Yesterday, 60 Minutes Australia aired a sensitive, sympathetic story on Darius McCollum featuring footage from OFF THE RAILS. The 13-minute piece is viewable here
STORY
OFF THE RAILS tells the remarkable true story of Darius McCollum, a man with Asperger’s syndrome whose overwhelming love of transit has landed him in jail 32 times for impersonating New York City bus drivers and subway conductors and driving their routes.
As a boy in Queens, NY, Darius found sanctuary from school bullies in the subway. There he befriended transit workers who taught him to drive trains. By age 8, he memorized the entire subway system. At 15, he drove a packed train 8 stops by himself, making all the stops and announcements.
Over the next three decades, Darius commandeered hundreds of trains and buses, staying en route and on schedule, without ever getting paid. He attended transit worker union meetings, lobbying for better pay and working conditions for a union he didn’t belong to.
Although Darius has never damaged any property or hurt anyone in his decades of service, he has spent 23 years in maximum security prison. Darius’ recidivism embodies the criminal justice system’s failure to channel the passions of a harmless, mentally challenged man into a productive career and purposeful life.
WATCH
ONLINE/STREAMING
Available in some territories on Amazon Prime
Available in some territories on iTunes
Available globally on Vimeo
DVD
Available from Amazon
PAST SCREENINGS
FULL FRAME DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL • Durham, NC
April 7, 2016
SARASOTA FILM FESTIVAL • Sarasota, FL
April 9 & 10, 2016
RIVERRUN FILM FESTIVAL • Winston-Salem, NC
April 10 & 11, 2016
NEWPORT BEACH FILM FESTIVAL • Newport Beach, CA
April 24 & 25, 2016
HOT DOCS • Toronto, Canada
May 4 – 8, 2016
SAN FRANCISCO DOCUMENTARY FESTIVAL • San Francisco, CA
June 12 & 14, 2016
PROVINCETOWN INT’L FILM FESTIVAL • Provincetown, MA
June 16 & 19, 2016
INDIE STREET FILM FESTIVAL • Red Bank, NJ
July 7, 2016
OPEN ROOF FESTIVAL • Toronto, Canada
July 20, 2016
WOODS HOLE FILM FESTIVAL • Woods Hole, MA (Cape Cod)
August 1, 2016
SIDEWALK FILM FESTIVAL • Birmingham, AL
August 28, 2016
DOC UTAH • St. George, UT
Sept 8 & 10, 2016
RAINDANCE FILM FESTIVAL • London, UK
Sept 23 & 30, 2016
FOOTCANDLE FILM FESTIVAL • Hickory, NC
September 25, 2016
CHAGRIN DOCUMENTARY FILM FEST • Chagrin Falls, OH
October 6 & 7, 2016
TORONTO • Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema
October 7 – 30, 2016
TACOMA FILM FESTIVAL • Tacoma, WA
October 9, 2016
BUFFALO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL • Buffalo, NY
October 9, 2016
HOT SPRINGS DOCUMENTARY FILM FESTIVAL • Hot Springs, AR
October 10 & 14, 2016
SANTA FE INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL • Santa Fe, NM
October 20 & 23, 2016
SAVANNAH FILM FESTIVAL • Savannah, GA
October 22, 2016
HEARTLAND FILM FESTIVAL • Indianapolis, IN
October 21 – 27, 2016
DENVER FILM FESTIVAL • Denver, CO
November 3 – 6, 2016
ST LOUIS FILM FESTIVAL • St Louis, MO
November 5, 2016
LOS ANGELES, CA • Laemmle Music Hall
November 4 – 10, 2016
DOC NYC • New York, NY
November 12, 2016
FAIRHOPE FILM FESTIVAL • Fairhope, AL
November 13, 2016
NEW YORK, NY • Metrograph Theatre
November 18 – December 13, 2016
CALGARY UNDERGROUND DOC FEST • Calgary, Canada
November 20, 2016
LINCOLN, NEBRASKA • The Ross Center
December 2 – 8, 2016
SAN FRANCISCO, CA • The Roxie
December 23 – 29, 2016
CHICAGO, IL • Facets Cinémathèque
December 30, 2016 – January 5, 2017
FALMOUTH, MA • Falmouth Academy
January 14, 2017
NEW YORK, NY • Goddard Riverside Comm. Center
January 17, 2017
OAKLAND, CA • New Parkway Theater
January 24, 2017
LAKE WORTH, FL • Lake Worth Playhouse
Jan 27 – Feb 2, 2017
BIG SKY DOCUMENTARY FESTIVAL • Missoula, MT
Feb 21 & 23, 2017
AUSTIN, TX • Violet Crown Cinemas
March 2, 2017
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA • Violet Crown Cinemas
March 2, 2017
DETROIT, MI • Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA)
March 22, 2017
SANTA FE, NM • Jean Cocteau Cinema
March 17 – April 3, 2017
MIDDLEBURY, VT • Town Hall Theater
April 2, 2017
PORT JEFFERSON, NY • Theatre Three
May 1, 2017
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA • ACMI
May 9 & 15, 2017
REEL ABILITIES BOSTON • Boston, MA
March 29, 2018
PRAISE
** New York Times Critics’ Pick**
100% FRESH Score on RottenTomatoes.com
Top 10 Documentaries of 2016 according to critics at IndieWire, Hollywood Reporter, Salon, NY Daily News and The Village Voice
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“Adam Irving’s first film is an assured and thoughtful debut” – New York Times
“An excellent documentary” – Los Angeles Times
“A sharply funny human interest story that will be hard to forget…Imagine a feature-length version of an excellent, complex Humans of New York story” – Toronto Film Scene
“Offbeat and enjoyable” – The Hollywood Reporter
“Beautifully photographed and expertly edited…a highly entertaining story that mixes thrills, comedy and drama” – Hammer to Nail
“An absolute must see… as high a recommendation as I can give” – Unseen Films
AWARDS
BEST FIRST DOCUMENTARY NOMINEE
Critics’ Choice Documentary Awards
JURY PRIZE, BEST DOCUMENTARY
Newport Beach Film Festival
JOHN SCHLESINGER AWARD for OUTSTANDING DIRECTING
Provincetown International Film Festival
JURY PRIZE, BEST DOCUMENTARY
Woods Hole Film Festival
JURY PRIZE, BEST DOCUMENTARY
DocUtah Film Festival
JURY PRIZE, BEST DIRECTING
DocUtah Film Festival
JURY PRIZE, BEST SOCIAL AWARENESS DOCUMENTARY
Chagrin Documentary Film Festival
SPECIAL JURY PRIZE, BEST DOCUMENTARY
Buffalo International Film Festival
SPECIAL JURY PRIZE, DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Santa Fe Independent Film Festival
GRAND JURY PRIZE, METROPOLIS AWARD
DOC NYC Film Festival
TEAM
ADAM IRVING
DIRECTOR // PRODUCER // DP
Originally from Toronto, Adam dropped out of his PhD program in media studies at the University of Texas to work as a filmmaker in L.A. He began as a reality TV cameraman, then forayed into producing fundraising videos for non-profit organizations before embarking on his dream of making documentaries. Off the Rails is Adam’s first film. He holds an M.A. from NYU-Tisch and a B.A. from Brandeis University.
GLEN ZIPPER
PRODUCER
After three years as an assistant state prosecutor in New Jersey, Glen moved to L.A. to make movies. Through his production company Zipper Brothers Films, he produced Undefeated, which went on to win the 2012 Academy Award for Best Documentary. Glen also served as executive in charge of production on Martin Scorsese’s Emmy-winning George Harrison: Living in the Material World.
TCHAVDAR GEORGIEV
EDITOR // CO-PRODUCER
Tchavdar’s editing credits include HBO's two-time Emmy-nominated Valentine Road (Sundance), Finders Keepers (Sundance), We Live in Public (Sundance Grand Jury Prize) and Nat Geo's Emmy-nominated Alien Earths. He received an Emmy nomination for directing and producing The Desert of Forbidden Art (PBS). He has also produced for BBC, History Channel, MTV and USA Network.
STEVE GERNES & DUNCAN THUM
COMPOSERS
After graduating USC’s film scoring program, Steve and Duncan have worked on many projects together including the wildly popular Netflix series Chef’s Table and Body Slam: Revenge of the Banana! (Tribeca).
CONTACT
For distribution inquiries please contact our sales agent at the Film Collaborative / MSK:
Orly Ravid // oxr@msk.com // 310.312.3268
For media inquiries and theatrical bookings please use the form below:
NEWS
Last night over a million viewers saw ABC Nightline‘s lead story (watch HERE) on Darius McCollum, featuring clips from OFF THE RAILS and an interview with the film’s director Adam Irving. We hope this sensitive piece will bring more attention to Darius’ case to get him the help he needs.
ABC Nightline’s story on Darius McCollum, Adam Irving, and OFF THE RAILS.
On Nov. 17th, OFF THE RAILS won the Metropolis Grand Jury Prize at DOC NYC, America’s largest documentary festival. The next day, RAILS began its 4-week theatrical run at the Metrograph in NYC, receiving stellar reviews including a NY Times Critics’ Pick. That weekend it was the 6th highest grossing movie in the country on a per screen average. RAILS received widespread acclaim, earning a 100% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Likewise, it received fantastic coverage in the NY Daily News, L.A. Times, New York Post, Fox News, and NBC.
‘Off the Rails’ director Adam Irving won the Metropolis Grand Jury Prize at DOC NYC
‘Off the Rails’ director Adam Irving on NBC News
‘Off the Rails’ director Adam Irving in the New York Daily News. Photo by James Keivom.
A two-page spread in the New York Post ahead of OFF THE RAILS’ theatrical release in New York
Ahead of its theatrical release in Toronto, Los Angeles, and New York, OFF THE RAILS has picked up 3 more festival awards, upping its total to 9. The film won the Special Jury Prize for Best Documentary at the Buffalo Int’l Film Festival, Best Social Awareness Documentary at the Chagrin Documentary Festival, and the Special Jury Prize for Documentary Feature at the Santa Fe Independent Film Festival. RAILS will screen October 7-30 at the Hot Docs Cinema in Toronto, Nov 4 -10 at Laemmle’s Music Hall in L.A., and Nov 18 – 24 at the Metrograph in New York.
‘Off the Rails’ director Adam Irving interviewed on CTV’s ‘Your Morning’
‘Off the Rails’ director Adam Irving interviewed on Toronto’s Breakfast Television
OFF THE RAILS has been picked up for distribution and will have an Oscar-qualifying theatrical release in Toronto, NY and LA. Read the exciting announcement in The Hollywood Reporter. The Reporter also listed RAILS as an Academy Award contender for Best Documentary. Shortly after making this list, RAILS took home top honors at DocUtah, winning Best Directing and Best Documentary. SundanceNOW has acquired the film’s streaming/VOD rights, while The Film Collaborative is handling its theatrical release. Journeyman Pictures (UK) will handle foreign sales while Alexander Street Press will take educational sales. Passion River Films acquired the film’s DVD rights.
Adam Irving receives the grand jury prize for Best Documentary at DocUtah 2016.
On July 4th, CBS Los Angeles news anchor Juan Fernandez interviewed director Adam Irving about filming Darius McCollum. Watch the interview here.
Director Adam Irving discusses ‘Off the Rails’ on CBS News
Ahead of its world premiere, NY1 News aired a story about OFF THE RAILS featuring an interview with director Adam Irving.
Director Adam Irving discussing ‘Off the Rails’ on NY1
‘Off the Rails’ director Adam Irving on New York’s Q104.3
Roberts will play the role of Sally Butler, Darius’ attorney, in a feature film based on the life of Darius McCollum, the subject of OFF THE RAILS. Variety broke the news first followed by the Hollywood Reporter and Indiewire. An actor has yet to be cast to play McCollum, and no director is attached yet. Gotham Group is producing the courtroom drama with FilmNation financing it.
Tonight, NBC aired a major news story on Darius McCollum in his very first TV interview. Sarah Wallace of NBC 4’s investigative team interviewed Darius at Rikers Island where he is currently incarcerated. The segment featured several clips from OFF THE RAILS. NBC aired a second story on Darius later in the evening, going deeper into his case.
NBC’s Sarah Wallace Interviews Darius at Rikers Island
ABC 7 New York has posted an in-depth TV news report about Darius’ latest arrest. The segment features unused footage from OFF THE RAILS, including a Rikers Island jail interview from the summer of 2013. NBC 4, PIX 11, CBS 2, and NY1 also broadcast stories about Darius’ last arrest.