SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT AND OVERBROOK ENTERTAINMENT TO DEVELOP “THE AMERICAN CAN”

John Lee Hancock to Write and Direct

CULVER CITY, Calif., May 20, 2009 - Sony Pictures Entertainment and Overbrook Entertainment have obtained the motion picture life rights to John Keller, an ex-Marine who orchestrated the rescue of 244 of his New Orleans neighbors after their building, the American Can Company, was severely flooded in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, it was announced today by Doug Belgrad and Matt Tolmach, presidents of Columbia Pictures. Keller’s story will be produced into a feature film by James Lassiter, Will Smith, and Ken Stovitz through their Overbrook Entertainment banner, as well as by Adetoro Makinde’s Back Door Films. The film will be written and directed by John Lee Hancock (The Rookie, The Alamo, the upcoming The Blind Side).

Commenting on the announcement, Belgrad said, “This is the story of an everyman who became a hero. John Keller embodies everything about the American spirit: he is tough, smart, resourceful, funny, and not the type of guy who takes ‘no’ or ‘I can’t’ for answer. That is the story we want to tell – in the moment of an American tragedy, when we are tested, we find that we have greater depth of spirit and strength than we ever knew.”

Added Stovitz, “There were many acts of heroism in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, but John’s resolve to save hundreds of lives is one of the most compelling and inspiring of that national tragedy and we believe that John Lee Hancock is the perfect match to tell this daring story.”

Affectionately dubbed “the Can Man,” Keller has been profiled in several publications, both in New Orleans and nationwide. He has said that he was motivated to help not out of any financial gain, nor a desire to be a hero, but a concern for the elderly residents of his building. “I couldn’t have lived with myself knowing that I could have saved everybody in here but I left,” he has said. He directed the rescue operations from the roof of the apartment complex, the American Can Company, a five-story building that sat in 11 feet of water after the breach of the levees.

Development of the project is based on the acquired spec script written by Adetoro Makinde. DeVon Franklin will oversee the film for Columbia Pictures.

JOHN LEE HANCOCK is a writer/director, originally from Texas City, Texas. His notable 15+ year career in film and television began when he moved to Los Angeles and traded his Baylor University law degree for the chance to open a theatre company with Brandon Lee, called Legal Aliens. There he wrote and directed several original stage plays.

John’s first original screenplay, A Perfect World, was directed and produced by Clint Eastwood and stars Eastwood, Kevin Costner and Laura Dern. John teamed with Eastwood again with his screen adaptation for Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.

Hancock has directed two feature films, The Rookie and The Alamo (for which he shares a writing credit). He created, produced and directed episodes of CBS’s “L.A. Doctors” and he produced and directed CBS’s “Falcone.” Hancock also produced the feature My Dog Skip.

He is currently in production on his third feature directorial effort, The Blind Side, starring Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw, Kathy Bates and up-and-comer Quinton Aaron. Hancock adapted the screenplay about football player Michael Oher, based on the book by bestselling author Michael Lewis.

Hancock is a fellow at the Sundance Institute Screenwriting Lab. He currently has several films in development to write and direct including, in addition to The American Can, Dead I Well May Be and The Highwaymen.

WILL SMITH has enjoyed success in a career encompassing hit films, his own television series and multi-platinum records. He earned his first Academy Award® nomination and a Golden Globe® nomination for his portrayal of boxing legend Muhammad Ali in Michael Mann’s acclaimed biopic Ali. Smith more recently starred in and produced the critically acclaimed, true-life drama The Pursuit of Happyness. His performance brought him his second Academy Award® nomination, his fourth Golden Globe® nomination and a Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Award nomination for Best Actor.

Smith most recently starred in Seven Pounds, which re-teamed him with the director and producers of The Pursuit of Happyness. Prior to that, he starred in the blockbuster Hancock, which earned over $600,000,000 worldwide, and I am Legend, directed by Francis Lawrence.

In 2005, Smith starred in and produced the hit romantic comedy Hitch, directed by Andy Tennant. The year prior, he starred in and executive produced the sci-fi smash I, Robot, adapted from the book by Isaac Asimov and directed by Alex Proyas. Also that year, he voiced the central character of Oscar in the blockbuster animated feature Shark Tale, opposite Renee Zellweger, Angelina Jolie and Robert De Niro.

In July 2003, he reunited with Martin Lawrence for Bad Boys II, the sequel to their 1995 hit Bad Boys. Smith had earlier starred in two blockbusters that topped the box office in back-to-back summers. In 1996, he took on alien invaders in Roland Emmerich’s science fiction actioner Independence Day. The following year, he starred with Tommy Lee Jones in Barry Sonnenfeld’s sci-fi comedy Men in Black, for which Smith also recorded the Grammy-winning title song. In 2002, Smith, Jones and Sonnenfeld reteamed for the sequel Men in Black II.

Smith was already a Grammy-winning recording artist when he made his successful transition to acting in television and films. Following roles in the movies Where the Day Takes You and Made in America, he received widespread critical acclaim for his starring role in the drama Six Degrees of Separation, with Stockard Channing and Donald Sutherland. In 1995, he was named ShoWest’s Male Star of Tomorrow. His film credits also include Enemy of the State, opposite Gene Hackman; Wild Wild West, for which he also recorded the hit title song; and the title role in Robert Redford’s The Legend of Bagger Vance.

Smith began his career in the music industry while still in high school. Teaming with his friend Jeff Townes to form DJ Jazzy Jeff & the Fresh Prince, Smith became a chart-topping rap artist. Together, they recorded several platinum and multi-platinum albums and won numerous awards, including two Grammys and three American Music Awards.

Smith’s musical success led to his starring in the hit television sitcom “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” which ran for six years on NBC and earned him two Golden Globe nominations.

Continuing to record, Smith released his first solo album, “Big Willie Style,” in 1998, for which he won a Grammy and four American Music Awards. In 1999, he was honored at the NAACP Image Awards as Entertainer of the Year. His next CD, Willennium, featured the hit single “Will2K” and went double platinum.

As a producer, Smith is partnered with James Lassiter and Ken Stovitz in Overbrook Entertainment, which has produced such projects as Ali, I, Robot, Saving Face, Hitch, ATL, The Pursuit of Happyness, and, most recently, Lakeview Terrace, starring Samuel L. Jackson and Kerry Washington. Under the Overbrook banner, Smith and his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, also co-created and produced the popular television comedy series “All of Us,” which recently concluded a four-year run. Smith’s upcoming projects as a producer or executive producer include The Human Contract, which marks the feature directorial debut of Jada Pinkett Smith, and The Karate Kid, which stars Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan and begins production in China this summer.

JAMES LASSITER joined forces with Will Smith to create Overbrook Entertainment, a production and management company, in 1998. Since then, Lassiter has produced several hit films, including, most recently, Seven Pounds, starring Smith and directed by Gabriele Muccino, and Hancock, starring Smith and Charlize Theron. Lassiter also produced the 2007 box-office smash I Am Legend, which took in over $580 million worldwide, and the 2006 hit The Pursuit of Happyness, which resonated with audiences around the world, earning Smith an Oscar® nomination for his performance and grossing over $300 million at the box office. In 2005, Lassiter produced the romantic comedy Hitch, also a global hit, earning over $360 million, as well as the award winning film Saving Face, starring Joan Chen. In addition, Lassiter was an executive producer on the sci-fi thriller I, Robot, and also served as a producer on the critically acclaimed Ali, for which Smith earned his first Academy Award® nomination, and ATL , starring platinum recording artist T.I.

In television, Lassiter most recently served as executive producer on the CW network’s “All of Us.”

Other notable achievements include his work as executive producer on the soundtracks for Wild, Wild West and Men in Black, both of which won the American Music Award for favorite soundtracks, as well as the 2001 Outer Critic’s Circle Award for “Jitney,” an off-Broadway play written by August Wilson. Lassiter recently graced the cover of Black Enterprise Magazine’s Top 50 Hollywood Power Brokers edition alongside Smith. Last Year, Smith and Lassiter were named Variety’s Showmen of the Year.

Lassiter’s other recent films include Screen Gems’ Lakeview Terrace, starring Samuel L. Jackson and Kerry Washington; Fox Searchlight’s The Secret Life of Bees, starring Dakota Fanning and Jennifer Hudson. Upcoming projects include The Human Contract, a character-driven drama written and directed by Jada Pinkett Smith. He serves as a producer of the upcoming film The Karate Kid, which stars Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan and will shoot in China this summer.

Like Smith, Lassiter attended Philadelphia’s Overbrook High School. After graduating, he became manager for DJ Jazzy Jeff (Lassiter’s longtime friend, Jeff Townes) and the Fresh Prince (Smith). Lassiter continued to work with Smith when Smith began his acting career.

KEN STOVITZ joined Will Smith and James Lassiter at Overbrook Entertainment as a partner in 2007. Since then, he has seen Overbrook produce Hancock, which grossed over $600,000,000 worldwide, and Seven Pounds, which reunited Smith with the director and producers of The Pursuit of Happyness, as well as Lakeview Terrace, The Secret Life of Bees, and the upcoming film The Human Contract. Overbrook will next produce The Karate Kid, starring Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan. The film begins production in China this summer.

Smith, Lassiter and Stovitz are building Overbrook into a major supplier of film and television productions. In addition to the films they produce under their first-look deal with Sony Pictures Entertainment, Overbrook has entered into a deal with India-based UTV, which finances films to be produced by Smith and Lassiter, with Sony distributing.

Stovitz represented Smith and Overbrook for fifteen years as an agent at Creative Artists Agency. He first joined the entertainment industry as an attorney at Pillsbury, Madison & Sutro. After a short stint at International Creative Management, he joined CAA in 1989.

A consummate artist on stage, film and television, ADETORO MAKINDE is a graduate of Georgetown University and the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, D.C. She began her career as an actress; however, disheartened by the continual lack of opportunities as an actress, she expanded her efforts in 2000 and formed the production company Backdoor Films.

In its debut production, she wrote, starred and produced the short film For Charity’s Sake. Building on the momentum of her newfound career, the following year, she made the highly successful and award-winning short, Whoa. The film went on to screen at over 50 venues including the Sundance Film Festival, SXSW, AFI Fest, LA Film Festival and The Sundance Channel. It screened online at AtomFilms.com and ranked as the #1 Action / #2 Drama film in its first 30 days.

During the 2002 Cannes Film Festival, she also took on the Chrysler Million Dollar Film Festival: Extreme Filmmaking Challenge, to write, cast, shoot, edit and premiere the short film Cop Block in ten days. The next project was an invitation to participate in a directing mentorship program (Fox Searchlight: Searchlab Program) where the short film 3 Minutes was produced.

Going back to her independent roots, she once again wore multiple hats as actress, director, writer and producer on the award-winning short, In Time. The film premiered at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival and continued to screen world-wide including on HBO and Cinemax. Following this effort, she wrote, directed and produced the short film Steep, which premiered at the 2007 Chicago International Film Festival.

Her honors include being selected by Kodak to participate in an emerging filmmaker program at the Sundance Film Festival. In addition, she was a fellow to the Film Independent Project: Involve program on the producer track. Makinde is also a recipient of several awards and grants, including a New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) grant.

Outside of such creative on-hand experience, she has worked in Business Affairs at Paramount Pictures on television shows including “Everybody Hates Chris,” “Medium,” and “NCIS,” and as an Assistant to the Producer on the Fox pilot “Supreme Courtships.” Makinde has served as producer, casting director and/or production coordinator on several independent films, including “The Gift” starring Martin Sheen, Ed Burns, and Ving Rhames, “Let’s Talk” for BET Films, and “A Good Day To Be Black And Sexy,” which premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival and was acquired by Magnolia Pictures. Most recently, she was a finalist in the Lifetime Movie Network Every Women’s Film Competition celebrating emerging women filmmakers. Her short “It Takes A Village” was the New York State winner of the Chase Legacy Film Challenge presented by Chase Bank, Blackfilm.com, HBO and Kodak.

As an artist, Makinde's unique voice is a beguiling breath of fresh air as she aims to entertain, inform and bring about change. Not one to back away from a creative challenge, her passion for storytelling and truth will serve to offer a fresh perspective to the world of cinema.

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