The Thirteenth Floor to Host Gala Premiere on the Web @ [5/7/1999 2:41:34 PM] by: Activeworlds Press

Stars Craig Bierko, Vincent D'Onofrio, Gretchen Mol and Dennis Haysbert to attend alongside luminaries Martin Lawrence, Jean Claude Van Damme, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jennifer Love Hewitt and more...
Culver City, Calif., May 7 /PRNewswire/
Stars Craig Bierko, Vincent D'Onofrio, Gretchen Mol and Dennis Haysbert will be in attendance when Centropolis Interactive and Columbia TriStar Interactive in conjunction with Activeworlds.com, Inc., unveil the world's first virtual premiere of a major motion picture. On May 24 at 9 p.m. EDT/6 p.m. PDT, Columbia Pictures' sci-fi thriller THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR will premiere at www.thethirteenthfloor.com with all of the excitement, grandeur and celebrity guests -- including Martin Lawrence, Jean Claude Van Damme, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Jennifer Love Hewitt and more -- of a live Hollywood premiere.

Anyone can attend the virtual premiere to watch celebrity arrivals up close, participate in interactive discussions with the film's stars and filmmakers and get a look at the film's theatrical trailer. Those who log on to participate will be invited to select a virtual person or "avatar" to represent themselves on the red carpet. Fans will be escorted to the bleachers and journalists will station themselves behind the ropes, preparing for a live Q & A or "chat" with the stars as they arrive.

To participate, just visit www.thethirteenthfloor.com and download the Activeworlds.com client in advance of the event. Then, on May 24 at 9 p.m. EDT/6 p.m. PDT, fans can log onto the premiere by accessing the Activeworlds.com browser and selecting THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR Premiere World option from the menu. THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR's virtual premiere will take place in the Activeworlds.com's state-of-the-art 3-D environment.

THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR, a sci-fi thriller that explores the ominous possibility of computer simulated universes, stars Craig Bierko, Vincent D'Onofrio, Gretchen Mol, Dennis Haysbert and Armin Mueller-Stahl and is directed by Josef Rusnak, who also co-wrote the original screenplay with Ravel Centeno-Rodriguez. The film is produced by Centropolis Entertainment's Roland Emmerich, Ute Emmerich and Marco Weber. The film opens in theaters nationwide on May 28.

Centropolis Interactive is the new media arm of Centropolis Entertainment, the multi-faceted entertainment company behind such films as "StarGate," "Independence Day,"and "Godzilla." Centropolis Interactive's main property, located at http://www.centropolis.com, is the gateway for sci-fi on the Web. Hundreds of thousands of unique visitors each month receive an immersive entertainment experience through e-zines, virtual worlds, online games, genre-specific alliances and much more.

Columbia TriStar Interactive (CTI) is a leading producer and distributor of compelling online entertainment experiences based on original content and Sony Pictures Entertainment branded properties. CTI's content is distinguished by its innovative design, message and technology as well as its broad based consumer appeal. Columbia TriStar is a Sony Pictures Entertainment company.

Activeworlds.com, Inc., (http://www.activeworlds.com) has a unique technology that allows thousands of simultaneous users to build 3D content in the same shared environment. Ideally suited for such applications as e-commerce, chat, and distance learning, Activeworlds.com currently has a worldwide user base of over 700,000 on the Universe server (Uniserver) it operates, which receives over 1 million impressions per day, and is experiencing over 1,000 new downloads per day of its browser used to access these environments. Activeworlds.com's market research indicates that presently there are no comparable 3D internet products available on the market in terms of speed, reliability, animation, scalability, functionality, and ease of use.

Columbia Pictures is a Sony Pictures Entertainment company. Sony Pictures' global operations encompass motion picture production and distribution, television programming and syndication, home video acquisition and distribution, operation of studio facilities, development of new entertainment products, services, and technologies, and distribution of filmed entertainment in 67 countries.

Sony Pictures Entertainment can be found on the World Wide Web at http://www.spe.sony.com

For more information about THE THIRTEENTH FLOOR please contact: Suzanne Fritz, Centropolis Entertainment, (310) 244-3926, suzannef@centropolis.com

For more information about Columbia TriStar Interactive, please contact: Wendy Abrams, Columbia TriStar Interactive, (310) 840-8680, wabrams@sonypictures.com

For more information about www.thethirteenthfloor.com or Centropolis Interactive please contact: RoseAnn Ciarlante, PR21, (212) 352-3433, roseann_ciarlante@pr21.com, Bennett Kleinberg, PR21, (212) 352-3431, bennett@pr21.com