The London Action Festival have today announced details for their ‘Friday Night Showdown’ live event which takes place on Friday 29th July, where director John McTiernan and renouned stuntman, Vic Armstrong, will receive, in person, a Moving Target Award for their ‘Outstanding Contributions to Action in Film and TV’.
The one-night-only, unforgettable event will be a special celebration of all things “ACTION” and tickets can be purchased now at the official site.
The event takes place at the Royal Geographical Society, located in the heart of South Kensington’s arts and science district.
In ‘Anatomy of a Set Piece’, a panel of top tier directors get to choose their very own favourite Action Set Piece of all time and deliver a live masterclass on what makes their selection so special and how it shaped their approach to film-making.
The line-up of directors announced so far includes Corin Hardy (Sky Original’s Gangs of London, The Hallow, The Nun) and John McTiernan (Die Hard and Die Hard with a Vengeance, The Hunt For Red October and The Thomas Crown Affair). Ian Nathan (Author, Broadcaster and former Editor of Empire Magazine) will moderate the panel.
Den of Geek will be unveiling the results of their soon-to-be launched readership poll in a countdown across the evening of the Top #5 Action Catchphrases of all time.
There will be live music performances from Grammy and Emmy-winning composer David Arnold (Independence Day, Casino Royale, Sherlock, Good Omens and Stargate), and film composer Patrick Savage, who will lead ‘The McBain Quartet’ and deliver a lively set of well-known action themes.
The night also includes a game show where David Arnold will face off against members of the audience in a live quiz game where each contestant has to guess a soundtrack from the first few bars of its main theme music.
The Moving Target Awards
Stuntman Vic Armstrong will receive the Moving Target Award for ‘Outstanding Contribution to Action in Film & TV” in Stunts, Stunt Coordination & Action Direction.
Vic has been the stunt double for James Bond, Indiana Jones and Superman and is the world’s most prolific stuntman according to the Guinness Book of Records. He is the “must-have” action designer for luminaries such as Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese and Paul Verhoeven.
“Who wouldn’t want to work with Vic, Period.” – Tom Cruise.
“When it comes to really big stuff and stuff that hasn’t been done before, Vic is right there at the top of the list.” – Harrison Ford.
John McTiernan will receive the Moving Target Award for ‘Outstanding Contribution to Action in Film & TV’ – Director. The Festival is showing two of John’s films which represent the pinnacle of Action Cinema; ‘The World’s Greatest Screening of “Die Hard” Ever (Probably!)’ is taking place at the Royal Geographical Society on Thursday July 28th, which includes a Q&A with McTiernan and special events.
The original Predator, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, will have a special screening on Sunday July 31st at the Picturehouse Central, again with diector McTiernan taking part in a Q&A. The ongoing franchise sees the launch of its latest installment Prey in August.
The Moving Target Award statue, designed and created by acclaimed sculptor and model maker to the entertainment industry, Peter Pullon, will be unveiled at the event.
The live event is produced by Maria Giacchino, member of the Advisory Board of The London Action Festival.
Maria is a producer, publicist, and event curator based in NYC and LA working in the world of film music. Projects include numerous live to picture concerts produced with Academy Award winning composer Michael Giacchino, including the first live-to-picture world premiere of a film, Star Trek Beyond at San Diego Comic Con. Additional concerts produced were LOST: We Have to Go Back, Michael Giacchino at 50 at the Royal Albert Hall, Settling the Score: Arnold vs Giacchino and The Oscar Concert held at the Disney Concert Hall. Maria manages five time Emmy award winning composer Laura Karpman.
For ticket packages and to find out more about The London Action Festival, please visit www.londonactionfestival.com – Individual tickets will be on sale soon from www.picturehouses.com/londonactionfestival
