On Thursday, two Denver men filed a lawsuit against writer-director Julian Rubinstein and his production team for the book and movie Holly, claiming they hadn't actually seen the movie.
Meanwhile, the documentary Holly surprised on the Denver Film Festival red carpet at the last minute. The unusual addition comes after previous showings of "Holly" on Nov. 6 and 9 sold out quickly, leading to widespread demand for additional tickets, according to Denver film producers.
The film will now be screened on the red carpet at the 2,225-seat Ely Caulkins Opera House on November 10.
Although the two events are not directly related, Holly: Five Bullets, One Gun, and the Fight to Save America's Homeland marks another week of victory. The book and documentary examine and critique Denver's gangster scene and the city's use of whistleblowers. They focus on activist Terrence Roberts and the Holly Square neighborhood of North Park Hill, as well as Denver's media and political machines.
The libel lawsuit against Rubinstein and his publisher first appeared May 10 and was updated July 14 after the film was released by producers, weeks before it hit the New York Telluride Mountain. MovieFestival. According to publicly available documents, the creative team received the documents in September.
Sheraria Hicks and Pernell Haynes sued Rubinstein for libel and libel for being portrayed as active gang members while working for the city's anti-gang program. But Rubinstein and attorney Steve Zansberg warned their case would fail due to overwhelming evidence to the contrary.
Hux and Haynes could not be reached for comment.
“Many of the allegedly defamatory materials in the lawsuit were not in the book or the film,” Rubinstein said over the phone hours after the judge approved the dismissal. "They admit they haven't even seen the movie. I'm not even sure I've read the book. It was just an attempt to prevent public interest information from being published."
According to a document signed Thursday, Oct. 22, Denver District Court Judge Mary Avery Moses dismissed the lawsuit for bias, meaning a new trial is not possible.
Rubinstein grew up in Denver and worked at Holly's for eight years after studying in New York. Holly's book has won major regional awards in recent weeks, including the Colorado Book Award for Comprehensive Nonfiction and the High Plains Book Award for Creative Writers. Her debut film, Telluride Mountain, won her a People's Choice Award at the festival, and her latest Holly event at the Denver Press Club drew a crowd.
Notably, Holly was produced by Hollywood heavyweight Adam McKay, who won Oscars for films such as Don't Look and The Big Short.
Rubinstein said he and Zansberg told Hicks and Hines they would file a motion against SLAPP, which would protect the media from allegedly unfounded lawsuits for publishing stories in the public interest. If the lawsuit is dismissed as a result, Hicks and Hines will have to pay Rubinstein's legal costs.
Rubinstein, who first learned of the lawsuit in a media interview earlier this year, said, "We didn't show up to court and we didn't make any deals until we were fired." "Because it was a baseless smear campaign."
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