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Franklin film may get a public showing

1972 concert movie ‘Amazing Grace’ may see light of day

By Steven Zeitchik, The Washington Post
Published: November 11, 2018, 6:00am

“Amazing Grace,” an Aretha Franklin concert film regarded as one of the great lost treasures of both the documentary and music worlds, will finally see the light of day, according to a person familiar with discussions who was not authorized to talk about them publicly.

An agreement struck between the Franklin estate and Alan Elliott, the film’s producer and overseer, has ended a three-year dispute and enables the movie to be shown at festivals and sold to distributors, the person told The Washington Post.

The person said the deal was struck with Sabrina Owens, Franklin’s niece and the executor of her estate. The film will premiere next week at DOC NYC, a popular documentary gathering in New York, and be shown to distributors for potential release without any apparent legal hurdle.

Elliott confirmed the deal and told The Post, “We’re excited to finally bring the movie to the public and expose this legacy project — this is the premiere document of American popular music ever been filmed.” He also called it “a really interesting tableaux we formed out of of shrapnel.”

“Amazing Grace” has been seen by scholars as a historic document to which the public has long been prevented access. The movie chronicles a landmark performance the soul great gave of the eponymous double album at a Los Angeles church in 1972. It was originally shot by the Oscar-winning director Sydney Pollack before being completed by Elliott over a seven-year period concluding in 2015.

But Franklin opposed the release and went so far as to get an injunction stopping the movie from premiering at the Telluride Film Festival in 2015 on the eve of its premiere. The Toronto International Film Festival subsequently pulled the film because of the injunction as well. Franklin’s objections at the time were unclear.

A distribution deal with Lionsgate was later mooted after Franklin decided not to sign the papers, and the film was stuck in limbo.

After her death in August, The Post reported a deal could be more likely, though the possibility was complicated by the fact that Franklin left no will.

Endeavor, the Hollywood agency, has been selling rights to the movie, which could garner a significant distribution deal in the absence of any legal hurdle.

A representative for the Franklin estate did not respond to a request for comment. An Endeavor executive did not respond to a request for comment.

Due to a dispute between Elliott and the Pollack estate, the director’s name was taken off the film. It will premiere without a director.

“Amazing Grace” had earlier been qualified for the 2018 documentary Oscar — essentially, a token weeklong release in a theater to enable Motion Picture Academy members to nominate it for the year’s biggest prize. The move was somewhat unusual for a film without a distributor.

Elliott had told The Post in August: “Ms. Franklin said, ‘I love the film.’ Unfortunately for all of us, she passed before we could share that love. ‘Amazing Grace’ is a testament to the timelessness of Ms. Franklin’s devotion to music and God. Her artistry, her genius and her spirit are present in every note and every frame of the film.”

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