The riveting, hotly-debated story of the Friedman family continues to stay in the news over 20 years after the initial events depicted in Capturing the Friedmans.   Beginning early next year, SnagFilms will bring viewers up to date on events that have happened since the historic film, with new interviews of key participants in the original film, under the guidance of Capturing the Friedmans director Andrew Jarecki.

Capturing the Friedmanswill first be available to SnagFilms’ transactional partners, including Comcast Xfinity, FiOS, DIRECTV, iTunes, Amazon and VUDU.  Following its initial pay-on- demand run, the film will have a SVOD run in 2012.  The film will also have periodic “sneak peek” runs on SnagFilms’ free platforms, including SnagFilms.com and on SnagFilms’ mobile apps and connected TV devices.

Andrew Jarecki’s feature film debut, Capturing the Friedmans explores the elusive nature of truth through the prism of one of the strangest criminal cases in American history.  The Friedmans seem like a typical family from Great Neck, Long Island – until Arnold Friedman and his youngest son Jesse are charged with hundreds of shocking crimes.  The film follows their story, from the public perspective and through unique real footage of the family in crisis.

In 2010, nearly 22 years after Jesse Friedman’s arrest, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, in an unprecedented ruling,called upon the Nassau County District Attorney's office to reconsider the Friedman case, due in part to the questions raised in the film, which was reviewed by the judges before issuing their ruling.  That investigation is currently underway.  As the legal system takes these groundbreaking new steps in the case, SnagFilms will have the opportunity to supplement this historic film with all-new material.

“Capturing the Friedmans is, without question, one of the greatest documentary films of all time, exploring issues of justice and truth that continue to be debated to this day,” said Rick Allen, CEO of SnagFilms. “SnagFilms is proud to bring this extraordinary film to our broad audience of film lovers – from those experiencing it for the first time to those who want to see it again and again.”

“I am so pleased that this film and its story, which remain something of an obsession for me, continue to resonate with audiences," stated Capturing the Friedmans director Andrew Jarecki.  “We're fortunate to work with the very innovative people at SnagFilms to bring the film to ‘on demand’ platforms, so an ever-broader audience can debate this fascinating story, which, given recent developments, continues to evolve and surprise us at every turn."

About SnagFilms

SnagFilms features free, sponsor-supported, on demand viewing of more than 2,700 award-winning, fiction and non-fiction titles from some of the greatest names in film. SnagFilms’ curated film collection is viewed on its own site and a digital network of more than 110,000 affiliated sites and webpages worldwide, including partners such as AOL/Huffington Post, Comcast's XfinityTV.com, Hulu, the Starbucks Digital Network, IMDb, hundreds of non-profits, news and special interest sites and blogs — and via its applications for the iPad and connected TV platforms Roku and Boxee, and launching soon on Android-based smartphones and Android and Blackberry PlayBook tablets, and connected TVs from Sony, Samsung and Vizio. SnagFilms’ titles have been featured on more than 3.5 billion pageviews across its network.  

SnagFilms also offers selected titles via pay video on demand with Comcast and FiOS, as well as on iTunes, Hulu Plus, Amazon, YouTube Movies, and will soon be launching on DIRECTV and digital streaming providers VUDU, Samsung Media Hub and Xbox Live.  SnagFilms was recently named one of the fastest growing technology companies in Washington, DC area. Gizmodo has named SnagFilms as a “Best iPad App,” OVGuide has twice named SnagFilms a Top Site, and MovieMaker Magazine named SnagFilms to its annual list of “50 Best Websites for Moviemakers.” The SnagFilms family also includes indieWIRE, for more than 15 years the web’s top source of news, reviews and information about independent film.

Contact
SnagFilms
Noah Black
202-295-8797
noah@snagfilms.com