Directed by John Herzfeld
Written by John Herzfeld

Robert De Niro .... Eddie Flemming
Edward Burns .... Jordy Warsaw
Vera Farmiga .... Daphne
Kelsey Grammer .... Robert Hawkins
Melina Kanakaredes .... Nicolette
Tygh Runyan .... Stephen Geller Janean
Christine Mariani .... Mary, Planet Hollywood Guest

Produced by Keith Addis (producer), David Blocker (producer), John Herzfeld (producer), Claire Rudnick Polstein (executive producer), Nick Wechsler (producer)
Original music by Anthony Marinelli and J. Peter Robinson
Cinematography by Jean-Yves Escoffier
Film Editing by Steven Cohen (I)

Rated R for strong violence, language and some sexuality.

1. 3 Kilos - Prodigy 2. Fame - God Lives Underwater 3. Ultra-Obscene - Breakbeat Era 4. Porcelain (Rob D. Remix) - Moby 5. Carmen Queasy - Maxim 6. Gun - Gus Gus 7. Out Run - David Holmes 8. 52 Pick Up - Ballistic Mystic 9. La Guitaristic House Organisation - Rinocerose 10. Exedrene - Johann Langlie

Never before in history have fame and the law been so closely, and so dangerously, aligned. With today?s insatiable demand for high-octane television news, everyone from criminals and cops to lawyers and politicians has joined the ranks of attention-grabbing celebrities and hype generators. Murderers hire spin doctors and share their confessions in prime time. Meanwhile, everyone from thieving low-lives to the President?s lawyers vie for their shot at the limelight. Crime, tragedy, chaos: we might fear them, but there?s no denying that in today?s world, they bring ratings, money and power.

So just how far will society?s most desperate people go in order to get their "fifteen minutes"? And just how willing is the public to watch? These questions come hurtling to the fore in John Herzfeld?s smart, searing thriller 15 Minutes, which brings the edge-of-your-seat thriller into the in-your-face Media Age. Herzfeld?s fresh and original take on urban life-and-crime is laced with dark humor, action and incisive social commentary about the troubling crossroads where cops and criminals meet the all-powerful television cameras.

At the center of 15 Minutes is a New York City double murder that must be solved. But the story isn?t so much about figuring out the truth of the murder, as following who controls that truth. This is the thriller as seen through a new lens ? that of the media?s hunt for shocking imagery, no matter the cost. In 15 Minutes, as the cops chase the murderers, the media chases the cops, and the whole thing fuels an escalating firestorm.

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION
John Herzfeld Takes on 15 Minutes

15 Minutes drops the audience into the middle of tabloid reality -- into a sped-up, maxed-out New York City saturated with blaring color and hyped-up reality. The film?s bold look becomes a mirror of the media circus at the heart of the film?s suspense. Writer/director John Herzfeld, who drew accolades for his original exploration of Los Angeles? underside in the acclaimed independent feature 2 Days In the Valley, purposefully wanted his film to careen and cut across the screen like a gritty crime drama meets tabloid television. This, after all, is the terrain of 15 Minutes: where the reality of crime meets the surreal glare of television hype and fast-moving fame.

Herzfeld?s script for 15 Minutes arose out of his fascination with the increasing importance of celebrity and fame in contemporary American culture ? and how much it has altered the American Dream, and even inspired a new criminal class. "Once the American Dream meant you came to America and, through persistence and hard work, you succeeded," explains Herzfeld, "but now this is a culture where no one is responsible for what they do and some people want recognition for nothing. From tabloid news to daytime talk to the litigious nature of everything from politics to sports to marriage, sometimes you just can?t believe what you?re seeing these days. People are willing to do anything so long as they do something that puts them in the spotlight." Mix this attitude with the "if it bleeds it leads" media mentality, and Herzfeld perceives an explosive situation.

Herzfeld combined his intrigue with where fame, television and the law collide with another of his fascinations: the crime of arson. "There have been a lot of movies about cops and detectives, but not arson investigators," he notes. "When I learned that arson investigators carry guns and make arrests, that they are the detectives of the Fire Department, I knew that there were great story possibilities there. Especially because a fire used to cover up a double homicide would be a high-profile case in which the media would definitely get involved."

In the end, Herzfeld?s script defied categorization, zooming through bittersweet romance, original action, dark comedy and back again. And that?s exactly what drew an extremely high-profile group of award-winning actors and filmmakers to the project. "John Herzfeld?s ability to seamlessly integrate different tones with an exciting visual style is especially provocative and appealing," says producer Keith Addis. "It?s hard not to be intrigued by such a compellingly controversial film." Adds producer Nick Wechsler: "This film really establishes John Herzfeld?s extraordinary talent as a director and contemporary story-teller. He has a rare ability to viscerally affect the audience and take them places nobody expects."

Both Addis and Wechsler were also impressed with Herzfeld?s probing style, which illuminates both the good and bad of our camera-happy society. Indeed, Herzfeld is of mixed-minds about the ultimate impact of the proliferative news media. "I think news shows have a job to do and they?re doing it," he admits. "Sometimes they do cross ethical boundaries, and it?s important to call them on it, but the fact they have such latitude is often the very reason they can bring so much attention to a case or bring an important issue to light."

He continues: "I think what?s most interesting about the media and about 15 Minutes is that everyone tends to get caught up in the spotlight whether they want to or not. What is more interesting than the pursuit of fame is what a person does when he or she gets it." Cops, Killers and On-Camera Talent: The Cast of 15 Minutes At the core of 15 Minutes is the story of New York City Homicide Detective Eddie Flemming, a role that drew two-time Academy Award-winner Robert De Niro, who plays a man who has learned to use the media?s hunger for hot stories to his own personal and political advantage. Suave, confident and brilliant on-air and on the job, Eddie hides another side, which De Niro brings out in a series of sweetly comic scenes depicting Eddie?s nervous preparations for proposing to his news-woman girlfriend. Even as John Herzfeld wrote 15 Minutes, he began to envision Robert De Niro in the role of Eddie Flemming. He knew he needed an actor of such consummate presence that Eddie would appear truly at ease with celebrity.

Yet he also needed someone with the extraordinary range to switch from chase scenes to vulnerable love scenes in an instant. "There?s nothing like being able to work with the actors you had in mind when you were creating the characters," says Herzfeld, "especially when one of them is Robert De Niro."

SOME THOUGHTS ON

Fame is a fickle food Upon a shifting plate.
- EMILY ELIZABETH DICKINSON (1830?1886)

Men think highly of those who rise rapidly in the world; whereas nothing rises quicker than dust, straw, and feathers.
- AUGUST W. HARE (1792?1834)

Fame, like flame, is harmless until you start inhaling it.
- O. A. BATTISTI

Seeking to perpetuate one?s name on earth is like writing on the sand by the seashore; to be perpetual it must be written on eternal shores.
- DWIGHT LYMAN MOODY (1837?1899)

What is fame? An empty bubble.
- JAMES GRAINGER (1721?1766)

And how do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul in the process? What good would it do to get everything you want and lose you, the real you?
JESUS, -The Bible, Mark 8:36,
New Living Translation combined with The Message Translation

NOT AN ENJOYABLE FILM
Date: Sat, 31 Mar 2001
From: Michael P.

"15 Minutes" is not an enjoyable movie. Lots of scenes with people killed senseless in full view. One 2-minute scene they should have left out was a topless prostate in a hotel room who is wrestled, choked and murdered. Radically excessive four letter words used and taking the Lords name in vain multiple time. From this moviegoer's point of view (I liked the Terminator, The Matrix, etc.), don't waste your money on this movie. Wait until it comes on TV with the scenes and language cleaned up.
Michael P.

Response: Well, it is R rated. Clearly posted. No surprises. It is a film with an important message. What did you think of what it said about American's news media. -David