23 BLAST PACKED THE HOUSE WITH OVER 1400 ATTENDEES IN DUBLIN, OH, AT EXCLUSIVE
MOVIE SCREENING EVENT FOR “FOOTBALL UNIVERSITY’S” TOP GUN CAMP
Director/Producer/Actor, Emmy nominee Dylan Baker (Spider-Man 2 & 3, The Good Wife) and blind football player/real life hero
Travis Freeman joined elite high school athletes for special red carpet local event appearance
Dublin, Ohio (July 22, 2014) – 23 Blast, The Dylan Baker Film inspired by the true life events of Travis Freeman, who played football for Corbin High School in the mid 1990’s despite being blind, hosted an exclusive screening for the elite high school football players from around the nation on Friday, July 18. Held during Football University’s (FBU) Top Gun camp in Dublin, Ohio, the local event generated more than 1,400 students and parents in attendance. The evening included a red carpet meet-and-greet for attending athletes and featured guest appearances by Director/Producer/Actor and Emmy nominee Dylan Baker and real life hero Freeman, followed by the 23 Blast movie screening and moderated film Q&A.
Winner of the 2013 Heartland Film Festival’s Audience Choice Award for Narrative Feature, 23 Blast is written by Bram Hoover and Toni Hoover, directed/produced by Dylan Baker (Spider-Man 2 & 3, Anchorman 2, 13 Days) and produced by Gary Donatelli and Toni Hoover. Executive producers for the movie include Daniel Snyder (owner of the Washington Redskins), Misook Doolittle and Brent Ryan Green.
The film stars Stephen Lang (Avatar, Terra Nova), Alexa Vega (Spy Kids, Machete Kills), Mark Hapka (Day of Our Lives, Criminal Minds), Max Adler (Glee), Bram Hoover, Kim Zimmer (Guiding Light, One Life to Live), Becky Ann Baker (Men in Black, Freaks and Geeks, A Simple Plan) Timothy Busfield (Field of Dreams, thirtysomething), Dylan Baker, and Fred D. Thompson (Sinister, Law & Order, Die Hard 2).
Depicting a story of hope triumphing over despair, of courage and faith overcoming fear and of victory prevailing over adversity, 23 Blast is designed to encourage and uplift audiences of all ages.
23 Blast is based on the true-life story of Freeman, a typical teenager growing up in a small town in Kentucky, who is a local hero on and off the field. In the fall of 1997, in the prime of his youth, he is unexpectedly stricken with an infection that destroys his optic nerve. He becomes blind overnight. Under the influence of parents who love him, a physical therapist who challenges him, a coach who inspires him, and a best friend who he cannot bear to leave behind, Freeman shows us what true bravery is by competing on the gridiron, helping his Corbin High School team advance to the state playoffs. 23 Blast follows Freeman and Jerry Baker, his closest friend, from the time they meet on the football field as kids through high school. Freeman’s attraction to the dark side of teenage temptations, beer and drugs, threatens to pull the friends apart. It is only on the football field where they truly connect.
Having been featured in USA Today, The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, NBC’s Today and Dateline NBC, Travis Freeman’s will story hit the big screen as 23 Blast releases nationwide in theaters October 2014 through Ocean Avenue Entertainment, Inc. in association with Toy Gun Films.
For more information about 23 Blast, please visit:
Website: www.23blast.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/23Blastmovie
Instagram: instagram.com/23blast
Facebook Page: www.facebook.com/23Blast#!/23Blast
ABOUT DYLAN BAKER
With two Emmy, Tony and Drama Desk Award nominations, Dylan Baker brings a wide-ranging acting career, from Planes, Trains and Automobiles to Anchorman 2, from Secretariat to The Good Wife, to directing plays and now film. Baker recently received his third career Emmy nomination (2014) to date for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series (“The Good Wife”). Having acted alongside such stars as Steve Martin, Robert DeNiro, John Candy, Leonardo DiCaprio, Diane Lane, John Goodman, Tom Hanks, Juliana Margolies, Kevin Costner and Emma Stone, Baker goes behind the camera for the first time in 23 Blast.
ABOUT FBU
Football University is an invitation-only experience for the serious football player, focusing on teaching technique and skill in a small-group setting with other elite athletes. Modeled after NFL mini-camps, each camp includes 18 hours of training and development—both on the field and off the field—including film study, classroom testing, and access to hi-tech equipment, all under the professional tutelage of former NFL players and coaches. Football University travels to United States, Canada and Europe to train players hand by the organization’s network of regional directors and scouts.