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More than two years after Circle of Lies had its North American premiere in Canada on iTunes and cable systems, the producers are still battling to stem the illegal downloading of the teen drama.

When director Matt Cerwen.s film launched on iTunes 11 days later in the Us, the executive producers believe the title had already been viewed more than 350,000 times. Now they estimate the worldwide figure is 1.35 million.

.For a small budget Australian film this is a financial disaster,. John Kearney, who executive produced the independently-financed film with Ian Kirk and David Field, tells If.

.If those illegals were legal at, say, $1.90 per time (average return to the production company) then there would be reason to smile. Ian Kirk has issued seven take-down notices to YouTube and there could be more very soon..

A former head of Film Victoria and Crawford Productions, Kearney takes issue with a recent Choice...

Producer Steve Jaggi has no regrets about launching Circle of Lies in 11 independent cinemas a few weeks before the teen drama was released on DVD and Video-on-Demand, breaking the standard 120-day gap.

The revenues from box-office takings and selling copies of the DVD, posters and autographed 1-sheets at some locations were modest- just $55,000. But Jaggi believes that strategy, which included Q&As with director Matt Cerwen and cast members, will pay off in DVD and VoD sales.

"Despite the huge amount of work I'm very happy we did this," he tells If. He was surprised to find that although the film is aimed primarily at teens, most ticket buyers were aged 40-plus.

He was heartened that most stayed for the Q&As and many said they enjoyed the film. He tried to keep ticket prices as low as possible and offered discounts to school groups.

Scripted by Adrian Moses and Scott Herford,...

Teen drama Circle of Lies is breaking new ground for Australian films as it begins a staggered theatrical roll-out in Brisbane this week and will be released on Video-on-Demand platforms and on DVD on September 18.

In another unusual ploy, the producers will sell copies of the DVD at cinemas in rural areas; each screening will feature a Q&A with cast and crew.

Scripted by Adrian Moses and Scott Herford, the film follows high school student Denise (Hilary Caitens) who is bullied and victimised by classmate Kirsty (Anna Lawrence), the leader of a bunch of ultra-cool kids who call themselves .the exclusives.. The cast includes Ryan Harrison, Nikki Webster, Karina Banno, Stephen Multari and Luke Webb.

Directed by first-timer Matt Cerwen, the film was released in North America last December by Warner Bros. on a limited number of cinemas and on VoD. Paramount is distributing in parts of Latin America...

Continuing our support for indie film, we invite you to check out an image as well as the nicely designed movie poster for The Day Hollywood Died, starring Drew Pearson, Maroun Joseph, Nenif David, Bobby Babin, Stephen Multari and Tommy Bradson. Ronnie S. Riskalla directs the action crime drama from the script by K.G. Donovan. The film is on the verge of completion and will find theaters sometime in 2011. About The Day Hollywood Died: "His name isn't important. His story is" The Day Hollywood Died is the debut feature from director Ronnie S. Riskalla and was produced by Rising Pictures. The film follows an unreliable narrator who survived the bloody aftermath of a heist but fails to remember who he is. Thesp Robin Queree lends his powerful voice to the character as the film jumps back and forth between reality and his half-remembered imaginings of what happened...

Continuing our support for indie film, we invite you to check out an image as well as the nicely designed movie poster for The Day Hollywood Died, starring Drew Pearson, Maroun Joseph, Nenif David, Bobby Babin, Stephen Multari and Tommy Bradson. Ronnie S. Riskalla directs the action crime drama from the script by K.G. Donovan. The film is on the verge of completion and will find theaters sometime in 2011. About The Day Hollywood Died: "His name isn't important. His story is" The Day Hollywood Died is the debut feature from director Ronnie S. Riskalla and was produced by Rising Pictures. The film follows an unreliable narrator who survived the bloody aftermath of a heist but fails to remember who he is. Thesp Robin Queree lends his powerful voice to the character as the film jumps back and forth between reality and his half-remembered imaginings of what happened...

Continuing our support for indie film, we invite you to check out an image as well as the nicely designed movie poster for The Day Hollywood Died, starring Drew Pearson, Maroun Joseph, Nenif David, Bobby Babin, Stephen Multari and Tommy Bradson. Ronnie S. Riskalla directs the action crime drama from the script by K.G. Donovan. The film is on the verge of completion and will find theaters sometime in 2011. About The Day Hollywood Died: "His name isn't important. His story is" The Day Hollywood Died is the debut feature from director Ronnie S. Riskalla and was produced by Rising Pictures. The film follows an unreliable narrator who survived the bloody aftermath of a heist but fails to remember who he is. Thesp Robin Queree lends his powerful voice to the character as the film jumps back and forth between reality and his half-remembered imaginings of what happened...