‘Donald Cried’: Rough House Pictures Boards Festival Hit as Executive Producers (Exclusive)
The team over at Rough House Pictures — including David Gordon Green, Jody Hill and Danny McBride — have long trafficked in offbeat comedy offerings and championing compelling filmmaking voices, so the latest film to join their slate should come as little surprise. Rough House has now come aboard Kris Avedisian’s “Donald Cried” as executive producers and will help shepherd the wild feature film to its theatrical release next month.
READ MORE: SXSW 2016 Review: ‘Donald Cried’ is a Hilarious Look at Arrested Development
Based on his short of the same name, Avedisian premiered the film — his first feature offering, which he not only wrote and directed, but also stars in — at last year’s SXSW, where it was nominated for the Grand Jury Award. The film went on to screen at a variety of festivals, including New Directors/New Films, Locarno, Hamptons, Montclair and AFI FEST (where it won the Audience Award in the American Independents section).
“Donald Cried” amusingly and cleverly undoes one of contemporary comedy’s most enduring tropes: the story of the so-called “man-child.” The film follows former childhood best friends who reconnect decades later in their working-class Rhode Island neighborhood. While Peter (Jesse Wakeman) has changed over the years (read: he’s actually matured), Donald (Avedisian) hasn’t moved an inch, and doesn’t seem interested in doing much to fix that. When Peter unexpectedly returns home for a family event, he’s thrown back into Donald’s weird, stagnant orbit. Hijinks, of course, ensue, but so do some keen observations about life, friendship and just goddamn growing up.
READ MORE: Watch: Imagination Runs Wild in Exclusive ‘Donald Cried’ Clip
Of the project, newly minted executive producer David Gordon Green commented, “‘Donald Cried’ falls perfectly into that misfit, independent minded film that Rough House loves to support. It’s a beautiful, laugh out loud character piece that doesn’t fall into contemporary comedy traps or conveniences. The performances and writing should be an inspiration to audiences and filmmakers out there.”
In celebration of Rough House coming on board the feature, the film has also rolled out an exclusive new poster, which you can check out below.
“Donald Cried” opens on Friday, March 3.
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