Raconteur and State Theater Team up for RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK: THE ADAPTATION TONIGHT

By Jana Siciliano on August 26, 2011 3:29 PM | No Comments

 From Alex Dawson and the Raconteur:

ON 8 PM, Fri. Aug 26, The Raconteur collaborates with the State Theatre!

It's the 30 year anniversary of Raiders of the Lost Ark and the summer of Super 8, which means it's the perfect time to see the homemade cult sensation Spielberg himself calls "hugely imaginative!"

After seeing Raiders of the Lost Ark in 1981, three 12 year old friends, Chris Strompolos, Eric Zala and Jayson Lamb, began filming their own shot-by-shot adaptation in the backyards of their Mississippi homes. Vigilant, resourceful, and a little bit insane, these Mississippi tweens gained access to sacks of gunpowder, gallons of gasoline, a retired WWII battleship and a functioning Navy submarine. They broke bones, got grounded, blew up a garage, and got grounded again. Eric had to be hospitalized twice, once for having his hair set aflame, and once because shards of plaster from an exploding head "effect" had to be surgically removed from his scalp. Seven years later their film was in the can.


In 2003 (22 years from the project's inception), Steven Spielberg and George Lucas watched the tribute and gave it their stamp of approval, calling it "hugely imaginative," "impressive," and "lovingly detailed." In 2004, Vanity Fair did an expansive 10,000 word feature on the boys' experiences making the movie, Quentin Tarantino became a fan, Wes Craven called the film "phenomenal," and Paramount producer Scott Rudin purchased the life rights to their story. A book about their incredible adventure is due out this Spring from St. Martin's Press, and Oscar nominated author/cartoonist Daniel Clowes (Ghost World) is working on a screenplay about them.

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