Hollywood actor John Malkovich and his production company will arrive in Syracuse this summer and spend 6-8 weeks at work on the film Hotel Syracuse which will be shot in the 1930's hotel currently undergoing renovation in downtown Syracuse (500 South Warren Street).

Syracuse International Film Festival Artistic Director Owen Shapiro (Shaffer Professor of Film in the Department of Transmedia, CVPA, Syracuse University) announced the upcoming film production at the annual Community You Can Count On Gala, sponsored by the Jewish Community Center of Syracuse at The Turning Stone Resort and Casino on March 6. The Syracuse International Film Festival was an honoree at this Gala, along with two other community non-profit organizations: Women Transcending Boundaries and the Cpl. Gregory J. Harris Military Courtesy Room at Syracuse Hancock International Airport.

Written by Shapiro and Israeli Screenwriter/Director Haim Bouzaglo, the film is a psychological thriller that tells the story of a math professor who comes to Syracuse to attend an international math conference. While staying at the Hotel Syracuse, he encounters friends, family, and colleagues from his past and realizes he is not hallucinating.

Bouzaglo, a partner in Lunatique Films, is one of Israel's most well-known film directors. In 2007 he filmed Session starring Bar Refaeli, Steven Bauer, and Tom Bower, here in Syracuse. Session will be released nationally in 2010 and will open the Syracuse International Film Festival in October, 2010. As a Visiting Artist in Shapiro's Film Program during Spring 2007, Bouzaglo and Shapiro developed the idea of using the Hotel Syracuse as a character and the location for the film of the same name. Bouzaglo immediately envisioned Malkovich as the leading character and Malkovich quickly agreed, bringing along the backing of his Production Company.

For more information on Haim Bouzaglo and Lunatique Films, see lunatiquefilms.com. And be sure to check the SYRFILMFEST'10 website for updates. Extras for the film will be recruited from the Syracuse community.