Dew docu takes U turn
Soft-drink maker to distribute 'First Descent'
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Studio has inked a pact with Mountain Dew Films, a marketing arm of the soft-drink maker, to distribute snowboarding doc "First Descent," slated for a Dec. 2 release.
Doc, which tells the history of snowboarding from its beginnings in the 1970s to an international sport replete with corporate sponsorships, is the first film to be financed and produced by the soda company.
"Universal has admired how Mountain Dew connects with fans of snowboarding and other sports with immediacy and longevity," said U marketing prexy Adam Fogelson.
"The story of how snowboarding, in less than two decades, rocketed from being rejected by major media as the worst new sport ever to being the fastest-growing sports phenomenon and a fixture of pop culture is a subject that is perfectly suited to a movie," he said.
John Galloway, executive producer of MD Films, said, "We have been big supporters of snowboarding for more than a decade and we hope to introduce new fans to the sport through this film."
Size and scale of the release is still to be determined. U is distributing the pic for a fee and will be able to recoup all of its P&A.
Mountain Dew, which has long linked its soda brand to extreme sports, has been a big sponsor of the sports since the 1990s. It was a founding partner of the X Games and the Vans Triple Crown series as well as other competitions and sports tours.
Mountain Dew Films was started to create pics that promote these sports.
"First Descent," produced and directed by Kevin Harrison and Kemp Curley and written by Harrison, will feature several top names in snowboarding, including Shawn Farmer, Nick Perata, Terje Haakonsen, Shaun White and Hannah Teter.
