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FRANK SERPICO A film by Antonino D’Ambrosio

TRIBECA FILM FESTIVAL PRESS NOTES

[POSTER TBA]

Tribeca Film Festival - Screening Schedule Sunday April 23, 6:00 PM at Cinepolis Chelsea (Theatre 7)

Monday April 24, 9:00 AM at Cinepolis Chelsea (Theatre 7) (PRESS & INDUSTRY) Monday April 24, 3:30 PM at Cinepolis Chelsea (Theatre 8)

Wednesday April 26, 7:15 PM at Regal Battery Park (Theater 6) Saturday April 29, 9:30 PM at Regal Battery Park (Theater 5)

CONTACT Gigantic Pictures 164 W. 25th Street, Suite 4M New York, NY, 10001 (212) 925-5075 info@giganticpictures.com

SALES CONTACT Film Sales Company Andrew Herwitz, President 165 Madison Avenue, Suite 601 New York, NY 10016 Tel: (212) 481-5020 Fax: (212) 481-5021 andrew.herwitz@filmsalescorp.com

PRESS CONTACT FRANK PR 15 Maiden Ln, Suite 608 New York, NY 10038 (646) 861-0843 Clare Anne Darragh clareanne@frankpublicity.com Jeff McBride jeff@frankpublicity.com

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FRANK SERPICO

LOGLINE With unprecedented access to a notoriously reclusive subject, Antonino D’Ambrosio creates a powerful portrait of Frank Serpico, the former NYPD officer who in the 1970s blew the whistle on the corruption and payoffs running rampant in the department. The true story that inspired Sidney Lumet’s American crime classic that bears his name.

SYNOPSIS In 1971 Frank Serpico became the world's most famous whistleblower, exposing rampant corruption in the New York City Police Department. A best-selling book and Sidney Lumet’s classic film shared part of his story. Now, 50 years later, Serpico breaks his reclusive silence, revealing the truth behind the story in this investigative thriller. A master performer since his days as an undercover cop, Serpico re-enacts key scenes from his extraordinary life. Real-life characters from Serpico’s life further illuminate the story, while writers and artists such as Luc Sante and John Turturro add fascinating context. Revisiting his story in today’s political climate, this ground-breaking documentary could not be more timely as it tracks Serpico’s fight against the abuse of power, challenging us all to stand-up and say no.

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ADVANCE PRAISE FOR FRANK SERPICO “Serpico the man is emotionally wiry, innovative and soulful and in possession of a rigorous morality. Antonino D'Ambrosio's documentary film captures every nuance of his character and the resonance of every lingering memory he unpacks. 'Frank Serpico' has the cadence and dark edge of a great Springsteen song, or post-modern Beat poetry, set to moving images. The man and the film stay with me, as both visual poetry and inspiration for speaking truth to power under extraordinary threat. It's a most timely and welcome call to personal integrity and a reminder of what a single voice can accomplish in changing an entire corrupt system.”

-Rosanne Cash "I think a lot of the disasters we've experienced in the last 6 or 7 years, they all would've fallen by the wayside a long time ago if there had been even a dozen people like Frank Serpico."

-Matt Taibbi, Rolling Stone “Frank Serpico remains an inspiration.”

-John Turturro, actor “Detective Serpico is an example of someone who joined the police to be a guardian of the community.”

-Jeffrey Robinson, Deputy Legal Director and Director of the Trone Center for Justice and Equality ACLU

“I consider my work fulfilling and important, and very rewarding, but it's not brave. What Serpico did is brave. Very few sort of genuine, heroic figures in this story, but Frank Serpico is definitely one of them and I think we are all indebted to him. It's unfortunate that there haven't been more like him.”

-Radley Balko, Washington Post “One person can make a difference. That’s what makes Antonino D’Ambrosio's film so special - there's nothing more powerful than the truth in a free society. And Frank Serpico personifies that basic truth.”

-Tome Devine, Director of the Government Accountability Project “Frank Serpico is the father of modern-day whistleblowers.”

—Daniel Ellsberg, whistleblower (the Pentagon Papers)

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CREW BIOGRAPHIES

DIRECTOR/WRITER/PRODUCER Antonino D’Ambrosio Antonino D’Ambrosio is an author, filmmaker and visual artist. His books include A Heartbeat and A Guitar: Johnny Cash and the Making of Bitter Tears, Mayday with artist Shepard Fairey, and Let Fury Have the Hour. D’Ambrosio’s essays from the latter inspired his acclaimed feature length documentary feature film of the same name. D’Ambrosio’s writing appears in The

New York Times, The Nation, The Progressive, The Believer, Salon.com, Moviemaker, Huffington Post, among others. D’Ambrosio’s film- work includes No Free Lunch starring comedian Lewis Black. He is the founder of the nonprofit La Lutta NMC, selected by The Nation as one of the top independent media groups. D’Ambrosio was New York University’s Gallatin Lecturer, an honor bestowed upon a contemporary artist creating innovative and social engaging work and Artist-In-Residence at the Center for Contemporary in Santa Fe, New Mexico where he produced the natural land art installation and multi- media project La Terra Promessa, which included the production of D’Ambrosio’s film series In Sun and Shadow. In 2014, Sony Music Masterworks released Look Again to the Wind: Johnny Cash’s Bitter Tears Revisited featuring Kris Kristofferson, Emmylou Harris and Steve Earle. Executive produced and with liner notes by D’Ambrosio, the record was inspired by D’Ambrosio’s book A Heartbeat and a Guitar. D’Ambrosio also produced, wrote and directed the documentary We’re Still Here: Johnny Cash’s Bitter Tears Revisited, which was broadcast on PBS in 2016. In 2015, ARTE broadcasted Soundhunters of which D’Ambrosio wrote and directed a short film, Speak the Words the Way You Breathe. His newest book is The Free Space: How Creative-Response Transforms Our World, which serves as the basis for D’Ambrosio’s broadcast series The Free Space(produced by Gigantic Pictures). D’Ambrosio newest feature film is Frank Serpico, which will premiere in the Spotlight section of the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival. PRODUCERS Brian Devine Prior to forming Gigantic Pictures, Brian Devine worked for Stanley M. Brooks, a producer of movies and television. He then partnered with writer-director Steven Lisberger (TRON). Lisberger and Devine

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developed projects for Warner Brothers, Sony/Columbia, Francis Coppola and Kushner-Locke. Additionally, Brian is an accomplished singer-songwriter having recorded two albums with his band Spanish Speaking Psychics. After founding Gigantic Pictures, Brian produced several short and feature length narrative and documentary films. His recent credits include Night School (featured at the 2016 Tribeca Film Festival, Heartland Film Festival, and the Bend Film Festival), Heartworn Highways Revisited, We’re Still Here: Johnny Cash’s Bitter Tears Revisited, and Sunday. Brian is currently producing Five Angels based a screenplay he co-wrote.

Brooke Devine Producer Brooke Devine has numerous narrative and documentary films to her credit including Night School, AWOL, We’re Still Here: Johnny Cash’s Bitter Tears Revisited, The Great Invisible, Sins of a Father, 99% The Occupy Wall Street Collaborative, Let Fury Have the Hour, Happy Hour, The Best Man for the Job, and Goodbye Solo.

Jason Orans Emmy, Independent Spirit and Image Award-nominated producer Jason Orans' narrative features include Ramin Bahrani's Goodbye Solo (winner of the FIPRESCI Critics Prize at Venice) and Sundance premieres Night Catches Us (starring Anthony Mackie and Kerry Washington), Dare (starring Emmy Rossum and Rooney Mara), Year of the Fish, and Flannel Pajamas. His most recent documentary, Night School will be released by Netflix in 2017. Another recent doc, Margaret Brown's The Great Invisible (PBS), won the Grand Jury Prize at SXSW and was nominated for the Exceptional Merit in Documentary Filmmaking 2015 Primetime Emmy Award. Jason is currently in post production on the narrative feature Boarding School directed by Boaz Yakin and is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Producing at Feirstein Graduate School of Cinema, Brooklyn College. DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY/EDITOR Karim Lopez Karim López is an award-winning Film & Television Editor, Director and Producer from Brooklyn, NY. His work has screened at major U.S. and International film festivals including: Cannes, Tribeca, Rotterdam, New York Film Festival, Int'l

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Documentary Film Festival of Amsterdam, Palm Springs Shorts Fest; and been broadcast on PBS, BBC, A&E, Amazon, Netflix, and the Franco-German network, Arte. DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY Trevor Tweeten Trevor Tweeten (b. Wilmington, DE, 1983) is a New York-based artist and cinematographer. He holds a BA in Film and Video Art and works at the crossroads between video, sculpture and installation. As a cinematographer, he has realized a number of films and video art projects, ranging from narrative to documentary to experimental. His work, often noted for its strong imagery and lyrical visual style, has been exhibited internationally including the Venice Biennale (2013), Barbican Centre (2017), Louisiana Museum, Palais de Tokyo, Akademie der Künste, and many others. COMPOSER Brendan Canty Brendan Canty (Washington DC, b.1966) is a multi-instrumentalist and filmmaker, best known as the drummer in the band Fugazi, and before that, in Rites of Spring, One Last Wish, Deadline, Insurrection, and Happy Go Licky. Since Fugazi went on hiatus in 2002, he has toured and recorded with Bob Mould, produced records for many bands (Animal Collective, the Thermals, Ted Leo, Benjy Ferree, Ex Hex), and composed for film and television. He frequently collaborates with filmmakers Sam Green and Brent Green, performing live cinema, and currently has a band called Super! Silver! Haze!. He currently lives in Washington, DC with his wife, Michelle Cochran, and their four children.

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CREDITS

A GIGANTIC PICTURES Production

In Association with LA LUTTA NMC

A FILM BY ANTONINO D’AMBROSIO

FRANK SERPICO

Produced, Written and Directed by Antonino D’Ambrosio

Produced by

Brooke Devine Brian Devine Jason Orans

Executive Produced by

Brian Devine Sr. Silvija Devine

Photographed by

Karim Lopez Trevor Tweeten

Edited by

Karim Lopez

Original Score

Brendan Canty

Co-Producers LAUREN FRANKLIN KARIM LÓPEZ

Associate Producers IAN JARVIS JOHN KIM

Field Producer JOHN KIM

Legal Consultant LEO GLICKMAN

Production Accountant KEREN GOLANI BARNETT

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Additional Photography ALFONSO MAIORANA KELLY KENDRICK MICHAEL PATTEN ANDREW BERENDS

Production Sound Mixer AUSTIN PLOCHER

Additional Production Sound Mixers MARCO FANIA BRENDAN RYAN

Production Assistants TIA DOUGLAS ALINA GILMAN

CAROLINA KRATKY RACHEL OLSON

Production Office Interns PRIA BALASURIYA TRENT BELEN KESSAWA BOATANG

DREW COWAN TIA DOUGLAS JORDAN DORNBAUM

KRISTEN FAUBION JEREMY FLOOD ALINA GILMAN

YAEL LIOR ZANDRA KAYE GRACE KIM CAROLINA KRATKY

LINDSAY MEWES RACHEL OLSON CAROLINE PARR

NATHALIA PAVON KARLY PLACEK GRAHAM RISKE

JEFF SPIVACK ZACHARY STEIN SAM TOLBERT

YAEL URBACH LEANDRA WORTHAM

Still Photo Research ANTONINO D’AMBROSIO

Assistant Editor CAITLIN STONE

Animation Design KELLY KENDRICK

Title Design KARIM LÓPEZ

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KELLY KENDRICK

Post Production Sound Services by Gigantic Studios

Online Editor JASON CACIOPPO

Colorist JEROME THELIA

Dialogue Editor ESTHER REGELSON

Sound Supervisor BRIAN LANGMAN

Re-Recording Mixer TOM PAUL

Executive Producer For Gigantic Studios

STEVE TOLLEN

Research ANTONINO D’AMBROSIO

LAUREN FRANKLIN ADAM ZENKO JOHN KIM

JEREMY FLOOD TIA DOUGLAS RACHEL OLSON

GRAHAM RISKE KRISTEN FAUBION ALINA GILMAN PRIA BALASURIYA

LINDSAY MEWES ZACHARY STEIN CAROLINE PARR

NATHALIA PAVON DREW COWAN MEGAN COSTELLO

TRENT BIELEN CAROLINE KRAFTKY YAEL URBACH

LEANDRA WORTHAM ZANDRA KAYE

Archivist EMILY HARROLD LAUREN FRANKLIN

Archival Research ANTONINO D’AMBROSIO

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For La Lutta NMC PHILIP BUNUEL

For Gigantic Pictures PAMELA RYAN MIA VINCIGUERRA

Production Council GRAY KRAUSS STRATFORD SANDLER DES ROCHERS LLP

JONATHAN GRAY, ESQ.

NICOLE COMPAS, ESQ.

FEATURING (in order of appearance)

Stanislao Pugliese

Janet Panetta John O’Connor

John Bal Londel Davis Ramsey Clark Bob Delaney

Eddie Mamet David Burnham

Robert Daley Luc Sante

Donna Murch Arthur Cesare Gina Colelli

Michael Armstrong Pete Gleason

Elisabeth Sifton

John Turturro Burtt Harris

Arlene Donovan

Sarah Hemming

VERY SPECIAL THANKS Frank Serpico

SPECIAL THANKS

Yrthya Dinzey-Flores Amara D’Ambrosio

Ennis Addison American Civil Liberties Union

Maritza Arrastia

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Christopher Auger-Dominguez Daisy Auger-Dominguez

Radley Balko Michele Baldacci Russell Beckman

Josh Bell Michael Bell

The City University of New York Columbia University

Johnny Comacho Simon Critchley

Chuck D

Ana D’Ambrosio Franco D’Ambrosio Edwidge Danticat

Tom Devine Zaire Dinzey Flores

Michael Donaldson Tia Dunn

Shepard Fairey Iva Gocheva

Government Accountability Project Emma Griffiths

Bill Gullo Dr. Carl Hart

Harvard University Justin Harvey Brian Herman

Dan Higgins Annie Hubbard Jim Jarmusch

John Jay College

John Jay College of Criminal Justice Lisa Jarvis

Corey Kilgannon

Knockdown Center Margaret Kramer

Wayne Kramer Jules Kroll, John Jay College of Criminal Justice

La Mama Francois Le Gall

Micah Lee

Locanda Vini Oli Jeremiah Lockwood

Alfredo Lopez

Thenjiwe McHarris

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Dave McMahon Michael Merck

Chuck Mitchell N.J Assemblyman Reed Gusciora

Ed Norris

New York University Al Pacino

Marine Pariente Di Carmine Edward Paulino

Mischa Retman Tony Roberts

Jeffrey Robinson

Tricia Rose Jayne Rosengarten, John Jay College of Criminal Justice

Sal’s Restaurant Roberto Saviano Jerry Schatzberg

Perry Serpa Vincent Serpico

David Simon Ron Simon

Rocco Spagnardi Maya Solovey

Larry E. Sullivan, John Jay College of Criminal Justice Matt Taibbi

Marine Tweeten Mark Urman

Ai Weiwei

Additional footage/stills courtesy John Avildsen

ARCHIVAL MATERIAL COURTESY OF David Burnham

Library of Congress NBC Universal Archives

Janet Panetta Frank Serpico

Sveriges Television Wazee Digital / CBS News

Original Score Engineers and Recorded by Brendan Canty

All instrumentation performed by Brendan Canty

“High Ball Stepper” Written by Jack White

Published by Third String Tunes

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Performed by Jack White Courtesy of Third Man Records/Columbia Records/XL Recordings Ltd

by arrangement with Sony Music Licensing

Copyright © 2017 Pure Paco LLC. All Rights Reserved.

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Running Time: 95 minutes Language: English

© 2017 USA