Drew Struzan, creator of posters for film classics such as the Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Harry Potter & Back to the Future series, will sign copies of his The Movie Poster Art of Drew Struzan book at 7PM Tuesday September 21th, at Vroman's Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd.

The 120 pages The Movie Poster Art of Drew Struzan is Struzan's first book and will be released on 30th September, 2004.

Another volume, Drew Struzan: Oeuvre, will become available in November. This 300 page book will feature more poster work but also include paintings, book and album covers and other creations.

Source: Pasadena Star-News

Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala & Jayson Lamb have just returned from their first European adventure! At the Oldenburg International Film Festival in Germany they had their first European screened of Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation this week.

Along with the first screening of their Raiders: The Adaptation came some media attention from the German television.TagesThemen has done a story on the film that can be viewed online now! The video feature contains interviews with Chris, Eric & Jayson and comments from people who have just seen the film. And yes, the feature also shows bits of the film itself!

Click here to view the feature from TagesThemen online. The feature is completely in German though.

Many thanks to Chris Strompolos for letting me know! And stay tuned as more Raiders: The Adaptation stuff is coming!

Chris Strompolos has let me know that the screening of Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation at the Ocean Springs Film Festival in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, this weekend has been postponed due to the hurricane on the Gulf Coast until next weekend, September 24th - 26th.

Go to the Ocean Springs Film Festival site for more information.

The official website of the Indiana Jones parody animation film Tadeo Jones is online! Tadeo Jones is the name of the main character for a 3D animation short film artist Enrique Gato is currently finishing.

The short 3D animation film is about Tadeo Jones, a fearless adventurer who decides to face a challenge, a great challenge. A risky situation that is going to get extremely difficult to be solved. He's going to enter a very complex pyramid where he's going to find curious and dangerous surprises.

On the official Tadeo Jones site you will find information about the film, its history, the characters and also screenshots. The video section on the site will be completed later this month with a teaser and later also a trailer of the short film. The full animation short film will be released for the first time in cinemas, in Spain, during the month of October. The exact date and place will be announced soon.

Visit the official site at www.tadeojones.com.

The comic strip Get Fuzzy at Comics.com recently referenced to Indiana Jones. Click on the image to read the funny reference to Indy.

Thanks to Jared Barrett for letting me know.

Director Steven Spielberg was awarded France’s Legion d’Honneur (knight in the French Legion of Honor) by French President Jacques Chirac during a ceremony at the head of state's Elysee Palace in Paris today.

President Chirac praised Spielberg's ability to touch people and said films such as Schindler's List ensured the world did not forget about acts of heroism in dark periods of history.

"In this difficult time when intolerance, racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism and fanaticism are on the rise again, it is essential that cinema, which touches each one of us deep inside, recalls the horror of what is unutterable," Chirac said at a ceremony in the presidential Elysee Palace. "It is essential that this form of eminently popular expression and creativity reminds everyone of the disastrous effects of hatred, intolerance and the rejection of others."

Accepting the award, Spielberg hailed France's efforts to fight anti-Semitism. The country has witnessed a wave of attacks against Jews and Muslims and their property in recent months.

"We have to work very, very hard to make people understand that we have to celebrate people's differences and not condemn them," Spielberg said.

The Legion d'Honneur was created by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1802. It recognizes military, cultural, scientific or social contributions to France, including people who aren’t French citizens. Spielberg entered the legion as a knight, the lowest of five rankings.

Steven Spielberg was accompanied by his wife Kate Capshaw (who also appeared in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom) and actress Gwyneth Paltrow(Spielberg's god-daughter) at the ceremony.

Source: Yahoo!

The latest September issue of Total Film magazine mentions the possibility of a Raiders of the Lost Ark: Special Edition DVD that could include the fan made shot-for-shot remake Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation.

Total Film: The ultimate compliment still awaits. Paramount is considering including their homage on a Raiders DVD Special Edition. Brings a whole new meaning to the phrase Indy-pendent cinema.

It's unclear where Total Film got this information from. Chris Strompolos, maker of the above mentioned Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation film has already let me know that this is the first time he hears about a possible Special Edition DVD including his own film!
And this information is certainly not coming from Spielberg either as this same Total Film magazine issue also contains an interview with the director, in the same article! And this quote isn't part of the interview. More info about that interview here.
So it's best to consider this a big rumour.

This isn't the first time the idea of a Raiders of the Lost Ark: Special Edition DVD emerges. Back in February 2002, our partner Dreamworks SKG Fansite spoke with Frank Marshall who then said they wanted to give Raiders a Special Edition. But that turned out to be nothing as the films got released on DVD last year without any Special Editions. You can read this original news message here.

You can find this information along with an interview of Spielberg and reviews of all his films in the latest, September 2004, Issue 93 of Total Film magazine.

Big Indiana Jones fan Ken Gawne is currently trying to make the biggest Indiana Jones fan film ever. The title of the film is Indiana Jones and the Treasure of the Templars and Ken intends for it to be feature length. So far the first section of the film has been shot in the desert in California. The remainder of the film will be shot in Scotland, where Ken lives.

Ken Gawne: "For the last 6 months or thereabouts, I have been working on a project. In simple terms it is to shoot an Indiana Jones fan film. Now when most people hear the term ‘fan film’ they think of something shot on a home video recorder in their backyard. This is precisely what I don’t want to produce - I have much more vision for this film and have been going to every length possible to ensure that this is the biggest Indiana Jones fan film ever made."

This certainly sounds ambitious, but take a look at Ken's official website at www.treasureofthetemplars.com! And certainly at the large collection of production photos & film screenshots. Ken is serious! And he might even succeed as the screenshots so far look very, very professional & exciting!

Screenshots for Indiana Jones and the Treasure of the Templars.

Ken Gawne can use some help as the film is still in production. And we can all support him and his film. Check out the 'help' section at the official Treasure of the Templars site to see what positions are still available. Even if there is nothing specific listed which you think you could contribute to, the film is always looking for people to help with transport, accommodation and, of course funding.

Stay tuned as TheRaider.net will follow the production of this film very closely. And also keep an eye on our Treasure of the Templars page for updates!

Good luck Ken Gawne!