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Director's
Statement | Film Synopses
| About
the Cast Back in high school, in rural Montana, we played on a "Men's League" team for an odd, lonely coach who had a shaky reputation in town-- our classmates warned us that he was renowned for doing "cup checks" on his players. Though he never once displayed any questionable behavior, we were influenced enough by mere rumor to quit the team. We never really attempted to know this man; we were wary of his friendship. Our contact with him was fleeting -- but haunting. Later in life,
we both felt ashamed of our readiness to believe the worst about
this man, a man who was going out of his way to help kids out, and
who suffered at their (our) callous & callow reactions. The
character of 'Gid,' in our film, is that man, given the benefit
of the doubt. And 'Roy' is a child braver than we were, one willing
to allow Gid to get close enough to him to matter. To trust. To
understand, possibly to love-- and as is often the result of love--
to harm. Winter in Montana and everything breaks down. Just days after his estranged father dies, Roy Chutney gets cut from his high school football team. Football, for Roy, meant more than a proving ground- it promised escape from his lonely rural existence and salvation from the passivity that dominates his life. Joined by his best friend, Tracy Two Dogs, (a Blackfoot Indian with no small trouble of his own) Roy drowns his frustration in a mixture of tequila and self-pity. But in Blue Springs, Montana, alcohol begets violence, and the soon-reached limits of small-town Saturday night only add brutality to Roy's despair. Enter Gideon Ferguson, a canny giant of a man who ekes out a life among barflies, hawking newspapers in the two a.m. nether world of closing time. Gid is seeking "gamers"-kids who scrap hard- to play on his Six-Man football squad, and he recruits Roy to be his quarterback. Over the course of the season, Gid and Roy enter into a tenuous friendship. For Gid, the football team provides a sense of purpose in a life nearly bled dry. For Roy, the game is a pure response to life- if you break enough tackles and keep sprinting for open ground, you might outrun your inside trouble. It's as if they complete each other: Roy permits Gid a dimension of grace, a glimmer of innocence Gid has never known; Gid grants Roy a portal into adulthood. Entering Gid's world, Roy becomes witness to a tender side of Gid, who constantly looks after his old pal Studebaker, a sad-luck drifter. More importantly for Roy, the honky-tonk nightlife introduces him to Skyla, a dark-eyed bartender several years Roy's senior. Their burgeoning romance and Roy's growing friendship with Gid collide, complicating all of their lives. The Slaughter Rule is a rough season in a young man's life, a season of exposure, prejudice, and ultimately - compassion. top Ryan Gosling (Roy Chutney) was cast in Disney's The Mickey Mouse Club at his very first audition at the age of 12. He moved to Orlando, Florida joining fellow mouseketeers Britney Spears, Keri Russell and members of N'Sync. After working in television in Canada, starring in the hugely popular syndicated series Breaker High, Ryan moved to New Zealand to play the series lead in the syndicated series Young Hercules. Landing the challenging role of Danny in The Believer, winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival, was a career breakthrough. His performance garnered him unanimous rave reviews and industry wide attention, as well as being awarded the Golden Ram for Best Actor by the Russian National Critics Association. The film aired on Showtime on March 17, and is being currently in released theatrically by Fireworks Pictures. Gosling's desire to pick intricate and complex characters led him to being cast in the lead role of Leland in the film The United States of Leland opposite Don Cheadle and Kevin Spacey. Other recent film releases include the psychological thriller Murder By Numbers opposite Sandra Bullock, and directed by Barbet Schroeder. Other film credits include the role of Bosley in Remember the Titans with Denzel Washington. Ryan was born in London, Ontario, Canada and now resides in Los Angeles. Gosling also is an accomplished singer and songwriter and is in the process of recording his first album. top David Morse (Gideon Ferguson) was most recently seen in Scott Hicks' Hearts In Atlantis opposite Anthony Hopkins and Hope Davis for Castle Rock. He is also the lead in the CBS dramatic series, Hack. Morse also recently wrapped production in Taipei where he was filming Double Vision from the producers of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Previously, David Morse appeared in Frank Darabont's highly acclaimed prison drama, The Green Mile with Tom Hanks, and then in Lars Von Trier's musical drama Dancer in the Dark (Fine Line) opposite Bjork and Catherine DeNeuve. The film won the Palm d'Or at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival and opened the 38th New York Film Festival. Morse then starred opposite Meg Ryan and Russell Crowe in Taylor Hackford's thriller Proof of Life. Morse made his motion picture debut in Richard Donner's acclaimed drama, Inside Moves. He went on to star in two Sean Penn directed dramas, The Indian Runner and The Crossing Guard. Morse's other feature film credits include: Antonio Banderas' Crazy in Alabama, F. Gary Gray's The Negotiator, Terry Gilliam's 12 Monkeys, Robert Zemeckis' Contact, and Renny Harlin's The Long Kiss Goodnight, Bait, The Rock, Extreme Measures, The Good Son, Desperate Hours, The Getaway and Personal Foul. Morse is well known for his role as Dr. Jack "Boomer" Morrison in the Emmy- winning ensemble drama, "St. Elsewhere." Other TV series roles include ABC's "Our Family Business" and the sitcom, "Big Wave Dave's." Morse also starred in the telefilms "Murder Live," "Prototype," Stephen King's "The Langoliers," "When Dreams Come True," "Six Against the Rock," "Down-Payment on Murder," "A Place at the Table," "Winnie," "Brotherhood of the Rose," "Cry in the Wild," "Cross of Fire" and TNT's "Tecumesh: The Last Warrior." Morse will next be seen starring in PBS' "Diary of a City Priest" to air April 12, 2001 on KCET/PBS Hollywood. Morse won a Drama League Award for his Los Angeles Stage role in "Of Mice and Men." Other stage appearances include the Off-Broadway productions of "The Trading Post," "Threads" and "A Death in the Family." He starred in the Seattle Rep world premiere presentation of "Redwood Curtain" and worked in over thirty productions between 1971-77 with the Boston Repertory Company. He made his Broadway debut in the role of father Barry in the theatre adaptation of "On the Waterfront," and triumphantly returned to the Off-Broadway stage recently in Paula Vogel's Pulitzer Prize-winning drama, "How I Learned to Drive." For his starring role, Morse won the Drama League Award, the Lucille Lortel Award, the Drama Desk Award and the Obie Award. top Clea Duvall (Skyla Sisco) has burst upon the scene in a relatively short span of time, and has quickly become one of Hollywood's most sought-after talents. With starring roles in the independent comedy But I'm A Cheerleader, the award-winning drama Girl Interrupted and the teen thriller The Faculty, Clea's resume is as extensive as it is versatile. In addition to The Slaughter Rule, she also recently filmed Thirteen Conversations About One Thing, an ensemble drama starring Matthew McConaughey, John Turturro and Alan Arkin. Directed by Jill Sprechter, the film tells the story of an attorney's involvement in a hit-and -run accident and how he becomes a fugitive. Clea also co-stars with Steve Buscemi, Peter Fonda and Laura Linney in "The Laramie Project," the highly-anticipated drama for HBO. Based on the true story of Matthew Sheperd, the film focuses on a gay college student who is murdered in Wyoming. All three films screened at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival. Clea is currently the female lead in the upcoming HBO series, Carnivale, starring opposite Nick Stahl. Clea was recently
seen in John Carpenter's sci-fi thriller Ghosts of Mars. The film
co-starred Ice Cube, Natasha Henstridge, Jason Statham and Pam Grier
Duvall starred in Lions Gate's comedy But I'm A Cheerleader starring
opposite Natasha Lyonne and Cathy Moriarty, and directed by Jamie
Babbit. Last year, she starred opposite Angelina Jolie and Winona
Ryder in the highly touted Columbia Pictures, Girl Interrupted.
The film, based on the best-selling memoirs of Susanna Kaysen, was
produced by Kathy Conrad and directed by James Mangold. David Cale (Studebaker) is acclaimed as one of the leading solo performers in America, and is the author and performer of six solo shows including the Obie Award winning "Lillian, Deep In A Dream Of You," (New York Dance and Performance "Bessie" Award) "Smooch Music," "The Redthroats" ("Bessie" Award) and the duet show "Betwixt," with actress Cara Seymour. His work has been presented at major venues throughout the U.S. including Off-Broadway at Playwrights Horizons, the Public Theatre, The New Group, and at the Museum of Modern Art, Whitney Museum Of American Art, The Kitchen, Performance Space 122, New York, American Repertory Theatre, Cambridge, the Goodman Studio Theatre in Chicago and the Mark Taper Forum, Taper Too in Los Angeles. His monologue "Welcome To America" was filmed for the H.B.O. Special, Bette Midler's Mondo Beyondo, and a book of his monologues entitled The Redthroats, has been published by Vintage Books. His writing has also appeared in the New York Times, Harper¹s Magazine and in the anthologies Extreme Exposure (TCG) and Out of Character (Bantam Books). "Lillian" was recorded for the NPR program, "This American Life." As a lyricist for The Jazz Passengers and composer Roy Nathanson, Cale's songs have been recorded by artists including Deborah Harry, Richard Butler, Freedy Johnston, John Kelly, Syd Straw, Jimmy Scott, and performed in concert by Elvis Costello. His songs have been featured on the soundtracks of Suzan Pitt's animated film Joy Street and Robert Altman's Short Cuts. He wrote and narrated the text for the dance "Chickens," performed by Mikhail Baryshnikov's White Oak Dance Project. As an actor Cale appeared on Broadway in Noel Coward's "Present Laughter," and Off-Broadway in Stephen Bill's "Curtains," for which he received an ensemble Obie Award. He made his film debut in Woody Allen's Radio Days and has subsequently appeared in Moon Over Parador, Men Don't Leave, He Said, She Said, Illuminata, The Endurance: Shackleton¹s Legendary Antarctic Expedition (Voice Over) and Pollock. His other awards include an N.E.A. Solo Performance Fellowship, two New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowships and a Sundance Institute Screenwriter's Fellowship. top Eddie Spears (Tracy Two Dogs) was most recently seen as Shane in Hallmark Entertainment's "Dreamkeeper" for Director Steve Barron. He made his film debut in North Sea Productions' Through the Window, followed by a lead role in Vineyard Productions' The Witness. Spears' television credits include guest appearances in the television movies "Geronimo, the Ancient Warrior" and "Somebody Said Pow Wow." Kelly Lynch (Evangeline Chutney) has become one of Hollywood's most daring and provocative actresses. Perhaps best known for her critically acclaimed work in Gus Van Sant's Drugstore Cowboy, Lynch continues to show her range in films. Most recently seen in the hit film Charlie's Angels opposite Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore and Bill Murray, she can currently be seen on screen in 20th Century Fox' Joe Somebody for director John Pasquin, starring opposite Tim Allen. top Other current work includes Showtime's "Brotherhood of Murder" playing the wife of a white supremacist, Homegrown with Billy Bob Thornton and Hank Azaria, and in director Stanley Tong's Mr. Magoo, where she learned to perform her own stunts. Prior to that, Lynch co-starred as Alec Baldwin's ill-fated wife in New Line's Heaven's Prisoners directed by Phil Joanou. Lynch first got Hollywood's attention as Matt Dillon's junkie girlfriend in Drugstore Cowboy for director Gus Van Sant. Lynch's performance earned her much critical praise including an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Actress. She received her second nomination for the critically acclaimed independent film The Beans of Egypt, Maine with Martha Plimpton. Other film credits include White Man's Burden opposite John Travolta, Virtuosity opposite Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe, Three of Hearts opposite William Baldwin, Curly Sue for director John Hughes, and Imaginary Crimes opposite Harvey Keitel. Born and raised in Minnesota, Lynch moved to New York as a teenager to study acting with Sanford Meisner. She became a top model for the Elite Talent Agency and segued into acting when director Roger Donaldson cast her in his film Cocktail opposite Tom Cruise. top Alex and Andrew Smith (Writers/Directors) are twin brothers who hail from western Montana. They co-wrote the original screenplay, The Slaughter Rule, which they co-directed in the winter of 2000. The film, which was developed at the 1998 Writing and Filmmaking Labs at the Sundance Institute, premiered in the dramatic compeition at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival. It has sense played at the prestigious New Directors/New Films series at the Museum of Modern Art, and at the Taos Talking Picture festival. It has been invited to numerous other International film festivals. The brothers Smith also co-wrote and co-directed the keening, a short film for FXM Shorts, that aired on FXM in 1999 and has played at numerous film festivals, including Sundance 2000. The Smith Brothers are currently writing The Faithful, a Civil War ghost story, for Disney Pictures. They have also written The Garden, for Ed Solomon and Konrad Pictures at Columbia Studios, and The Radioactive Boy Scout for HBO Pictures/Warner Brothers. In 1997, they received a grant from the Montana Cultural Trust to write The Wide Open, a revisionist western set in the Jazz Age. Alex and Andrew also worked on the script of Lars Von Trier's Dancer In The Dark. In 1995, Alex wrote Out Of Love, a screen adaptation of a Chekhov novella, for Terrence Malick and Ed Pressman Productions. top Alex Smith received his M.F.A. at the University of Texas at Austin, where he was awarded a Michener Fellowship in Creative Writing. His short stories have won several prizes in national story contests. He lives in Los Angeles. Andrew Smith received two graduate degrees at the University of Iowa: an M.A. in Film Studies, and an M.F.A. in Poetry at the Writer¹s Workshop. He has published poems in many literary magazines, including Gulf Coast, Alaska Quarterly Review, and Ploughshares. He currently resides in Brooklyn. top Michael Robinson (Producer) received his M.F.A. from the American Film Institute, where he produced four short films including his thesis film, The Visitor, which was awarded the Amy Bloch Achievement award. Born and raised
in New York, Robinson worked for the production auditors on Robert
DeNiro's A Bronx Tale, Rob Reiner's North, and Tony Scott's The
Fan. As an independent producer he produced the films, trans, Heavenzapoppin
starring Helen Slater and Bruno Kirby, and Trueblood starring Kim
Dickens. Robinson produced The Slaughter Rule in November of 2000. He is currently executive producing the feature documentary The Specimen by John Hyams, which explores the cutthroat world of "No Rules Fighting." top Gregory O'Connor (Producer) and Gavin O'Connor (Executive Producer)have spent the past years developing their talents in a broad spectrum of artistic arenas. Their most acclaimed work is Tumbleweeds, which won the Filmmaker's Trophy Award at the 1999 Sundance Film Festival. Released by Fine Line, Tumbleweeds stars Janet McTeer, who was nominated for an Academy Award and was winner of the Golden Globe Award and National Board of Review for Best Actress. In the early Nineties, the O'Connors made two award-winning shorts, The Bet and American Standoff and produced the off-off Broadway play, Rumblings of a Romance Renaissance. Following the success of Tumbleweeds, Greg and Gavin created their production company, SOLARIS, which focuses mainly on film and television development and production. Subsequent to Fine Line's acquisition of Tumbleweeds, Solaris operated under a two-year first look deal with New Line Cinema and New Line Television. In 2001, Gavin O'Connor co-wrote and directed the television pilot "Murphy's Dozen" for New Line Television and Warner Bros. Television. Solaris has several projects in various stages of production and development. In February, 2003, Solaris begins production on Pride & Glory, co-written by Gavin O'Connor and Joe Carnahan. Solaris is producing with Baltimore/Spring Creek. Intermedia is financing. Paula Weinstein and Greg O'Connor will produce. Hugh Jackman is attached to star. In October 2002, Gavin will direct Miracle, a drama about the 1980 U.S. Hockey team, for Touchstone Pictures. Recently, Solaris co-optioned the Mark Helprin novel Memoir from Antproof Case with Kevin Spacey's Trigger Street Films, and The Third Watch by Rebecca Reisert. Several other projects are in various stages of development. In 2000, Solaris created Solaris Completion Partners, a division of the company that provides finishing funds for independent films in need of financing for post-production. All documentaries, the three films under the SCP banner thus far are Academy Award-winner Barbara Kopple's My Generation, which has been sold to Starz/Encore; Stephen Earnhart's Mule Skinner Blues, which has been sold to The Sundance Channel; and John Hyams' The Specimen, currently in post-production. top Robert Hawk (Co-Producer) was co-producer of Jim Fall's hit romantic comedy Trick, and associate producer of Kevin Smith's Chasing Amy. He is currently in production on Ballets Russes: A Living Legacy, a documentary by Dayna Goldfine and Daniel Geller (Emmy Award winners in 2001 for "Kids of Survival"). Hawk has had his own business, ICI (Independent Consultation for Independents) for the past eight years and has been a part of the independent film scene for over 20 years. Starting with his involvement in documentary as a researcher on Rob Epstein and Richard Schmeichen's Oscar-winning The Times of Harvey Milk, he has been credited with discovering and/or nurturing the talents of such filmmakers as Epstein, Kevin Smith (beginning with Clerks), Ed Burns (The Brothers McMullen), and David Siegel and Scott McGehee (The Deep End/Suture). He has consulted on films as varied as Terry George's Some Mother's Son, Tim Blake Nelson's Eye of God, Lisa Krueger's Manny and Lo, Tom Bezucha's Big Eden, and Jon Shear's Urbania. He has also consulted on many documentaries, including Oscar winners/nominees such as Regret to Inform, In the Shadow of the Stars, Complaints of a Dutiful Daughter and Troublesome Creek. He founded San Francisco¹s Film Arts Festival, a showcase for independent filmmakers of Northern California, and was its director for eight years. As Exhbition Coordinator for the Film Arts Foundation in San Francisco, he not only programmed exhibition events but viewed and critiqued films at all stages of production, consulted with makers on festival and distribution strategies, and was an outreach resource for exhibitors, programmers, curators, festival directors and distributors throughout the world. Hawk served on the Advisory Selection Committee (1987-1998) of the Sundance Film Festival, and is currently on its National Advisory Board. He has been an advisory board member for AIFA (American Independents and Features Abroad) at the Berlin Film Festival and First Look (Tribeca Film Center/Eastman Kodak), the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival and numerous other festivals. He has served on various festival juries, both domestic and international, and has curated special film series for, among others, the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., the M.H. de Young Museum in San Francisco, the International Documentary Congress in Los Angeles, and the Margaret Mead, Melbourne and Sundance film festivals. Before his involvement in film, Hawk was a production stage manager in the theater. top Josh Fagin (Associate Producer) graduated from Cornell University in 1997 after taking a hiatus to tour in a rock & roll band. In 1998, he began working for Greg and Gavin O'Connor. Following the release of their film Tumbleweeds in 1999, the O'Connors created the New York City-based Solaris, where Josh currently oversees the company's development and finishing fund arm, Solaris Completion Partners. He also associate produced the documentary Mule Skinner Blues, which premieres on the Sundance Channel in March 2002, and is an Executive Producer on the documentary The Specimen, which is currently in post-production. Josh is an Associate Producer on Gavin O'Connor's Pride & Glory, starring Hugh Jackman, which begins principle photography in February 2003. He has served on panels for several film festivals including Mill Valley and the Philadelphia International Film Festival. He is currently adapting Mark Helprin's novel Memoir from Antproof Case with Greg O'Connor, which Solaris has co-optioned with Kevin Spacey's Trigger Street Films. top Eric Edwards (Cinematographer) credits as Director of Photography began over 20 years ago with his first feature film Last Night at the Alamo for director Eagle Pennell. He then went on to shoot 16 feature films and over 50 music videos, for artists such as Everclear, Depeche Mode, Sarah McLachlan, INXS, Alanis Morissette, Michael Jackson and Bruce Springsteen. Edwards' additional feature film credits include What Are Friends For (Jive Records), The Slaughter Rule (Solaris), Amy and Isabelle (ABC), On the Edge (Universal), Another Day in Paradise (Trimark), Clay Pigeons (Polygram), Copland (Miramax), Flirting with Disaster (Miramax), Garden of Eden (Macando) Kids (Miramax), and Gift (Warner Brothers). Edwards' credits include several notable music videos and features with acclaimed director Gus Van Sant including Candle Box's "Understanding", Chris Isaak's "San Francisco Days", Elton John's "The Last Song", Tracy Chapman's "Bang, Bang, Bang", Red Hot Chili Pepper's "Under the Bridge" and Tommy Conwell's "I'm Seventeen". He has also worked with Van Sant on the feature films To Die For, Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, and My Own Private Idaho top John Johnson (Production Designer) was born in 1965 in Tennessee, and he graduated with honors from Tennessee Chattanooga. He has been in the business for ten years. He designed a Bukowski short film that won its division at the Cannes Film Festival, and many commercials and music videos. Mr. Johnson appreciates George Jones...the 86 Celtics...Jim Beam...Steve McQueen...Ava Gardner and all music ... film... and books that got the sweet ache. He currently resides in Tennessee and likes it, and hopes to work on more quality features in the future, just in warmer weather. top Kristin Burke (Costume Designer) was born March 20, 1970, in Orange, CA. Educated at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, she majored in both Radio/Television/Film and French Studies. Ms. Burke was trained in the art of costume design at Northwestern by Virgil C. Johnson, an acclaimed designer for opera and the theater. While at Northwestern, Ms. Burke garnered awards at the Seattle Short Film Festival, the Nimes Festival in France, and the Dallas Film Festival for her experimental short films. She has designed costumes for more than thirty feature films, including The Slaughter Rule, Race to Space, The Mating Habits of the Earthbound Human, and Star Maps. She has also designed costumes for music videos, commercials, and two television series. She is also an internationally-exhibited artist, specializing in collage and mail art, and had her first solo exhibition in Los Angeles in September. Burke has also co-authored a book, Costuming for Film: the Art and the Craft, due out in Spring 2002 from Silman James Press. It is a college-level textbook on the ins and outs of designing costumes for films. This book is also intended to reach industry professionals looking to broaden their understanding about the role of costumes in the collaborative medium of film. top This Film was shot on 35mm Kodak Film Stock using 2-perf pulldown camera equipment. SOLARIS
presents
Written and Directed by Andrew & Alex Smith Produced by Michael Robinson, Gregory O'Connor Executive Producers - Gavin O'Connor, Jerry McFadden Co - Producers - Christopher Cronyn, Robert Hawk Associate Producer - Josh Fagin Cinematographer - Eric Edwards Film Editor - Brent White Production Design - John Johnson Costume Design - Kristin Burke Music Composed by Jay Farrar Music Supervisor - Brian Ross Casting - Mary Vernieu, Felicia Fasano
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