History will be made when “Sounds” the movie premieres at the oldest Film Festival in the U.S. utilizing a new technology that will make significant advancements in the film industry

AUBURN, CA—Sounds, a full-length feature film that was produced, shot and edited in the Placer County area, will make Hollywood history in mid-April by becoming the first feature-length film to utilize a revolutionary Super-Resolution Technology that has been developed by Topaz Labs, a Texas-based technology company.

The historic showing will take place at the prestigious WorldFest International Film Festival in Houston, TX. Sounds is also nominated for the legendary Remi Award, of which past recipients have been George Lucas, Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee and a host of other Hollywood moguls who got their start toward stardom.

The Sounds premiere will mark the world debut of Super-Resolution Technology (SRT), which has never before been used in a feature-length production. Grass Valley’s Ryan Humphries, who produced and directed Sounds, has been working with Topaz Labs of Dallas, TX, to develop this super-resolution enhanced technology, which until now has only been used in spy satellites, the military, the CIA, high-tech forensic labs and a handful of law enforcement agencies throughout the U.S.

The result of this partnership means that Sounds will make history by becoming the first feature-length movie to utilize super-resolution enhanced technology. The new, super-resolution software is expected to become available to the film industry this summer (2008). An innovative before-and-after demonstration of this technology from the movie Sounds can be viewed at www.soundsthemovie.com . For more information on SRT, visit www.topazlabs.com .

The Sounds screening will take place at 9:30 p.m. on April 14 at Houston’s AMC Studio 30 Dunvale Theater, the main screening venue of the 41st annual international film festival. The film will be one of just 50-60 films selected to show at the festival, with all being judged by a panel of successful Hollywood producers.

“This is an amazing opportunity,” said Humphries. “So many local people were dedicated to this project for so long that it’s nice to see some major recognition come of it.”

Six Placer and Sacramento County actors starred in the movie; J. Peter Parker, Richanne Baldridge, Sandy Stoltz, Anna Peck, John Largé and Janielle Atherton, and utilized a production crew that consistent largely of Auburn and Sacramento area residents. The movie was shot on location in Placer County, Sacramento and Washington, D.C. and features camera work by 30-year veteran Gary Tomsic, a Sacramento-based cinematographer and engineer at KCRA Channel 3. Hollywood style special effects were provided by Jon Whisman of Pixel Graphics, Portland, Oregon.

The story portrays a group of vacationers who are mysteriously attacked after a fiery ball of light plummets to earth from outer space and crashes in the nearby woods. Investigated by a couple of goofy federal agents who tend to do more harm than good, a battle ensues to save not only the four friends, but ultimately, all of humanity. The movie made its local cast and crew premiere in December 2006 at the Crest Theater in Sacramento.

WorldFest is the oldest independent film and video festival and was the third festival to become truly international from the United States, behind San Francisco and New York. Many of today’s filmmakers, including Oliver Stone, David Lynch and The Coen Brothers got their start at WorldFest. Distributors and film companies from all over the world come to WorldFest to scout out the newest independent productions ready for market.

Herb A. Lightman, a past professor who taught graduate film courses at both USC and UCLA, screened Humphries’ film and likens the effort to that of two of his former students, Lucas and Spielberg. “I saw something in these guys 30 years ago that wasn’t common in filmmaking at the time, and I see the same spark in Ryan Humphries.” Lightman, who was also Editor in Chief of American Cinematographer Magazine for 16 years, and a past juror at WorldFest, has screened thousands of student films over the course of his career. “This event is a showcase opportunity for distributors to see fresh ideas, remarkable talent, and the passion that new filmmakers bring to the industry.”

“It’s truly an honor to be nominated and premiere at WorldFest,” said Robert Lenney, executive producer for Sounds. “Ryan and his dedicated production team have worked diligently to produce this outstanding movie that features some of the most stunning visual effects that are on par with those of major Hollywood studios.”

“One of our objectives at WorldFest,” Lenney added, “in addition to bringing exposure to Sounds and to the rising talent of Ryan Humphries, is to attract a distributor for world wide rights to the film.

For more information about Sounds and to see the innovative flash SRT demo, visit: www.soundsthemovie.com . For a completed schedule of the films screening at WorldFest, go to www.worldfest.org . For more information on Super-Resolution Technology please visit www.topazlabs.com.

About Sounds

Sounds is a fictional sci-fi thriller-comedy that pokes fun at cinematic drama.  A relaxing weekend in a peaceful country setting is all four friends seek, when suddenly something smashes into earth from the far reaches of space. Can two governmental agents from Washington D.C. uncover the truth behind the mysterious sounds coming from the woods? Writer/Director Ryan Humphries combines two entertaining elements: Sci-Fi eeriness and comedic timing in this spoof about FBI agents on their biggest case ever. Executive Producer Robert Lenney is preparing to seek distribution for Sounds as he gears up for the film festival circuit. Website: www.soundsthemovie.com.