Yesterday, I attended the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences screening and Q&A session with the cast and crew of Shawshank Redemption. When I initially found out that I was invited to the film's 20th-anniversary event I was beyond ecstatic because Shawshank is one of my all time favorites. Discussions ranged from how often people mispronounced—at times, even borderline mistitled—the film to how Robbins so valiantly endured going to "Cow Country'' (if you want to know the context, search up the video on YouTube!) all for the sake of this incredible piece of cinematic art! As the forum went on and on, even just after watching it again for the millionth time, I felt nothing but pure admiration for the film and these incredible artists behind it!
Of course, right after the Q&A, they had a photo-op with everyone while we were preparing to have our posters autographed. Once the photo op was done, everyone now had the chance to meet the cast and crew themselves. Let me tell you—I was a nervous wreck! "Shawshank Redemption" was the first-ever movie I fell in love with. It was also the first I saw alone when I turned 18 and became a legal adult. So when I finally got up to see Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins in the flesh, I swear, I grinned like a complete idiot!
Even though these great stars and artists were standing, probably exhausted after having talked for hours about the movie, they were still all smiles while signing the posters. They really are great guys. Or, at least, great at making it seem that they are.
They didn't talk much. Robbins was the nicest of them all. He reeked of the "good guy leading man vibes" even though he's far from the matinee idol that he was in the movie. Freeman, on the other hand, was a lot quieter. But boy, getting to hear that iconic voice in person is truly something else! He really does sound like God! Or at least, I hope that's what God really sounds like! Though I have to admit, I was most excited to see Frank Darabont! This man is an absolute legend! An underrated one at that! And the fact that I was able to get up close and personal with him, even for a short while, still gives me goosebumps!
Heaven knows when these three great men, as well as the other fantastic cast & crew who worked in "Shawshank Redemption," will reunite again. I'm just lucky I was able to be there when it happened! But here's to hoping it won't take another 20 years! I'm still holding out hope for a sequel! Signing out from Hollywood...
Please note: Our inventory is limited as we may have only received a few posters in total. Most of our items are obtained from film premieres, studios, and from autographed hounds such as the one in the story above.
