New Line Cinema’s The Golden Compass will have its exclusive worldwide trailer debut on October 9th at the opening of the celebrated Ice Rink at Rockefeller Center, officially kicking off the 2007-2008 holiday season.
The star of The Golden Compass, Sam Elliott, will host the evening’s festivities and lead a countdown to the unveiling of the worldwide trailer at 8:30 PM EST. The trailer will be displayed on two massive LED screens placed on either side of the world-famous Rink for guests to view for the first time.
Special events are also being planned for the same day in countries across the globe, including Italy, Japan, Germany and Holland, with a simultaneous debut of the trailer on Yahoo.com. As part of the promotion, party attendees will be eligible to win a trip to London for the world premiere of The Golden Compass on November 27th.
“The global launch of the trailer will officially begin the countdown to the film’s release, and it’s a great way to embrace the excitement that has already been building for the film,” says Rolf Mittweg, New Line Cinema’s President and COO of Worldwide Distribution and Marketing. “‘The Golden Compass’ already has a huge fan base around the world, and these events will not only feed off that energy, but also introduce new audiences to the film who may not yet be familiar with the books.”
Since it first opened on Christmas Day 1936, the Rink at Rockefeller Center has become a favorite city attraction. The first artificial outdoor skating pond to be built in New York City, today the Rink attracts more than a quarter-million people each day during the season, from October to April. The skating surface is 122 feet long and 59 feet wide and can accommodate 150 skaters at one time. The Rink is open Monday through Fridays, 9 a.m. until 10:30 p.m.; Saturdays 8:30 a.m. until midnight and Sundays 8:30 a.m. until 10 p.m. For more information on hours and fees, go to TheRinkatRockCenter.com.
In addition to the debut of the trailer at the Ice Rink at Rockefeller Center, the Top of the Rock Observation Deck will feature The Golden Compass trailer on its large screens located on the Mezzanine Level during the holiday season.
Based on author Philip Pullman’s bestselling and award-winning novel, The Golden Compass tells the first story in Pullman’s “His Dark Materials” trilogy. The Golden Compass is an exciting fantasy adventure, set in an alternative world where people’s souls manifest themselves as animals, talking bears fight wars, and Gyptians and witches co-exist. At the center of the story is Lyra (played by newcomer Dakota Blue Richards), a 12-year-old girl who starts out trying to rescue a friend who’s been kidnapped by a mysterious organization known as the Gobblers and winds up on an epic quest to save not only her world, but ours as well. The Golden Compass stars an ensemble cast that includes Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig, Sam Elliott, Eva Green and the voices of Ian McKellen, Ian McShane, Freddy Highmore, and Kathy Bates. The film is written and directed by Chris Weitz (Oscar nominated writer/director of About A Boy, writer of Antz) and produced by Deborah Forte and Bill Carraro (Frequency). It is executive produced by Andrew Miano and Paul Weitz (In Good Company).
