::HOT from Koch:: Filmmaker Nick Palumbo & Acclaimed French Cinematographer Laurent Bares Team Up for $15M Motion Picture, "The Last Gas Station"

Controversial writer, director and producer Nick Palumbo and acclaimed French cinematographer, Laurent Barés, team up for the $15M neo-noir thriller feature motion picture, “THE LAST GAS STATION,” set for production in Summer 2010.

Renowned cult film director Palumbo is planning to push the envelope once again in a different genre. “The Last Gas Station” will be far removed from his past notorious work and is described by the filmmaker as “a nightmarish, hallucinogenic examination of one man’s insatiable greed and the destructive path that follows in his wake.”

Palumbo’s infamous pièce de résistance, “Murder-Set-Pieces,” caused an unprecedented uproar when it premiered at the prestigious Sitges International Film Festival in Barcelona in 2004. The extremely disturbing, artfully produced feature showcased the filmmaker’s signature visionary style and distinctive aesthetic. The uncut version of “M-S-P” was released internationally by Paramount Pictures, The Weinstein Company, Universal Pictures and 20th Century Fox, and theatrically distributed in the U.S. by Blackwatch Releasing. Lionsgate Films released “M-S-P” in the U.S. in a heavily censored cut. Film authorities like Variety and The Hollywood Reporter were abuzz over the titanic controversy the picture caused worldwide; to this day, it is a felony to own the DVD in the U.K., Ireland and Norway.

Palumbo and producing partner Amber Horn joined forces and formed Hornick Films, LLC in the fall of 2009 to produce “The Last Gas Station.” Horn has worked in the casting department on notable motion pictures and television shows, including 20th Century Fox’s “The Comebacks;” Lionsgate’s “Employee of the Month;” Universal Pictures’ “Dead Silence;” MGM’s “Factory Girl;” The Weinstein’s “Bobby”; FX's Emmy-winning series “The Shield;” Bruckheimer’s “Close to Home” and “The E-Ring;” Silver’s “Moonlight;” and ABC Studios' “Legend of the Seeker.”

Hornick Films has enlisted dynamic French cinematographer Laurent Barés to shoot “The Last Gas Station.” Barés is best known for his exquisite and moody work in the recent 20th Century Fox blockbuster action thriller, “Hitman.” Previously, Barés served as the director of photography on the popular horror features, “Frontiere(s)” for Lionsgate Films and “À L'intérieur” for Canal Plus and The Weinstein Company. Barés has also lensed over 500 major commercial advertisement campaigns for dozens of international corporations.

Palumbo’s “The Last Gas Station” promises to be an intense, dark and lurid 35mm feature thriller slated for theatrical release in 2011. The film is currently in pre-production.