David
Weisman"s
Vanishing
Cinema
LLC,
in
conjunction
with
Indian
producers
Mushtaq
Shiekh
and
Anubhav
Sinha,
have
finalized
deal
with
Newport
Beach
real
estate
entrepreneur
Dwight
Manley
to
produce
Xtrme
City,
the
new
screenplay
from
acclaimed
writer/director
Paul
Schrader.
This
groundbreaking
production
will
showcase
a
Bollywood
mega-star
and
a
Hollywood
movie-star
sharing
top
billing
in
a
major
motion
picture.
Destined
for
both
the
subcontinent
and
international
markets,
it"s
also
first
foray
into
film
production.
Xtrme
City
begins
casting
the
two
star
leads
immediately.
Xtrme
City
is
an
action
thriller
set
in
the
brutal,
impenetrable,
criminal
orbit
of
Mumbai,
India.
“Xtrme
City
is
cross-cultural
entertainment
that
merges
the
cinematic
traditions
of
Bollywood
and
Hollywood," said
Schrader.
“Spending
time
in
India
and
working
with
a
Bollywood
talent
like
Mushtaq
Shiekh,
has
inspired
and
excited
me
to
make
a
film
accessible
and
meaningful
to
both
Indian
and
American
cultures."
Schrader,
who
has
directed
18
films,
has
previously
worked
in
Japan,
Italy,
Romania,
Israel
and
Morocco.
“I
hadn"t
thought
about
working
in
India,“
he
said,
“But
now
I
see
Bollywood
as
the
next
great
frontier."
Producer
David
Weisman,
who
made
the
Oscar-winning
Kiss
of
the
Spider
Woman
in
Brazil,
traveled
to
India
twice
with
Schrader
during
July
and
October
of
2008.
The
two
return
to
India
next
month
for
the
11th
Mumbai
Film
Festival,
where
Schrader
will
be
honored
and
serve
on
the
jury.
Weisman
began
working
on
Xtrme
City
last
year
in
association
with
veteran
local
filmmaker
Anubhav
Sinha,
who
next
directs
India"s
first-ever
sci-fi
superhero
flick
Ra1
starring
Bollywood"s
all-time
box-office
king,
Shahrukh
Khan.
Also
joining
the
Xtrme
City
team
as
Indian
producer
is
Mumbai"s
very
own
Mushtaq
Shiekh,
a
former
journalist
turned
Bollywood
screenwriter
and
prime-time
Indian-TV
show-runner.
His
decade
of
collaboration
with
Bollywood"s
global
superstar
Shahrukh
Khan
has
enabled
Shiekh
to
author
the
bestselling
biographies
SRK:
Still
Reading
Khan
and
Shah
Rukh
Can
also
to
his
credit
are
books
like
,
The
Making
of
Asoka,
Devdas
-
The
Indian
Hamlet
and
the
making
of
Om
Shanti
Om.
Shiekh"s
screenwriting
credits
include
Shahrukh
Khan"s
top
box-office
hit
Om
Shanti
Om,Billu
Barber
and
the
forthcoming
epic
Ra1.
In
addition
last
April,
Mushtaq
Shiekh
was
named
the
creative
director
of
Sahara
One
Media
&
Entertainment
Ltd,
one
of
India"s
largest
media
conglomerates.
“Working
on
Xtrme
City
with
a
master
screenwriter
like
Paul
Schrader
has
been
exhilarating
and
a
marvelous
illumination
for
me,"
says
Shiekh.
“He
is
tireless.
We
kept
at
it
until
achieving
a
perfect
emotional
balance
for
our
story.
We
wanted
to
reveal
the
best
of
each
world
in
surprising,
entertaining,
inspiring
ways.
Ours
is
a
film
that
never
takes
either
culture
for
granted."
Xtrme
City's
Executive
Producer,
Dwight
Manley,
is
a
former
sports
agent
for
NBA
stars
Dennis
Rodman
and
Karl
Malone.
Manley
served
as
national
manager
of
the
Jockey"s
League
and
personally
loaned
the
organization
a
half-million
dollars
to
avoid
bankruptcy.
A
lifelong
collector
of
rare
coins,
Manley
is
noted
for
having
made
the
world"s
largest
numismatic
purchase
in
1997
of
$100,000,000
in
California
Gold-Rush-era
sunken
treasure
from
the
fabled
“Ship
of
Gold".
In
2002,
the
American
Numismatic
Association
named
its
Colorado
Springs
facility
the
Dwight
N.
Manley
Library
in
recognition
of
his
generous
financial
support
for
the
non-profit
educational
organization.