Limelight Films Picks Up 'The Letter'

Limelight Films, Inc., has acquired the International rights to Hamzeh Mystique Films award-winning and critically acclaimed documentary The Letter: An American Town and the 'Somali Invasion".

(PRWEB) June 28, 2005 -- Limelight Films, Inc. has acquired the International rights to Hamzeh Mystique Films award-winning and critically acclaimed documentary The Letter: An American Town and the 'Somali Invasion".

Premiering at the 2003 AFI Festival, The Letter: An American Town and the 'Somali Invasion" was written and directed by Ziad H. Hamzeh (Shadow Glories", "Eternal Embrace"), and produced by Hamzeh, Bert Brown, and Marc Sandler. The film garnered the International Spirit Award for Best Documentary from the 2004 Boston International Film Festival, was nominated Best Documentary at the 2004 Pan-African Film Festival, was the opening night film that launched the 2004 Amnesty International Film Festival, and had its European premiere at the 2005 Belfast Film Festival. It has won acclaim by film critics across the United States, including those at The New York Times, New York Post, New York Magazine, The Village Voice, Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, and The Christian Science Monitor. In addition, the documentary and director Ziad Hamzeh have been honored by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (H.U.D.) by receiving its prestigious 2005 Fair Act Award.

The Letter" chronicles the turmoil economically struggling and overwhelmingly white Lewiston, Maine faced when 1,100 former Somali refugees relocated there en-masse in the wake of the 9/11 tragedy -- referred to at the time as the Somali invasion" by the international news media. Passions were enflamed when Lewistons then mayor, Larry Raymond, wrote an open letter to the Somali community asking them to tell friends and family not to move into the city. The ensuing controversy pitted anti-immigration white supremacist groups against local community activists supporting the Somalis, culminating in simultaneous competing rallies that necessitated the largest police action in Maines history to ensure the safety of the citys residents.

Limelight Films, Inc. (www.limelightfilms.com) stands at the forefront of every aspect of the entertainment industry, from feature films to television, commercials, music videos, and broadcasting. The company was created out of a desire to promote worldwide talented individuals who treasure cinema and cherish the creative spirit of Charlie Chaplin. Chaplin's legacy lives on today thanks to the universal appeal of his humor, compassion, and integrity.

Hamzeh Mystique Films (www.hamzehmystiquefilms.com) is dedicated to producing groundbreaking and provocative feature films of the highest caliber; gathering the most talented and skilled artists and technicians the industry has to offer, and creating the most engaging, economically sound, and commercially viable filmed productions imaginable.

The Letter: An American Town and the 'Somali Invasion" Official Web site: www.hamzehmystiquefilms.com/theletter.

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