded and supported by SimonSays, The Ford Foundation, the Sundance Institute, Cinereach, The Good Pitch, IFP, Firelight Media Lab and Tribeca All Access.<\/p>\n

25 TO LIFE will be the first documentary produced by SimonSays.<\/p>\n

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Ron Simons says: \u201cWe’re delighted to help bring this intimate, compelling and surprising work to life. The potential to engage, educate and influence choices that could affect the health and lives of young people, makes 25 TO LIFE a timely, important film destined to challenge misconceptions about HIV and the challenges faced by families affected by the disease.\u201d <\/strong><\/p>\n

BLUE CAPRICE and MOTHER OF GEORGE are continuing to expand theatrically across the country. Inspired by the 2002 Washington D.C. sniper attacks, BLUE CAPRICE stars Isaiah Washington and Tequan Richmond and investigates the genesis of the horrific events from the point of view of the two perpetrators. MOTHER OF GEORGE stars Danai Gurira, Isaach De Bankol\u00e9 and Yaya DaCosta in a story about a Nigerian immigrant living in Brooklyn torn between her Yoruba culture and her new life in America.”<\/p>\n

SimonSays film productions, including NIGHT CATCHES US, GUN HILL ROAD, BLUE CAPRICE<\/strong> and MOTHER OF GEORGE<\/strong> have all screened at the Sundance Film Festival and have collectively been nominated for multiple festival awards (with several wins) and two Independent Spirit Awards.<\/p>\n

Notable theater productions for SimonSays include the multiple Tony Award-winning revival of PORGY & BESS<\/strong> starring Audra McDonald and Norm Lewis, as well as the all-black Broadway production of A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE<\/strong> starring Blair Underwood and Nicole Ari Parker.<\/p>\n

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