Winner's Original Art To Be Featured In Upcoming Movie

LAWRENCE, MA - The winner of the Millies Movie Mural contest will be announced at a Meet The Filmmakers reception October 5th, from 5:30-8pm at Gallery 181 in Lawrence. The summer-long contest marries film and fine art for an upcoming 2008 feature film by writer-director, Lorre Fritchy. In the film -- entitled "Millies" -- a troubled group of mill girls returns from 1912 to convince a bankrupt mill owner that her future is the key to their past. A subplot involves a young Latino who's been "tagging" (vandalizing) murals and buildings around town, including the mill owner's. These mill murals will require an original artist to paint them expressly for the film.

"I created the Millies Movie Murals contest as a unique way to discover artists whose talents match the artistic needs of our film," says Fritchy. "Exhibiting the finalists is an ideal way to take both the film and the art to a higher level to promote local art space and get the buzz going about the movie being filmed here. We're inviting people to see the work and meet the filmmakers and artists directly -- this type of event and contest is highly uncommon with regard to movies."

The contest is down to several finalists, whose artwork is highlighted in a Millies Movie Murals exhibit running September 10th to October 11th, 2007. The winner will be announced at the Meet The Filmmakers & Artists gala October 5th from 5:30-8pm at Gallery 181 in Lawrence MA. The event will include refreshments, raffles and silent auctions for items such as walk-on roles on the film. The exhibit and gala are free and open to the public in the historic Cotton Weaving House in Lawrence.

"Everything about this story, this contest, this exhibit, fuels my lifelong connection to these historic mills," Fritchy explains. "And my roots in the area translate directly into my vision for merging past and present into a story that both enlightens and entertains, all while shining a spotlight on the hidden gem I consider Lawrence to be."

The Millies Movie Murals finalists' exhibit will run in conjunction with the poignant "Honoring Memory" September 11th show. Gallery hours: 10-5 Monday-Friday, 12-4 on Saturday. Contact Marjorie Kaye, Director of Gallery 181, at the Cotton Weaving House, Gallery 181, 181 Canal Street, Lawrence, MA 01840, (978) 741-7979, gallery-181@hotmail.com, or visit http://www.caladangallery.com/sites/gallery181.

MILLIES FINALISTS: Mari Jae Benning, Lowell MA; Jenni Prange Boran, Tacoma WA; Alan Pearsall, West Newbury MA; Kirk Seese, Baltimore MD; and Lisabeth "Damian" Tibak, Lawrence MA.

Lorre Fritchy has won numerous accolades for her work, including a national first place screenwriting win for her script Kind Hearted Woman; and a Creative Artists Award of Merit from the Academy of Video Arts and Sciences for her documentary, "Sandy 'Spin' Slade: Beyond Basketball," now in distribution through National Film Network. MasterPeace Productions produces corporate video in addition to film, and Executive Produced "The Gay
Marriage Thing" documentary, currently in distribution through The Cinema Guild. "Millies" is tentatively set to film in the summer/fall of 2008, and will mark Fritchy's feature film directorial debut. For more on the film, visit http://www.MilliesMovie.com.

For information or interviews: Lorre Fritchy, Director, MasterPeace
Productions, PO Box 4139, Lawrence MA 01843, www.masterpeaceproductions.com,
lorre@masterpeaceproductions.com, 508-878-3200