News

90 Church

"Breaking Bad" writer/co-executive producer George Mastras has been hired to pen a feature adaptation of Dean Unkefer's autobiography "90 Church: The True Story Of The Narcotics Squad From Hell."

Unkefer is a former narcotics agent and the 1950s and 1960s-set book deals with a young agent's downward slide into addiction amid shifting loyalties. At last report, Rupert Sanders (“Snow White and the Huntsman”) was attached to direct. [Source: Variety]

Will and Zoe

Short film director Leanne Welham is set to both direct and pen "Will and Zoe," an adaptation of Kristin Halbrook’s novel "Nobody But Us" at Haven Entertainment.

Described as a modernized update of "Bonnie and Clyde," the story follows two desperately in love teenagers on the run who make all the wrong choices in order to escape their circumstances. [Source: Variety]

Breaker

20th Century Fox and Parker Entertainment have made a pre-emptive deal for Trevor Cawood's original sci-fi...

Exclusive: Fox has made a pre-emptive pitch deal for Breaker, an original sci-fi idea by VFX wiz and commercials director Trevor Cawood. Fox-based Hutch Parker Entertainment is producing. Matt Cook, whose scripts By Way Of Helena and 999 made the Black List, will write the script. The scribe and Parker previously teamed for an untitled heist project at the studio. Dan Wilson is running point for Hutch Parker Ent, and Jason Young is the Fox exec. Parker just produced The Wolverine and is working on X-Men: Days Of Future Past. Cook and Cawood are both repped at Wme and Anonymous Content.

We shed some light on the mysterious lunar adventure.

By Eric Ditzian

"Apollo 18"

Photo: Dimension Films

Let's give the folks responsible for "Apollo 18" some credit: The viral marketing campaign behind their moon-landing horror flick has been convincing enough that Nasa has had to come out and declare, " 'Apollo 18' is not a documentary. The film is a work of fiction."

We're not exactly convinced the American public was starting to believe Apollo 18 wasn't, in fact, a canceled moon mission but, as the film suggests, a cover-up to hide a gruesome lunar run-in with alien life forms. Nor are we certain a government statement will have any effect on conspiracy-minded kooks other than to make them think, "See, man, I told you — they're hiding something!"

"Apollo 18," for its part, certainly is hiding something. The Weinstein Company is following the "Paranormal Activity" playbook, doling out only...

We shed some light on the mysterious lunar adventure.

By Eric Ditzian

"Apollo 18"

Photo: Dimension Films

Let's give the folks responsible for "Apollo 18" some credit: The viral marketing campaign behind their moon-landing horror flick has been convincing enough that Nasa has had to come out and declare, " 'Apollo 18' is not a documentary. The film is a work of fiction."

We're not exactly convinced the American public was starting to believe Apollo 18 wasn't, in fact, a canceled moon mission but, as the film suggests, a cover-up to hide a gruesome lunar run-in with alien life forms. Nor are we certain a government statement will have any effect on conspiracy-minded kooks other than to make them think, "See, man, I told you — they're hiding something!"

"Apollo 18," for its part, certainly is hiding something. The Weinstein Company is following the "Paranormal Activity" playbook, doling out only...

The Hollywood Reporter announced that up and coming director Trevor Cawood is in negotiations to helm this project. Warner Bros. has had this script, written by Stellastar front man Shawn Christensen, for a while now. Here is the synopsis that THR gave:

The story centers on a professor who engages in a game of cat and mouse with a corrupt detective after he's told his dead wife of five years might still be alive. He uncovers the existence of a secret organization responsible for faking her death but suffers the consequences of that knowledge

Cawood is not a familiar name to the masses but he has been in the industry for a little bit. Here is what he has been up to:

Cawood made a name for himself with his shorts and commercials. One that caught Hollywood’s eye was an arty and unique film titled Terminus and featured a...

Canadian commercials and short filmmaker Trevor Cawood ("Terminus") is in negotiations to direct the feature thriller "The Karma Coalition" at Lin Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures says The Hollywood Reporter.

Shawn Christensen's script centers on a professor who learns his wife, who died five years ago, might still be alive. He battles wits with a corrupt detective, in the process suffering the consequences of discovering the secret organization responsible for faking her death.

The studio landed the project back in 2008. Jon Silk and Mark Bauch will produce.

Clearly looking to tap into some promising new talent, Warner Bros. has handed the keys for conspiracy thriller The Karma Coalition to shorts/commercials director Trevor Cawood.The plot will find a professor discovering that the wife he thought was dead for five years might actually be alive. Her death was faked by a mysterious organisation (we’re going to guess the titular coalition) for unknown reasons, and the new information puts the academic in some serious danger, not least from a crooked detective who starts a twisted game of cat and mouse with our hero.Warners nabbed the spec script for a solid fee from Shawn Christensen, whose day job is as lead singer and guitar player for New York-based indie band stellarstarr* (that asterisk is part of their name, not a link to a forgotten footnote).Cawood, meanwhile, has been grabbing attention after making respected ads for the...

Director Trevor Cawood has signed on to make his feature directorial debut with The Karma Coalition for Warner Bros.

We first reported on this project way back in September 2008, when Warner Bros. acquired Shawn Christensen's spec screenplay. The story centers on a professor who learns that his late wife may not actually be dead, while uncovering a secret organization behind the cover-up.

Trevor Cawood will make his feature directorial debut with The Karma Coalition, although he has been on Hollywood's radar for some time now with his work in short films and commercials. The director is also the co-owner of Embassy, a special effects house which has worked on movies such as Cowboys & Aliens and District 9.

Dan Lin is producing The Karma Coalition for Warner Bros., although no production schedule was given.

The Karma Coalition comes to theaters in 2012.

Warner Bros. has selected Trevor Cawood to direct their long-in-development sci-fi project, Karma Coalition . First purchased by the studio in 2008 , the script arrives from Shawn Christensen, better known as the lead singer of the rock band stellastar* (named for Caroline Munro's character in the cult 1978 film Starcrash ). The story involves a fugitive racing against the end of the world to prove his innocence and find out who was responsible for the death of his wife. Dan Lin ( Sherlock Holmes , Terminator Salvation ) is producing and, with Cawood aboard, the project is likely to gain some speed. Cawood will make his feature debut with the project, but has previously worked in commercials and shorts. You can watch his previous sci-fi short, "Terminus," in the...

Yes, in a brilliant marketing plot by our friend Mr. Bob Weinstein, the company is trying to promote the new sci-fi/horror film Apollo 18 as truth and not your standard "found footage" rubble. So forget you sat through the Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity movies, those were phony. Read what Bob had to say about the project after the break...

"People intrinsically know there are secrets being held from us," Weinstein told Entertainment Weekly. "Look at WikiLeaks: There are secrets that are really true to the world. It's not bogus. We didn't shoot anything. We found it. Found, baby!"

Well, you can't argue with that. Especially the ending where he has to add, "found it baby!" That's enough to sell the HorrorBid crew that its real. When can you see these piece of historical footage that was just dug up? April 22nd is the release date. They are...

Back in November we were informed that The Weinstein Company had acquired the rights to a movie called Apollo 18 to a movie called Apollo 18, which would be produced by Timur Bekmambetov and directed by Trevor Cawood.

The movie is of the "found footage" variety, taking the canceled Nasa mission to the moon and proposing that it did in fact happen but went horribly, horribly wrong. The footage that has been found from the mission show just wrong it went and why they tried to cover it all up at first.

You can see the first trailer and read a synopsis for Apollo 18 by clicking on over now.

Synopsis Officially, Apollo 17, launched December 17th, 1972, was the last manned mission to the moon. But a year later, in December of 1973, two American astronauts were sent on a secret mission to the moon funded by the Us Department of Defense.

This is a film that has us very intrigued and the trailer has us excited. Yes, it's a fact they're using the tried, true and often overused "found footage" style shooting but we think this may be the perfect fit for this type of sci-fi/horror environment. At least that's the hope around the water cooler...

The Weinstein Brothers are acting as if this project which is being written by Brian Miller, winner of the inaugural Astana International Action Film Festival screenplay competition, is the gold nugget they've been looking for.

Set to be shot documentary style, the film unearths lost footage from Apollo 18's undocumented and covert mission to the moon, revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms.

The film is slated be released nationwide on April 22nd, 2011. Trevor Cawood was behind the lens for the project. Feast on the new trailer for the film.

Source: YouTube...

What if Nasa had a dark little secret squatting in its history that could explain just why – aside from lack of funding – mankind had not returned to the moon after 17 Apollo missions? What if that secret included the fact that there was indeed an 18th mission, but what the astronauts discovered was something terrible? That’s the subject of Apollo 18, the latest horror thriller to land on the found footage bandwagon, and which has just beamed a trailer on to the web.Timur Bekmambetov spearheaded this one, looking to get the film shot quickly and cheaply (it kicked off production in mid-November, if you can believe that), and despite one blip – switching directors from Trevor Cawood to King of the Hill’s Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego shortly before shooting – it appears to have gone smoothly.To keep up the idea that this is actual footage recovered from the ill-fated lunar landing,...

We told you last month that Gonzalo López-Gallego (La piel azul) had taken over directorial duties from visual effects guru Trevor Cawood on Timur Bekmambetov‘s (The Darkest Hour) latest production, entitled Apollo 18. The films plot revolves around recently “found footage” shot by the crew of an abandoned moon mission that Nasa claims never took place in the early 1970s. The lost footage reveals the existence of alien life and explains why Nasa has hidden the evidence for all of these years.

Now, THR reports that Apollo 18 will be shot on a very tight schedule at a studio in Vancouver, from Dec. 20 through Jan. 13, 2011. In conjuction with the beginning of production, an email message was sent out with a link to a new page on the film’s website.

The message stated -

“Please see this leaked classified doc that surfaced this week, before the Us government tries...

             Why haven't we been back to the moon?  According to this classified document form the Apollo 18 mission, and also by playing along with the "found footage" trend, we see why we don't go back!  The Trevor Cawood  directed docu-style horror film will land in theaters on February 4th, 2011 but for now check out the "top-secret" document below!              Visit and "Like" the official Apollo 18 Facebook page...

The Weinstein Company has released a teaser poster for their upcoming "Apollo 18". The sci-fi horror film is slated for release in March of 2011 and was just announced for filming under director Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego ("El Rey De La MONTAñA") (replacing the previously-announced Trevor Cawood). The movie, which will shoot in a "found footage" documentary style, will pretend to unearth lost footage from Apollo 18's undocumented and covert mission to the moon, revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms....

Just hours ago, we told you that Gonzalo López-Gallego (La piel azul) has taken over directorial duties from visual effects guru Trevor Cawood on Timur Bekmambetov‘s (The Darkest Hour) latest project, entitled Apollo 18. The films plot revolves around recently “found footage” shot by the crew of an abandoned moon mission that Nasa claims never took place in the early 1970s. The lost footage reveals the existence of alien life and explains why Nasa has hidden the evidence for all of these years.

Now, we get a look at the first poster for the film and they’ve launched the film’s official website at Apollo18movie.net. Check out the poster below!

Apollo 18 is slated to hit theaters on March 4th, 2011.

Earlier this month, we told you that The Weinstein Company had acquired the rights to Timur Bekmambetov‘s (The Darkest Hour) latest project, entitled Apollo 18. The films plot revolves around recently “found footage” shot by the crew of an abandoned moon mission that Nasa claims never took place in the early 1970s. The lost footage reveals the existence of alien life and explains why Nasa has hidden the evidence for all of these years.

At the time, Bekmambetov was set to serve as producer of the sci-fi thriller, and a script written by Brian Miller was to be directed by Trevor Cawood. Now, THR reports that Gonzalo López-Gallego (La piel azul) is taking over directorial duties from visual effects guru Trevor Cawood on Apollo 18.

No explanation was given for the departure of Cawood, who would have made his directorial feature debut with Apollo 18, after working on visual...

This is a film that has us very intrigued. Yes, it's a fact they're using the tried, true and often overused "found footage" style shooting but we think this may be the perfect fit for this type of sci-fi/horror environment. At least that's the hope around the water cooler...

The Weinstein Brothers are acting as if this project which is being written by Brian Miller, winner of the inaugural Astana International Action Film Festival screenplay competition, is the gold nugget they've been looking for.

Set to be shot documentary style, the film unearths lost footage from Apollo 18's undocumented and covert mission to the moon, revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms.

The film is slated to begin production this December for a March release date. Trevor Cawood is set to direct the project. Expect Apollo 18 in theaters everywhere February 4th, 2011. Feast on the new one...

The Weinstein Co. has revealed the first poster for their upcoming sci-fi film, Apollo 18. The film will use the “found footage” angle made popular again recently by films such as Cloverfield and Paranormal Activity to tell the “real story” of Nasa’s 18th Apollo mission, where astronauts were shocked to discover extraterrestrial life. The film will be produced by Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted) and will mark the English-language directorial debut of Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego, who previously directed the excellent Spanish film El Rey De La Montana (King of the Hill). Apollo 18 is set to be released on March 4, 2011. You can hit the jump to check out the poster and you can check out the official website here. Make sure your speakers are on.

Here’s the press release for Apollo 18, which includes some more details regarding the film’s plot:

With the recent discovery of Russian film footage that...

As I mentioned a couple of weeks back, there's a new race to the moon and the Weinsteins seem hellbent on getting there first. Their "found footage" sci-fi project Apollo 18 already has a poster and a release date of March 4, 2011 -- which gives just-assigned director Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego (who replaced FX guy Trevor Cawood) a little over three months to slap a feature film together so Dimension can thrust it into theaters. Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted) is producing (rapidly). Here's...

The Weinstein Company has released a teaser poster for their upcoming Apollo 18 . The sci-fi horror film is slated for release in March of 2011 and was just announced for filming under director Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego (replacing the previously-announced Trevor Cawood). The movie, which will shoot in a "found footage" documentary style, will pretend to unearth lost footage from Apollo 18's undocumented and covert mission to the moon, revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms. Click the poster for a bigger version!

Trevor Cawood will not be directing the Weinstein Co.'s sci-fi film "Apollo 18."According to The Hollywood Reporter, Spanish-language director Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego will step in to make his English-language directing debut on the film, based upon a screenplay by Brian Miller. Miller was the winner of the inaugural Astana International Action Film Festival screenplay competition, founded by director Timur Bekmambetov. Bekmambetov is producing along with Michele Wolkoff, President of Development for Bekmambetov Projects Ltd. (Bpl).Lopez-Gallego is best known for directing "El rey de la Montana" (King of the Hill). "Apollo 18" would be incorporating the same "found footage" documentary style of filmmaking that was made famous by the horror films "The Blair Witch Project," "Paranormal Activity" and its sequel "Paranormal Activity...

Having already taken down a Roland Emmerich project with a similar premise, and facing similar competition from the Warner Bros. project Dark Moon, the Timur Bekmambetov-produced sci-fi project Apollo 18 really needs to live up to the expectations its putting upon itself. And with a March 2011 release date scheduled, they need to pull together and work basically every minute in order to get this thing out on time. Except that, well, they're replacing their director instead. Yesterday Spanish director Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego signed on to direct the film, replacing Trevor Cawood. The film already has a hell of a body count and it hasn.t even begun shooting yet. The Weinstein Company along with Wanted director Timur Bekmambetov are producing the film on a hyper-ambitious plan--get this movie out by March 2011. For those of you keeping track, that.s as barely four months away, which means casting, crewing, preproduction, filming,...

You’ve heard of the 48 Hours Film Project, the popular contest to shoot and edit a movie in just two days? Call the sci-fi “found footage” thriller “Apollo 18” the 90-days film project with a tight production schedule to shoot and wrap the movie in time for theaters in March 2011. According to “The Hollywood Reporter,” original director Trevor Cawood stepped aside due to the intense schedule. Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego signed on to replace Cawood, making his directing debut on an English-language movie. Brian Miller wrote “Apollo 18,” about a secret mission to the moon that reveals evidence of alien life, with Timur Bekmambetov producing as well as providing a quick turnaround on special effects via his Russia-based effects house Bazelevs.

You’ve heard of the 48 Hours Film Project, the popular contest to shoot and edit a movie in just two days? Call the sci-fi “found footage” thriller “Apollo 18” the 90-days film project with a tight production schedule to shoot and wrap the movie in time for theaters in March 2011. According to “The Hollywood Reporter,” original director Trevor Cawood stepped aside due to the intense schedule. Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego signed on to replace Cawood, making his directing debut on an English-language movie. Brian Miller wrote “Apollo 18,” about a secret mission to the moon that reveals evidence of alien life, with Timur Bekmambetov producing as well as providing a quick turnaround on special effects via his Russia-based effects house Bazelevs.

The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that Apollo 18 has a new director.

Spanish-language director Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego has stepped in to replace Trevor Cawood as the helmer of the Weinstein Co..s sci-fi .found footage. project Apollo 18.

Cawood is the latest victim swept up in the space race to launch Apollo 18, which since its announcement at the American Film Market, has caused tremors in the burgeoning genre of .found footage. movies. It first caused Roland Emmerich to scrap his ultra-low budget sci-fi project The Zone, and then days later Warner Bros. dropped Dark Moon, a spec it bought concerning the Apollo moon missions to be directed in the found footage format by Olantunde Osunsanmi. Dark Castle then swept in to save it.

Apollo 18 is being produced by Timur Bekmambetov and was written by Brian Miller, a winner of a screenplay contest founded by the Wanted filmmaker. TWC picked up the project Nov.

Found footage films continue to find their niche within the genre, and we're totally cool with that as long as they're good. With several deadly alien life form films on the way, both cinéma-vérité style and otherwise, 2011 is shaping up to be the type of cinematic extraterrestrial invasion that was last echoed in the UFO crazed Fifties and Sixties.

According to The Hollywood Reporter's Heat Vision Blog, Spanish-language director Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego has stepped in to replace Trevor Cawood as the helmer of The Weinstein Co.’s sci-fi “found footage” project Apollo 18.

Expect a theatrical release for Apollo 18, the sci-fi thriller based on the screenplay by Brian Miller, winner of the inaugural Astana International Action Film Festival screenplay competition, founded by Wanted director Timur Bekmambetov, on March 4th, 2011.

More soon.

- Uncle Creepy

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When Timur Bekmambetov suddenly announced last week that he was producing found footage space thriller Apollo 18, we knew that he and director Trevor Cawood were planning to make it quickly, but we didn’t realise that everything about the movie would happen fast: less than a week since the initial announcement, Cawood has been replaced as megaphone-wielder by King of the Hill’s Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego.While the previous reports had Apollo 18 already in production, the Heat Vision blog’s story amends that to say that the film is kicking off shooting shortly, with a hugely accelerated plan to cast, film, edit and release the thing in three short months and an aim to beat Oren Peli’s Area 51 into cinemas.No reason was given for the switch in directors, but it’s possible Cawood, whose previous work was primarily in special effects, decided to hit the eject...

Burgeoning Russian uber producer Timur Bekmambetov (who, at last count, is currently producing about 5,511 movies or thereabouts) has found a new director to direct his sci-fi found footage movie “Apollo 18″. Spanish helmer Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego will take over for Trevor Cawood. “Apollo 18″ uses the “Cloverfield”-ish gimmick of “found footage” to expose a secret Nasa mission to the moon. Most of the story will apparently take place in the rocket ship flying from the Earth to the Moon, and the astronauts’ close encounters of the third kind during their flight. One of three alien-themed sci-fi “found footage” movie announced in the same year, Bekmambetov’s movie is now well ahead of its competition — Roland Emmerich’s “The Zone”, which has reported shut down thanks to the crowded field, and “The Third Kind” director Olantunde Osunsanmi’s “Dark Moon”, which lost a studio, before getting picked up again by Dark Castle.

Spanish-language director Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego has stepped in to replace Trevor Cawood at the helm of the “found footage” sci-fi flick Apollo 18. As we previously reported, the film, produced by Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted), centers on the “What if?” scenario of Nasa launching an 18th Apollo mission and that mission, covered-up until now, discovered extraterrestrial life. According to Heat Vision, “the majority of the story takes place in the rocket in between the Earth and the Moon.”

The Weinstein Company, who picked up the project earlier this month, is racing to get the film shot and into theaters by early March so that it will beat Area 51, another “found footage” sci-fi film directed by Oren Peli (Paranormal Activity). Heat Vision reports that the pace was too fast for Cawood, who worked on the special effects for the The Matrix sequels and was set to make his feature directing debut on Apollo 18.

Just announced last week and scheduled for release in March of 2011, Apollo 18 has just replaced its director, reports Heat Vision . Gonzalo Lopez-Gallego will be stepping in to take over from the previously-announced Trevor Cawood. The film, which will shoot immediately in a "found footage" documentary style, will pretend to unearth lost footage from Apollo 18's undocumented and covert mission to the moon, revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms. Lopez-Gallego was the director of the 2007 Spanish film, King of the Hill . Apollo 18 will mark his first English-language film.

Let’s take a look at the potentially great horror movies of 2011. The upcoming line-up features the usual mix of sequels (Scream 4), remakes (Fright Night), adaptations (The Woman In Black), and original fare (Red State). The increasing trend here is for ‘found footage’ movies, a result of Paranormal Activity / Cloverfield’s enormous success. What’s strange is that this didn’t happen after Blair Witch in ’99.

So here’s Movie-Moron’s definitive guide to the best new horror movies, 2011:

- January -

Season Of The Witch

Release Date: 7 January 2011

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Ron Perlman, Stephen Graham, Christopher Lee

Director: Dominic Sena

Not the long awaited remake of Halloween III, this period horror sees Nicolas Cage as a medieval knight who agrees to transport a devious witch to an abbey where her powers can be destroyed. Even though he’s plays a Crusader, Cage is doing this with an American accent,...

  Roland Emmerich's The Zone, a low-budget sci-fier that was to have been directed by the man responsible for megabudgeted fare such as Independence Day, The Day After Tomorrow, and 2012 has been shut down, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The $5m, docu-style, "lost footage found" sci-fier may have been killed by The Weinstein Company's recent acquisition of Brian Miller's screenplay Apollo 18, another "lost footage found" sci-fier that is scheduled to reach North American theaters in March 2011. Peter Mackenzie and Brandon Scott were to have starred in The Zone. Apollo 18 will be directed by Trevor Cawood. Wanted's Timur Bekmambetov is co-producing the film.

Santa Monica, CA (November 7, 2010) – The Weinstein Company has acquired “Apollo 18,” the sci-fi thriller based on the screenplay by Brian Miller, winner of the inaugural Astana International Action Film Festival screenplay competition, founded by “Wanted” director Timur Bekmambetov. Trevor Cawood is set to direct the project. Bekmambetov and Michele Wolkoff, President of Development for Bekmambetov Projects Ltd. (Bpl) will produce the film. Set to be shot documentary style, the film unearths lost footage from Apollo 18′s undocumented and covert mission to the moon, revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms. Bekmambetov announced the contest this spring, in conjunction with Kazakhstan’s first film festival held in Astana, Kazakhstan July 27-July 1, 2010. Five finalists from the United States, France, Kazakhstan, and the UK attended the film festival, which was a celebration of international action films. As part of the competition, Miller was awarded a cash prize and [...]...

So it looks like Apollo 18 is coming together. If you are unfamiliar with it, Apollo 18 is a script by Brian Miller, which won the 1st Astana International Film Festival screenplay competition. Timur Bekmambetov (pictured) founded the competition and is personally producing the film. Timur is the director of Wanted and the Nightwatch series.

The script was recently purchased by The Weinstein Company and already has a release date of March 2011. That is a Very small turnaround, considering it hasn’t even begun shooting.

The film itself is a “found footage” style movie (Cloverfield and the Original Blair Witch Project) and centers on the canceled Apollo 18 flight. The story supposes that the Apollo was actually launched, but when evidence of alien life was discovered, President Nixon had a false story circulated.

Attached to direct is Trevor Cawood, who is a CGI/Visual FX veteran from the Matrix sequels. Normally I would...

The Weinstein Company reports they have acquired "Apollo 18," a sci-fi thriller based on a screenplay by Brian Miller, winner of the 'Astana International Action Film Festival' screenplay competition, founded by "Wanted" director Timur Bekmambetov.

Trevor Cawood will direct "Apollo 18", for producers Bekmambetov and Michele Wolkoff, Bekmambetov Projects Ltd. (Bpl).

To be lensed 'documentary style', the new film "...unearths lost footage from Apollo 18’s undocumented and covert mission to the moon, revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms..."

The 'Apollo 18' moon mission was originally planned July 1969 to land in the moon's 'Schroter's Valley', but Nasa 'cancelled' the mission because of congressional cuts.

"Apollo 18" will start filming in December for a March 2011 release.

Click the images to enlarge and Sneak Peek "Aliens On The Moon"...

With the recent discovery of Russian film footage that suggests that America’s Apollo 18 space mission actually did occur, despite being canceled by President Nixon in the early 1970s, The Weinstein Company (TWC) announced today that it has acquired the rights to a provocative new film project, titled Apollo 18. To be directed by Trevor Cawood from a screenplay by Brian Miller, “the documentary-style sci-fi thriller” will be produced by Russian filmmaker Timur Behmambetov (Wanted, 9, The Darkest Hour) and Michele Wolkoff, president of development for Bekmambetov Projects, Ltd. Production has been fast-tracked to begin in December, with a wide release planned for March 4.

A quintessential Cold War story, Apollo 18 casts light on the covert and undocumented lunar mission that officially “never happened.” Bekmambetov, hired by Russia to shoot a documentary about the Russian space station, recently came across footage in its space archives that bolsters the idea that an Apollo 18 mission did,...

The Weinstein Company announced that it has acquired worldwide rights to "Apollo 18," the sci-fi thriller based on the screenplay by Brian Miller.Miller was the winner of the inaugural Astana International Action Film Festival screenplay competition, founded by director Timur Bekmambetov. Trevor Cawood, who worked on the visual effects for the "Matrix" sequels, will direct the film.Bekmambetov is producing along with Michele Wolkoff, President of Development for Bekmambetov Projects Ltd. (Bpl)."Apollo 18" will incorporate the same "found footage" documentary style of filmmaking that was made famous by the horror films "The Blair Witch Project," "Paranormal Activity" and its sequel "Paranormal Activity 2."Apollo 18 was one of several missions of the Apollo program that were canceled during the 1960s and 1970s,...

Timur Bekmambetov, the red-hot director of Wanted and producer of 9, will explore alien life forms with Apollo 18. The film uses the "lost footage" device depicting an unpublicized mission which discovers aliens on the moon. The last real life American moon mission was Apollo 17. Bekmambetov is producing with visual effects specialist Trevor Cawood (The Matrix Reloaded/The Matrix Revolutions) directing. The Weinstein Company purchased the distribution rights to the sci-fi film.

Source: Variety...

Olatunde Osunsanmi, the director of the found-footage horror project The Fourth Kind, has already announced plans to direct a similar kind of film about a secret mission to the moon, but believe it or not, Timur Bekmambetov is going to beat him to the punch. Bekamambetov will be producing a project from director Trevor Cawood that doesn't just focus on similar secretive missions into space, but is scheduled for a March 2011 release. As in, five months from now. And no, it hasn't yet started shooting. The press release from the Weinstein Company doesn't explain how any of this is possible, because it's working with the gambit that the film is not a narrative at all, but based on "Russian film footage" that Bekmambetov discovered while shooting a documentary about the Russian space station. The idea is that, while Richard Nixon technically cancelled the Apollo 18 space mission, it actually did take...

Brian Miller's sci-fi thriller Apollo 18, winner of the inaugural Astana (Kazakhstan) International Action Film Festival screenplay competition founded by Wanted director Timur Bekmambetov, has been acquired by The Weinstein Company. Trevor Cawood, probably best known as a visual-effects technician on The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions, is set to direct the project. (Cawood also directed the short Terminus in 2007.) Bekmambetov and Michele Wolkoff, President of Development for Bekmambetov Projects Ltd. (Bpl), will produce Apollo 18, which will be shot "documentary style" as per TWC's press release. As part of the Astana competition, Miller was awarded a cash prize and a development deal with Bpl. In Miller's screenplay, lost footage from Apollo 18’s covert mission to the moon is uncovered, thus revealing evidence of other life forms — possibly even scarier than human beings. (As an aside, according to the official Nasa story, the Apollo 18 mission was axed.) [...]...

By Sean O’Connell

Hollywoodnews.com: The Weinstein Company is about the join the space race.

The company has acquired “Apollo 18,” a sci-fi thriller based on Brian Miller’s screenplay that won top prize at the inaugural Astana International Action Film Festival. The event was founded by Timur Bekmambetov, director of “Wanted” and the upcoming “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.”

Trevor Cawood is set to direct “Apollo 18,” which will be shot in a documentary style as it unearths lost footage from Apollo 18’s undocumented and covert mission to the moon, revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms.

Here’s more from the press release:

Bekmambetov announced the contest this spring, in conjunction with Kazakhstan’s first film festival held in Astana, Kazakhstan July 27-July 1, 2010. Five finalists from the United States, France, Kazakhstan, and the UK attended the film festival, which was a celebration of international action films. As part of the competition,...

You just can't keep the Weinsteins down. Say what you want about them, they're one of the most resilient companies on the planet! So resilient in fact they're making acquisitions at Afm! That's right, kids, there's more alien mayhem coming our way in Apollo 18.

From the Press Release

"The Weinstein Company has acquired Apollo 18, the sci-fi thriller based on the screenplay by Brian Miller, winner of the inaugural Astana International Action Film Festival screenplay competition, founded by Wanted director Timur Bekmambetov. Trevor Cawood is set to direct the project.

Bekmambetov and Michele Wolkoff, President of Development for Bekmambetov Projects Ltd. (Bpl), will produce the film.

Set to be shot documentary style, the film unearths lost footage from Apollo 18’s undocumented and covert mission to the moon, revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms.

Bekmambetov announced the contest this spring, in conjunction with Kazakhstan’s first film festival held in Astana,...

"Mark Ruffalo‘s directorial debut “Sympathy For Delicious” has been picked up by little known, “Latino themed” distributors Maya Entertainment nearly a year after it’s poorly-received yet World Jury Prize winning premiere at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. They now plan to release the film next spring..." (full details)

"Warner Bros. Pictures have picked up all U.K. rights to the medieval action thriller "Ironclad" about the Siege of Rochester. Paul Giamatti, James Purefoy and Brian Cox star in the film which will get a first-quarter release in the U.K., no U.S. release date has yet been locked..." (full details)

"IFC Midnight has picked up U.S. rights to the Adrien Brody-led psychological thriller "Wrecked" from Entertainment One. IFC Midnight will release the indie movie in the spring..." (full details)

"The Weinstein Company has acquired “Apollo 18,” a sci-fi thriller based on a screenplay by Brian Miller. Trevor Cawood...

The Weinstein Company has picked up rights to "Apollo 18," a sci-fi thriller screenwritten by Brian Miller which Trevor Cawood is set to direct. Timur Bekmambetov ("Wanted," "9") will produce alongside Michele Wolkoff, President of Development for Bekmambetov Projects Ltd. (Bpl). Flick will shoot documentary style, unearthing lost footage from Apollo 18's undocumented and covert mission to the moon and revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms. The film starts production this December for a March release date.

The Weinstein Company has acquired Apollo 18, the new sci-fi/horror thriller based on the screenplay by Brian Miller, winner of the inaugural Astana International Action Film Festival screenplay competition, founded by Wanted director Timur Bekmambetov...

Set to be shot documentary style, the film unearths lost footage from Apollo 18's undocumented and covert mission to the moon, revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms.

Bekmambetov (the production company behind the project) announced the contest this spring, in conjunction with Kazakhstan’s first film festival held in Astana, Kazakhstan July 27-July 1, 2010. Five finalists from the United States, France, Kazakhstan, and the UK attended the film festival, which was a celebration of international action films. As part of the competition, Miller was awarded a cash prize and a development deal with Bpl.

The film is slated to begin production this December for a March release date. Trevor Cawood is set to direct the project.

The Weinstein Co. acquired the rights to Timur Bekmambetov-produced “Apollo 18” over the weekend. The sci-fi thriller movie is based on the moon mission from the early 1970s, which was officially cancelled by Nasa. Conspiracy theorists believed the mission did launch as planned despite the cancellation by President Richard Nixon. Here is the official press release: The Weinstein Company has acquired ‘Apollo 18,’ the sci-fi thriller based on the screenplay by Brian Miller, winner of the inaugural Astana International Action Film Festival screenplay competition, founded by “Wanted” director Timur Bekmambetov. Trevor Cawood is set to direct the project. Bekmambetov and Michele Wolkoff, President of Development for Bekmambetov Projects Ltd. (Bpl) will produce the film. Set to be shot documentary style, the film unearths lost footage from Apollo 18’s undocumented and covert mission to the moon, revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms. Bekmambetov announced the contest this spring, in conjunction...

Timur Bekmambetov joins the found footage game with "Apollo 18." He's attached to produce the Trevor Cawood movie for The Weinstein Company. The script by Brian Miller incorporates the "found footage" trope of mysterious occurrences caught on tape in the vein of "Cloverfield" and "Paranormal Activity," and the soon-to-be released "Super 8" from producer Steven Spielberg and director Jj Abrams.

According to the official press release, "Apollo 18" will be "shot documentary style, the film unearths lost footage from Apollo 18'’s undocumented and covert mission to the moon, revealing disturbing new evidence of other life forms."

Oooooh!

This is intriguing and all, but can we get Bekmambetov to direct again, please? Sure, he's still set to do Seth Grahame-Smith's "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" but hurry up! "Wanted" was released two years ago! Time it ticking!

Here's the full press release of "Apollo 18" from Weinstein Company:

The Weinstein Company Acquires Apollo 18 At Afm

Santa Monica,...

Attendance is down at the American Film Market, but there are still buyers and sellers there, among them the Weinstein Co., which is announcing a pre-buy on sci-fi thriller Apollo 18, a moon-travel movie written by Brian Miller, who won a screenwriting contest mounted by producer Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted), who has set Trevor Cawood to direct. Point is, many movies at Afm are wannabe projects that do not yet exist. Having a distributor in place helps to make a movie more bankable. Bakmambetov landed The Weinstein Co. by wowing them at the Afm with some purported "lost footage" from Apollo 18’s Nixon-era secret moon mission, which reveals new life forms. We'll see if this one--like many other movies at Afm--ever gets made. It supposed to ...