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Event
OH, HI MARK! AN EVENING WITH GREG SESTERO (THE ROOM)
PHILAMOCA presents AN EVENING WITH GREG SESTERO aka MARK from modern cult classic THE ROOM
Friday, November 8
AN EVENING WITH GREG SESTERO (Mark from THE ROOM)
Doors at 7:00, Event at 7:30
$12 advance, $14 at the door
PhilaMOCA is proud to announce an evening of entertainment centered around the co-star of what is arguably the worst film ever made, Tommy Wiseau's THE ROOM, currently celebrating its 10th anniversary. Greg Sestero will be in attendance to sign copies of his new book THE DISASTER ARTIST: MY LIFE INSIDE THE ROOM, THE GREATEST BAD MOVIE EVER MADE, screen rare self-shot behind-the-scenes footage from THE ROOM, and participate in a THE ROOM script reading with audience members. Crazy, right?
Tommy Wiseau's The Room, costarring Greg Sestero, made its disastrous debut in Los Angeles in 2003. Described by one reviewer as "like getting stabbed in the head," the six-million-dollar film earned a grand total of $1,800 at the box office and closed after two weeks. Yet ten years later, The Room is an international cult phenomenon similar to The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Legions of fans wait in line for hours to attend screenings complete with costumes, audience rituals, and thousands of plastic spoons.
In THE DISASTER ARTIST, Greg Sestero recounts the film's long, strange journey to infamy, unraveling mysteries for fans as well as the question that plagues the uninitiated: how the hell did a movie this awful ever get made? But more than just a laugh-out-loud funny story about cinematic hubris, THE DISASTER ARTIST is also a great piece of narrative nonfiction, and a portrait of a mysterious man who got past every road block in the Hollywood system to achieve success on his own terms.
The Room was written, directed, produced, financed, and marketed by Tommy Wiseau, who also starred in the film. An extremely unusual man of indeterminable age and origin, Tommy's dream and obsession was to be a movie star. Greg Sestero also hoped to make it in Hollywood, and this shared passion brought Tommy and Greg together at an acting class in San Francisco in 1998 when Greg was only nineteen years old. While Greg modeled in Milan, starred in a small film, was represented by one of the biggest agents in Los Angeles, and went on countless auditions, his big break seemed elusive. Tommy offered Greg what no one else could or would: the encouragement and confidence to keep dreaming.
While Greg experienced the ups and downs that all young actors face, Tommy was continually rejected by Hollywood. Refusing to give-up or give-in, Tommy set out to create his own cinematic masterpiece, and thus The Room was born. And while the film may not win an Academy Award as Tommy intended, it is now a pop-culture staple for those in-the-know. Paul Rudd, Jonah Hill, David Cross, and Kristen Bell are among the film's many celebrity fans. Roger Ebert, Alec Baldwin, Rob Lowe, and Bill Simmons have all Tweeted about The Room. Patton Oswalt made a parody including a cameo by Jon Hamm. Danny DeVito spoofed Tommy in an episode of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. There are action figures in Tommy's likeness and even The Room Tribute Video Game, which had over one million downloads in its first week.
While most venues would simply screen the film to mark Greg's arrival in Philadelphia, PhilaMOCA has something much more special planned. The evening will begin with Greg reading an excerpt from his book, followed by the screening of his personal behind-the-scenes footage from the making of The Room. Select audience members will then have the opportunity to join Greg on stage for a live The Room script reading and the evening will end with a book signing. Copies of THE DISASTER ARTIST will be available for purchase.
Attendees who are interested in participating in the live script reading must e-mail PhilaMOCA Director Eric Bresler ahead of time with their name and requested scene(s)/character(s): ericbresler@philamoca.org
Selected participants will be contacted and confirmed prior to the event.
Advance praise for THE DISASTER ARTIST:
"Reading this downright thrilling book is a lot like watching Tim Burton's Ed Wood: it's sometimes infuriating, often excruciating, usually very funny, and occasionally horribly uncomfortable, but it's also impossible to look away fromThe Room has become a cult fave, and this book goes a long way toward explaining how and why."
- Booklist, starred review
"Finally, a hilarious, delusional, and weirdly inspirational explanation for the most deliciously awful movie ever made."
- Rob Lowe, actor
"The Disaster Artist doesn't just answer the question: How do awful cult movies get made? It also reminds us how confusing, hilarious, and wonderful it is to be in your 20s, and why you're glad you don't have to do it twice. It's like a wonderfully weird mash-up of a contemporary Candide and Sunset Boulevard."
- Joel Stein, author of Man Made: A Stupid Quest for Masculinity
"A surprising, hilarious and compelling account of the making of the modern Plan 9 from Outer Space."
- Patton Oswalt, comedian and author
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LocationPhilaMOCA (View)
531 N. 12th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19123
United States
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