May 3, 2010 (New York, NY) – The spine-tingling
documentary Cropsey, which peels back the layers of fact and
fiction behind one of New York’s most disturbing unsolved
mysteries, will debut theatrically on Friday, June 4 at New York City’s
IFC Center. Cropsey will also be playing in Los Angeles, Denver,
Austin, Boston, and additional bookings through Cinema Purgatorio.
Gravitas Ventures has
picked up North American VOD rights to the doc feature, which will be
available nationwide on VOD beginning June 1, 2010. "We are thrilled to
bring the visually arresting Cropsey to a nationwide Video On Demand
audience. Just a few months ago, indieWIRE had called Cropsey one of the
best undistributed films of 2009 and we are excited to collaborate on a
such a comprehensive release strategy,” commented Nolan Gallagher,
founder and CEO of Gravitas Ventures.
Cropsey will also screen as a “special
presentation” at the Staten Island Film Festival. This late-night
screening will take place on the grounds of the infamous Willowbrook
State School (now the College of Staten Island). Willowbrook, a
psychiatric ward, was shuttered after its abuses were profiled in a
groundbreaking 1972 expose from Geraldo Rivera.
Growing up on Staten
Island, NY, filmmakers Joshua Zeman and Barbara Brancaccio had often
heard the legend of “Cropsey.” For the kids on the island, he was the
escaped mental patient who lived in the tunnels of Willowbrook and came
out late at night to snatch children off the streets. “Cropsey” remained
just that, an urban legend, until the summer of 1987, when Jennifer
Schweiger, a 13-year-old girl with Down syndrome, disappeared from her
neighborhood. She was found buried in a shallow grave five weeks later
on the grounds of Willowbrook. In Cropsey, Brancaccio and Zeman return
to Staten Island to undertake their own investigation of Jennifer and
four other missing children as well as the real-life boogeyman linked to
their disappearances. Brancaccio and Zeman skillfully combine a
riveting true-crime drama with a personal exploration of the Cropsey
myth, uncovering a reality more terrifying than any urban legend.
running time of 84 minutes.
For screenings, trailer and more, visit www.cropseylegend.com.
