Seldom has the rediscovery of a cache of lost footage ignited widespread curiosity as did the announcement, in July 2008, that an essentially complete copy of Fritz Lang’s “Metropolis” had been found. The curator of the Buenos Aires Museo del Cine discovered a 16mm dupe negative that was considerably longer than any existing print. It included not merely a few additional snippets, but 25 minutes of “lost” footage, about a fifth of the film, that had not been seen since its Berlin debut. The discovery of such a significant amount of material called for yet another restoration – “The Complete Metropolis.”
‘The Ditch,’ an action spec script from prolific music video and documentary producer Sascha Penn, is set for the silver screen.
Set in the future, a super maximum-security prison has been constructed on Jupiter’s moon where Earth’s worst criminals are incarcerated. When a prison guard’s family is taken hostage, he is coerced into helping the facility’s most notorious terrorist, a man who was scheduled to be executed that day, escape.
Penn is best known for having produced Dave Chappelle’s docu “Block Party” and Peter Bogdanovich’s recently released “Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers” documentary.
“The Ditch” is Penn’s first spec sale; the film will be produced by Matt Berenson (Daddy Day Care), Adam Kolbrenner and Robyn Meisinger.