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Disruptomatic
Angela Natividad
Angela Natividad is a freelance copywriter, journalist and strategist based in Paris. She co-founded AdVerveBlog.com, a blog and podcast about ads and design, and writes MarketingProfs' “Get to the Point!: Social Media” newsletters. She likes people and animals, but not as much as books.
Tweet her @luckthelady.
James Martin
James Martin is the community manager of music & TV tradeshows midem & MIPTV/MIPCOM. He edits their respective industry news & trends blogs (blog.midem.com & mipblog.com) and also covers video games and technology for French cultural weekly A Nous Paris
Tweet him at @jamesmart_in
Stuart Dredge
Stuart Dredge is a freelance journalist based in the UK. He writes about digital music for Music Ally, and about apps and mobile for The Guardian, The Sunday Times and The Appside, as well as his own Apps Playground site.
Tweet him @stuartdredge

Radio Host-Cum-Movie Cowriter Enlists Fans for Nationwide Screening Campaign

If you’re a liberal American, you probably listen to Public Radio International, and if you know them, you probably know (and love) This American Life. The weekly radio series, hosted by Ira Glass, recounts real American stories centred around a theme, often narrated by the story’s protagonist. The show is casual but compelling, like a good friend telling you about that crazy life-changing thing that happened to him that one time.

Alongside writer/director Mike Birbiglia, Ira’s co-written an indie film called Sleepwalk with Me. Produced by IFC Films, the half-true tale follows a would-be standup comedian who’s also a sleepwalker. It’s everything we love about This American Life, live and onstage.

Why are we writing about this? If you know NPR, you’re probably familiar with its quarterly cash calls. It’s a public radio station that relies on government funding as well as donations. And Ira himself admits that they’re “new to the movie business.”

That’s where citizen campaigning comes in. Think Obama 2008 but for the cause of art. From Ira:

We need your help with our movie and yes, if you haven’t heard, we made a movie! It’s a comedy called Sleepwalk With Me, written and directed by – and starring - Mike Birbiglia. I don’t say this lightly: it’s as good as anything we’ve ever done on our show. Except maybe funnier. The trailer is above.
We’re new to the movie business and we need YOUR help getting it into theaters. It premieres at the end of August and is currently booked in 34 cities. Go to this page to see where it’s screening and learn how you can request it at a theater near you.
Thanks,
-Ira


Visit the site to see where Sleepwalk With Me is currently playing. On this page, you’ll find a list of theatres in the 50 states that run independent films, along with emails, phone numbers and Facebook addresses. It’s everything you need to bring Sleepwalk to you and help TAL screen its first-ever film like the big cats do. Isn’t that cause enough?

We’re lucky to live in an era when clout is no longer defined exclusively by cash. Mountains will move for you if you know how to relate a message and to whom. Our big hope for this effort is that it spurs others, so that generations of kids who don’t consider themselves hipsters will be able to experience mainstream films that we today consider “indie”.

Hat-tip, @JeffKwiatek.