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MillimeterAFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes & Villains to Pit Good Vs. Evil in 6th Annual CBS Television Event
Jan 2, 2003 12:00 PM, Press Release
The American Film Institute (AFI) has announced "AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes & Villains" to be the annual theme for AFI's ongoing celebration of 100 years of American movies.
"AFI's 100 Years...100 Heroes & Villains" will countdown America's 50 greatest heroes and 50 greatest villains in film, as chosen by experts of the motion picture community, in a three-hour television event on the CBS Television Network in June 2003.
Each year, the AFI program has garnered the highest rating for its time slot. Previous programs within this series have included: "AFI's 100 Years...100 Passions" (2002); "AFI's 100 Years...100 Thrills" (2001); "AFI's 100 Years...100 Laughs" (2000); "AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars" (1999) and "AFI's 100 Years...100 Movies" (1998).
"The AFI 100 Years... series has become an event on every movie lover's calendar, often sparking extraordinary national debate and driving millions of people to the experience of watching classic American movies," states AFI's director and CEO Jean Picker Firstenberg. "This is the institute's ultimate goal, to introduce and reintroduce generations of movie audiences to our rich cultural heritage."
For the sixth consecutive year, the primetime special will be executive produced and directed by Gary Smith; executive produced for AFI by former AFI Board chair Frederick S. Pierce; and produced by Dann Netter and Bob Gazzale. General Motors, Blockbuster, Pepsi and Anheuser Busch are returning as sponsors of "AFI 100 Years...100 Heroes & Villains."
About the Jury Process
Today, AFI distributed a ballot with 400 nominated screen characters to a jury of 1,500 leaders from the creative community, including film artists (directors, screenwriters, actors, editors, cinematographers) critics and historians. Additionally, the national membership of AFI will receive one collective vote.
This year, the jury will be asked to choose 50 heroes and 50 villains from an extensive list of characters such as James Bond, Indiana Jones, Hannibal Lecter and The Wicked Witch of the West.
The jurors have been asked to consider the following criteria in their selections:
HERO
Sometimes mythic figures, sometimes ordinary people who prevail in
extreme circumstances, heroes dramatize a sense of morality, courage
and purpose often lacking in our everyday world.
Heroes do what is good, just and right; and even though they may be ambiguous or flawed characters, they often sacrifice themselves to show humanity at its best and most humane.
For voting purposes, AFI defines a hero as a single character, a duo or a team of characters.
VILLAIN
Characters that movie goers love to hate - and hate to love.
Villains are characters whose wickedness of mind, selfishness of character and will to power are sometimes masked by beauty and nobility. Others rage unmasked.
Daring the worst to gain the most, the movie villains we remember best can be horrifically evil, merely sleazy or grandiosely funny, but are usually complex, moving and tragic.
For voting purposes, AFI defines a "villain" as a single character, a duo or a team of characters.
CULTURAL IMPACT
Characters that have made a mark on American society in matters of
style and substance.
LEGACY
Characters that elicit strong reactions across time, enriching
America's film heritage and inspiring artists and audiences today.
Additionally, only feature-length American films released before January 1, 2002 will be considered. AFI defines a feature-length film as a motion picture of narrative format that is typically over 60 minutes in length. AFI defines an American film as an English language film with significant creative and/or financial production elements from the United States.
For a list of nominees and more information on the ballot, visit www.afi.com.
Continue the discussion on “Crosstalk” the Millimeter Forum.
