Vertical Entertainment Acquires Indie Drama ‘Dinner Party’ Directed By And Starring Chris Naoki Lee; Ensemble Also Includes ‘Top Gun: Maverick’s Kara Wang, ‘Mythic Quest’s Imani Hakim, More
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EXCLUSIVE: Vertical Entertainment has acquired North American rights to Chris Naoki Lee’s feature directorial debut, Dinner Party, in which he stars alongside Kara Wang (Top Gun: Maverick), Imani Hakim (Mythic Quest) and Kausar Mohammed (The Flash). The global indie distributor has slated the pic for a day-and-date release on August 19.
Inspired by Lee’s own experiences growing up in a diverse community outside of Los Angeles, the indie ensemble drama follows Izzy (Hakim) and boyfriend Cal (Lee) as they go to a casual reunion dinner party amongst Cal’s childhood friends 10 years after high school. The friends navigate socially sensitive topics, though some fall on deaf ears when it comes to the hyper-masculine Miles (Charles Hittinger). It doesn’t take long for Izzy to notice that Shannon (Wang), co-host and childhood friend to the boys, seems uncomfortable around Miles, as the film simmers into a slow burn that erupts in the final act. In the midst of it, the group is left stunned when the verdict arrives for a controversial trial surrounding sexual misconduct that has captivated — and splintered — the nation. They are forced to look at their own histories and determine whether the friendship that binds them can withstand their differences, especially when they find out that one of their own is guilty of a past transgression.
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Lee wrote the film with Daniel Weaver (Greek), who also stars alongside Allison Paige (The Flash), Adam Senn (Hit the Floor), Jody Steel, Mayank Bhatter (Grey’s Anatomy) and Noah Lance (Average Joe). Cody Blake of liquidfish produced the film alongside Weaver and Lee, with Hakim as co-producer. Its original score was composed by Jedha (Ryan Key and Ryan Mendez of the popular rock band Yellowcard).
“This film pulls from a lot of my own personal experiences, playing into the themes of life where everything isn’t black and white, and we often live or operate in different shades of gray,” said Lee. “The important part of it all is can we still have meaningful dialogue when there are disagreements. There will never be a shortage of differing opinions, but can we approach that discourse with empathy and understanding?”
Added the filmmaker: “That’s the undercurrent that drives the film, and it was such an honor to bring this story to life with our immensely talented cast and crew. I’m over the moon to be able to partner with such a premiere distributor like Vertical Entertainment. Their enthusiasm to help this small independent film is a testament to their support for topical and diverse projects as well as for first time filmmakers like myself.”
Founded in 2012, Vertical Entertainment has also recently acquired the thriller Delia’s Gone starring Stephan James and Marisa Tomei, Thom Harp’s comedy The Donor Party, Katie Holmes’ Tribeca-premiering romantic drama Alone Together, and the political satire Land of Dreams, staring Sheila Vand, Matt Dillon and more, which also debuted at the New York festival. Also coming up for the company is John Patton Ford’s Sundance 2022 pic Emily the Criminal, starring Aubrey Plaza and Theo Rossi, which it will release alongside Roadside Attractions this Friday, August 12th.
Tony Piantedosi negotiated the deal for Dinner Party on behalf of Vertical Entertainment.
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