Freestyle Releasing

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 3, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Freestyle Digital Media, the digital film distribution division of Byron Allen's Allen Media Group, has acquired North American DVD and VOD rights to the family-oriented Syrian refugee tale LAMYA'S POEM. LAMYA'S POEM premiered at last year's prestigious Annecy International Animation Film Festival, and went on to play at festivals in Vancouver, Zurich and Prague. LAMYA'S POEM will be available on DVD and to rent/own on North American digital HD internet, cable, and satellite platforms on February 21, 2023 through Freestyle Digital Media, and is currently one of 2022's 27 animated feature films eligible for an Academy Award nomination for "Best Animated Feature."LAMYA'S POEM tells the story of a 12-year-old Syrian refugee girl named Lamya who tumbles into a dream world where she meets a poet and must help him write the poem that will save her life. When Lamya flees the violence of her country, she is given a book of poetry by the famous 13th-century poet, Rumi. As the perils of Lamya's journey mount, the book becomes a magical gateway where she meets Rumi when he was a boy and also a refugee fleeing the violence of his time. In a shared dreamworld, they battle the monsters that follow them from their real-world situations, and Lamya must help young Rumi find his calling and write the poem that 800 years later will save her life.Written and directed by Alex Kronemer, LAMYA'S POEM was produced by Alex Kronemer, Glenn James Brown, and Sam Kadi. The cast features Millie Davis as 'Lamya' – best known for her roles as Ms. O in the PBS Kids series ODD SQUAD, 'Summer' in the film WONDER, and 'Gemma Hendrix' in the series ORPHAN BLACK, Faran Tahir as 'Baha Walad' – best known for his roles as 'Raza' in IRON MAN and 'Captain Robau' in STAR TREK, and Mena Massoud as 'Rumi' – who plays Aladdin in Disney's live-action remake of Aladdin directed by Guy Ritchie and 'Tarek Kassar' in the series TOM CLANCY'S JACK RYAN. The animation studio is award-winning animation studio PIP Animation, based in Ontario, Canada. PIP Animation has been involved in numerous animated features and TV specials that reach worldwide audiences. THE CAT IN THE HAT, WANDERING WENDA, CAILLOU, CYBER CHASE, THROUGH THE WOODS, PIRATE'S PASSAGE, and the Netflix original series, THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY.

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 17, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Allen Media Group's African American-focused news, lifestyle, sports and entertainment platform theGrio (www.thegrio.com) will celebrate icons, leaders and legends at TheGrio Awards, a star-studded, black-tie event at the Beverly Hilton on Saturday, October 22, 2022 with co-hosts comedian Sheryl Underwood and Taye Diggs. The television event will be broadcast on Saturday, November 5, 2022 on broadcast television stations nationwide, theGrio Television Network and other Allen Media Group television and digital platforms.

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 20, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Byron Allen's Allen Media Group (AMG) divisions Entertainment Studios Networks, Inc. ("Entertainment Studios") and Weather Group, LLC ("Weather Group") won a significant legal victory in federal court on Friday, September 16, 2022. The AMG lawsuit initially filed on May 20, 2021 against McDonald's Corporation ("McDonald's") seeks $10 billion in damages for racial discrimination. According to the lawsuit, McDonald's intentionally discriminated against AMG divisions Entertainment Studios and Weather Group through a pattern of racial stereotyping and refusals to contract in violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, 42 U.S.C. § 1981, and the California Aruh Civil Rights Act, Cal. Civil Code § 51.5. On Friday, September 16, 2022, defendant McDonald's was denied a Motion to Dismiss by Judge Fernando M. Olguin of the United States District Court for the Central District of California. The case will now proceed to trial before a jury in May 2023. McDonald's is the world's leading global food service retailer with over 39,000 locations that generate over $100 billion in annual revenue. African Americans represent approximately 40 percent of McDonald's U.S. sales, with McDonald's taking billions of dollars each year from African American consumers. Per the lawsuit, of its approximately $1.6 billion annual advertising budget, McDonald's spends less than approximately $5 million each year on African American-owned media, and it has refused to advertise on Entertainment Studios networks or The Weather Channel since Allen acquired the network in 2018. Per the lawsuit, the McDonald's President and CEO Chris Kempczinski makes approximately $11 million per year, which is more than double what McDonald's spends per year on ALL of Black-owned media combined.

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 11, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Byron Allen's Allen Media Group (AMG) proudly announces the elevation of Christopher Malone to the position of Chief Financial Officer. Malone was initially brought to AMG in June as Executive Vice President and Head of Corporate Development, and will now assume the Chief Financial Officer title -- a position recently held on an interim basis by Bill Higgs, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of AMG's Weather Group division. A sixteen-year veteran executive with the company, Higgs will continue as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of AMG's Weather Group. In his newly-elevated position, Malone will continue to help lead AMG senior management in M&A efforts and other corporate strategic initiatives encompassing capital markets, private equity, and credit. Malone will remain based at the AMG headquarters in Los Angeles.