This progress report is to update you on the latest developments regarding the full-length documentary film project Torn from the Flag, about the significant global effects of the 1956 Hungarian Revolution and Freedom Fight of and the fall of communism.

Happy New Year! Thank you for all your holiday wishes, good intentions and interest in the project!

Current developments:

Our big news is that, after receiving the final finishing funds at the end of 2006, we were able to book the technical facilities for February to complete Torn from the Flag from a technical point of view, i.e., have an actual 35mm film print. Now that we actually have an approximate date by when we will be done, we can go ahead with full-blown force: we can make a full film festival plan as well as a distribution/release plan so that you, too, can see the film in 2007! Of course, we wish we could have completed the film by the 50th anniversary. Like some of you, we were also disappointed. However, we could make the film only as quickly as the monies came in, and many times they were just not coming, or not enough were coming in. We are now confident of the completion and are extremely excited to know that we can share the film with you this year. We appreciate your trust and patience greatly!

I'm sure you are wondering about what the finished film itself is like. I am proud to say that we have been able to tell this amazing story both accurately and poignantly: it is a nice balance of historical expertise and personal, emotional storytelling, plus we have included explanatory maps, graphics and timelines, and a large, fascinating selection of archive material from the time period, including some that has never been shown before. We used the expertise of several established historians to make sure of the historical accuracy.

We are very proud to report that Vilmos Zsigmond was nominated for an Academy Award for cinematography this year, for the film The Black Dahlia. http://www.oscar.com/nominees/?pn=detail&nominee=TheBlackDahliaCinematographyNominee

We posted the film trailer on YouTube, and it has been viewed 517 times and "favorited" 10 times. Please tell your friends about it! Click on the following link to view the clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwAYVnuBpfw We also posted the preview on MySpace.

The Hungarian American Coalition screened the film trailer at their Mikulás (St. Nicholas' Day) Dinner in Washington, D.C., to a very favorable response.

Going back to the showing of the film, here is a brief explanation of the complex process of releasing a film. Film festivals will determine the official premiere location and date, and our release strategy will be based on that. Usually, a film starts in festivals, and if a distributor is acquired, the film can be released theatrically as well. The film may be in the festival circuit for 1 to 2 years; this depends on where we are invited/chosen. Geography is also a factor; there is domestic (U.S.) and foreign release, which makes it an even more complex matter to plan-for example, there might be a theatrical release in the U.S. but in other territories the film is still in the festival circuit. Thus, theatrical release can overlap the festival process, but not always. Much depends on the distributor, which we don't currently have, but are looking for. Television broadcast comes after theatrical release, and finally, DVD after that. In our case, these things would happen first in the United States and then internationally.

Depending on the distributor we get, we may also need to get an MPAA rating (the familiar G, PG, PG-13, R film ratings).

On top of this, there is the Academy issue: to be considered for the Oscar®, the film must play theatrically in 14 cites in the U.S. by the end of August, 2007 in commercial movie theaters. Except in Los Angeles and New York, where the requirement is at least 7 consecutive days at least twice daily, any other U.S. city needs to screen the film for at least 3 consecutive days at least twice daily at the same commercial movie theater.

We ask communities that believe in the film to sponsor a local theater rental & publicity. We understand from other filmmakers that movie theaters are willing to negotiate, and I can make the arrangements with them for you. One of the factors affecting the negotiations is whether our communities will fill the seats or not, and we sure hope you will!

The first step to sponsoring an Academy-required screening in your community is to let us know you are interested; we will then give you the exact parameters required by the Academy.

You can also sponsor our presence at a film festival, as we are also currently looking for festival sponsors. Every film festival has various fees/expenses, and the budget did not include this, as the budget is only for making the film. Expenses that need to be covered are:
            • Festival Submission Fee (average: $40 - $200)
            • Travel expenses to/from festivals, room and board
            • Publicity materials
You can help with travel expenses by donating airline miles. If you are in the printing business, you can help by doing the printing of our materials.

We still desperately need to design a flash-based website for the film exclusively dedicated to the project. Anyone who is willing to take on this task, please contact us as soon as possible.

Many of you were kind enough to loan us informational materials. We are now going to start sending these items back to their owners. If you have anything with us, kindly email Production Associate Kinga Tóth at ktothfilm@gmail.com (new email address!) and let us know what we have of yours, i.e., the title and/or a description, so that we can quickly and easily identify your item(s). Remind us of the address to which you wish it sent; a telephone number would be very helpful, too. This would expedite our getting your items back to you.

Thank you to the following people and organizations, who donated this quarter: Hungarian American Coalition (ongoing support); Eva Maria Matte; Laszlo & Maria Bakonyvari; Imre Otvos; the Charles Simonyi Fund for Arts & Sciences (2nd donation!); Anonymous; Richard & Lilia Silagi; Patricia Ujvagi Culotta & August F. Culotta; Krisztina Ujvagi-Roder & Peter Roder; Edward J. & E. Catherine Ujvagi; Christine Kirchner (2nd donation!).

We would also like to thank the following people this quarter: Matthew Tarver-Wahlquist, Mihaly Kummer, Marina Brodskaya, Michael Kaulkin, Vera Bersudskaya, and Anya Talis, all of whom were new translation/subtitling/transliteration volunteers in the editing room. Susan Papp, Andrea Kiraly and Yulia Khlypalova for further editing room assistance. Seun Olowokandi, post-production intern. Dr. Zsofia Nemeth for her expertise. David Avallone for technical assistance. Lívia Fehér, Rie Vali, and Patrick Hostetter and Pixelgate, for website assistance.

If we inadvertently leave someone out, please accept our apologies and draw our attention to the oversight. If your email address has changed, let us know so that we can keep you informed about the film's premieres!

Thank you to everyone for your continuing contributions to this project. It truly has the potential to move and uplift people. Do not hesitate to involve your friends and family in this community project: ask them to send us their email address, so that they can be informed of our screenings. We are so looking forward to sharing our film with you!

Sincerely yours,
Klaudia Kovacs
Producer, Director, Writer
www.klaudiainc.com
klaudiakovacs@msn.com