KATRINA DOCUMENTARY DESERT BAYOU SLATED FOR RELEASE ON DVD JANUARY 29, 2008

FILM FUELS DISCUSSION OF GOVERNMENT FAILURE, LINGERING RACIAL AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC ISSUES

LOS ANGELES (December 26, 2007) -- Director Alex Le May and producer Percy “Master P” Miller’s “Desert Bayou” is slated for DVD release January 29, 2008, in conjunction with Black History Month. The duo recently completed a music video written by and starring Master P and his son, Romeo (The Miller Boyz), and directed by LeMay. Entitled “My People,” the video will be included in the DVD extras with the feature.

After its theatrical premiere in New York attracted a flurry of interest from the NAACP, the American Civil Liberties Union and Appleseed, as well as leaders in the African American community including Donna Brazile, Congressman Edolphus Towns (D-NY) and Reverend Al Sharpton, the film became the buzzword of failed policies and bureaucracy following the 2005 disaster.

The feature length documentary tells the story of 600 African Americans who were airlifted out of New Orleans after the floods, shipped to Utah without their knowledge, subjected to three identity checks and then housed at an isolated military base. Although the people flown to Utah were a small percentage of those displaced - estimates are between 645,000 and 1 million – their story is emblematic of some painful truths about race, religion and poverty in America. The documentary features Master P, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach and families displaced by the storm.

“For all of us whose loved ones and friends suffered through Katrina, ‘Desert Bayou’ is another reminder of how badly our government failed the citizens of New Orleans – and how much we need to do,” says New Orleans native Donna Brazile, the political commentator and Gore 2000 campaign manager. Brazile shared the story of her search for her New Orleans-based family in the wake of the hurricane in a 2006 Vanity Fair article.

The American Civil Liberty Union, Appleseed, and The Raben Group, as well as the NAACP co-hosted bicoastal screenings of the film in Washington D.C. and Los Angeles.

Congressman Towns says the film “highlights the best and worst of America, and I hope this important film will motivate all of us to do better.”

One year after the storm, an estimated 197,000 New Orleans evacuees were still displaced. Of those, 70% were African American and 38% were living below the poverty line. With so many still displaced from their homes, Master P is taking an active role in drawing attention to the indignity of those still displaced by Katrina. Master P’s parents lived in New Orleans during the storm, and his search for them led him from Salt Lake City to Alabama, where he ultimately found them.

“Percy ‘Master P’ Miller uses his celebrity to bring much needed attention to ‘Desert Bayou,’ an important film that gives us a unique look at race relations in America and the impact Hurricane Katrina had on the community and culture of New Orleans,” says Vicangelo Bulluck, the Executive Director of NAACP Hollywood Bureau. He adds, “It serves as a reminder that many of those who were displaced will never find their way back home.”

The film began its theatrical release on October 5, 2007 in New York City, which was proclaimed “Desert Bayou Day” by City Council members in recognition of the humanitarian cause the film takes on for the people of New Orleans. It was the highest grossing film to run at the Village East theatre that weekend.

Cinema Libre Studio – is a Los Angeles based production/distribution company known for distributing social issues films including ‘OutFoxed,” “Uncovered: The War on Iraq,” and “Giuliani Time.” The company is currently producing a feature length documentary on global poverty. For more information, visit www.cinemalibrestudio.com.