The Ultimate 'Crash Moment' - Lionsgate's CRASH Wins Academy Award(R) for Best Motion Picture

The Ultimate 'Crash Moment' - Lionsgate's CRASH Wins Academy Award(R) for Best Motion Picture

Picture Also Wins Best Original Screenplay (Paul Haggis & Bobby Moresco) and Best Film Editing (Hughes Winborne) Oscars

Spectacular Upset Victory Marks First Best Picture Academy Award(R) for Leading Independent Filmed Entertainment Studio With 25 Oscar(R) Nominations in Past Seven Years

SANTA MONICA, Calif., and VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 6
/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Building momentum from the day of its May 2005 theatrical release, Lionsgate's (NYSE:LGF) Toronto challenging and thought-provoking contemporary drama CRASH won the Academy Award(R) for Best Motion Picture last night, capping one of the most remarkable underdog triumphs in Oscar(R) history. The film also won a Best Original Screenplay Oscar(R) for director/cowriter/coproducer Paul Haggis and Bobby Moresco and an Academy Award(R) for Achievement In Film Editing for Hughes Winborne. Lionsgate, the leading independent filmed entertainment studio, has earned 25 Academy Award(R) nominations (and four victories) over the past seven years, more than any other independent studio, but CRASH marked the Company's first Academy Award(R) for Best Motion Picture.

CRASH had also earned Academy Award(R) nominations for Best Director (Paul Haggis), Best Performance By An Actor In A Supporting Role (Matt Dillon) and Best Original Song ("In The Deep," music by Kathleen "Bird" York and Michael Becker, lyric by York).

The Oscar(R) victory capped off an awards season of building momentum in which CRASH earned a Screens Actors Guild award for Best Ensemble Cast In A Motion Picture, a Producers Guild nomination for Best Picture, a Directors Guild nomination for filmmaker Paul Haggis, a Writers Guild nomination for Best Original Screenplay (Paul Haggis and Bobby Moresco), nine BAFTA nominations (including Best Film and Best Director) and six NAACP Image Award nominations (including Best Film).

Lionsgate launched an unprecedented marketing initiative by sending out 130,000 DVD screeners to opinion leaders throughout the creative community for the hit film, which has generated $54 million at the North American box office and already sold approximately 4 million units on DVD. A CRASH "Special Edition" DVD will be released on April 4, and a Lionsgate CRASH television series reprising the roles of the major cast members is currently in development for FX Network.

"It is very gratifying to be singled out among this group of extraordinary and important films," said Lionsgate Chief Executive Officer Jon Feltheimer. "It was a privilege for Lionsgate to be able to help realize the vision of Paul Haggis and all of his collaborators in bringing his work to a worldwide audience. I congratulate the entire Lionsgate team that made the success of CRASH possible, and I would particularly like to single out our unsung heroes, Peter Block and Jason Constantine, the acquisitions executives who had the foresight to see the magic of the film so early and bring it into the Lionsgate family. CRASH epitomizes the provocative and distinctive entertainment that defines the Lionsgate brand."

"CRASH is a story I have wanted to tell for 10 years, and we are thrilled that the members of the Motion Picture Academy have recognized its excellence with their highest honor," said Haggis. "Beginning with a bold decision at the Toronto Film Festival and culminating in a remarkable marketing campaign that brought the film to this incredible upset victory despite its release early in the year, the acquisition, marketing, publicity and distribution teams of Lionsgate have been the perfect partners in bringing this story to a North American audience. We are privileged to have worked with one of the most gifted ensemble casts of actors ever to appear in a motion picture, and Cathy Schulman and I are honored to carry the torch for the entire producing team, including Bobby Moresco, Don Cheadle, Bob Yari and Mark Harris."

Challenging and thought-provoking, CRASH takes a provocative, unflinching look at the complexities of racial tolerance in contemporary America. The film features an all-star cast of Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Brendan Fraser, Terrence Howard, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges, Thandie Newton and Ryan Philippe. It is directed by Paul Haggis, cowritten by Haggis and Bobby Moresco and produced by Haggis, Cathy Schulman, Bobby Moresco, Don Cheadle, Bob Yari and Mark R. Harris.

The Oscar(R) win capped a strong week for Lionsgate, whose latest release, MADEA'S FAMILY REUNION, was number one at the domestic box office for the second straight week with a domestic box office gross of approximately $48 million to date. Lionsgate also has the number one DVD in North America (SAW II).

Lionsgate is the premier independent producer and distributor of motion pictures, television programming, home entertainment, family entertainment and video-on-demand content. Its prestigious and prolific library is a valuable source of stable, recurring revenue and is a foundation for the growth of the Company's core businesses. The Lionsgate brand name is synonymous with original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the globe.

www.lionsgate.com

For further information, contact:

Sarah Greenberg
(310) 255-3856
sgreenberg@lionsgate.com

For corporate inquiries, contact:

Peter D. Wilkes
(310) 255-3726
pwilkes@lionsgate.com

Source: Lionsgate

CONTACT: Sarah Greenberg, +1-310-255-3856, sgreenberg@lionsgate.com, or
Peter D. Wilkes, +1-310-255-3726, pwilkes@lionsgate.com, both of Lionsgate

Web site: http://www.lionsgate.com/

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