Phillywood

by Mary F. Patel

Local filmmaker Tigre Hill, best-known for his documentary The Shame of a City, hosted a wrap party for his new documentary about convicted cop killer Mumia Abu-Jamal on the same day the Third Circuit Court of Appeals handed down its latest decision on the decades-old case.

The former Black Panther/journalist was found to have shot and killed police officer Daniel Faulkner at 13th and Locust streets in a 1982 trial where he was sentenced to death, but the ruling was appealed.

Hugh E. Dillon Tigre Hill and Kevin Kelly (CLICK IMAGE FOR LARGER VERSION)

Last week, the Third Circuit upheld the guilty verdict, but also ordered a new sentencing hearing for Abu-Jamal, due to flawed jury instructions in the original trial. If the prosecution decides to waive the hearing, the convict will remain in prison for life. District Attorney Lynne Abraham has already stated she is seeking to reinstate the death penalty for Abu-Jamal.

The wrap party was held last Thursday at Rae in the Cira Centre. It was hosted by Hill and Rae chef/owner Daniel Stern.

Hill's film, The Barrel of a Gun, partly explores international interest in the case, and the celebrity status that its central figure has attained. Hill declined to go into detail about the angle of the documentary.

There have already been numerous documentaries on Abu-Jamal over the years.

Hill began filming in December 2006 and took his crew to various locations such as Paris, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and New York City.

He said he expects to finish the final editing by year's end. GOP activist Kevin Kelly is an executive producer.

The party at Rae was packed, and drinks surfaced from behind a black curtain in the upstairs lounge.

Author Sean Patrick Griffin dropped in; he may soon see his work on the big screen.

Griffin is a former cop and author of Black Brothers, Inc.: The Violent Rise and Fall of Philadelphia's Black Mafia (Milo).

Norbert Pickett, an L.A. producer who used to live in Philly, came across the tome online and decided it would make a compelling film. Pickett's company, Breathless Productions, is behind the project, along with Leonardo DiCaprio's film company, Appian Way Productions. DiCaprio, who will also star as former Inquirer mob reporter Jim Nicholson, a major character in Griffin's book, has a developing deal with Warner Brothers Studios to distribute the film.

The bad news is that production, originally set to begin in the city later this year, is behind schedule due to the recent writer's strike. Screenwriter Vondie Curtis-Hall is still working on the first draft. Another potential problem is a looming Screen Actor's Guild strike.

This and That

Rina Cutler, Mayor Michael Nutter's deputy mayor of Transportation and Utilities, was honored by the March of Dimes at its 15th annual Transportation, Building and Construction Awards luncheon at the Convention Center on Monday.

Cutler was recognized for her work in the management and operation of parking and transportation programs.

The state's tourism office hosted a large table at the event, which was manned by Phyllis Halpern, a special-projects manager for the tourism office, and J. Mickey Rowley, deputy secretary for Tourism, Film and Economic Development Marketing for the state.

Rowley said that the film industry is booming in the Keystone.

Over the past three years, the state's Creativity in Focus incentive programs have received 170 applications from filmmakers, and incentives have been granted to 70 projects.

On the subject of tourism, another guest at the table, attorney Joshua Grimes, is headed to Dubai to discuss the importance of global tourism and how to interact and interface with visitors.

Here's What's Fun:

Local PR guy and Daily News op-ed contributor Dan Cirucci's political blog is picking up steam.

The former president of the Philadelphia Public Relations Association and current lecturer in corporate communications at Penn State-Abington is now getting more than 7,000 hits per day on his site, dancirucci.blogspot.com.

Before branching out, Cirucci was the Philadelphia Bar Association's communications director. His commentary is insightful and witty, and although he's changed his registration from Democrat to Republican, his insights are varied and diverse. Hey, he even likes City Paper's Clog.

(rcpatel@aol.com)