Billy Corben’s New Doc ‘Limelight’ Picked Up By Magnolia

Just days after Magnolia Pictures inked a deal to release Jiro Dreams Of Sushi, which is also making its world premier at the Tribeca Film Fest this week, they have also picked up Limelight, a new documentary by Billy Corben that tells the story of the former New York City club kingpin, Peter Gatien. Magnolia purchased the world wide release rights from rakontur, a small media studio owned by Corben and his partner, Alfred Spellman. They aim to have the film out in theaters by August.

Gist: Peter Gatien started in the early 1970s as a jean retail store entrepreneur in his hometown of Cornwall, Ontario, and grew into one of the most prominent nightclub moguls in the US, owning not only The Limelight, but Club USA, Tunnel and Palladium as well, all of which were home to countless illegal activities. Gatien was eventually shut down and deported back to Canada for tax evasion, but his clubs changed the NYC music and clubbing scene while the doors were open during the 90s.

Worth Noting: Corben directed, produced and edited the excellent doc, Cocaine Cowboys, which is one of my favorites from the past few years, as well as the ESPN 30 for 30 series doc, The U. He isn’t producing or editing this one, but I’m willing to bet he’s done as much research, and put forth as much attention to detail on Limelight as those two films. The film also has some family ties as it’s being produced by Peter Gatien’s daughter, Jen, (American New Wave 25 Class of 2010) who has For Ellen, The Girl is in Trouble and Jack and Diane coming out this year.

Do We Care?: Corben is a Miami man. All of his past and currently in production films are on subjects based in Miami, whether they be about drug runners, college football teams, or suburban ghettos. Though Gatien’s first incarnation of The Limelight was in Hollywood, Florida, this is Corben’s first film to really dabble outside the boarders of the sunshine state, and I’m curious to see what dirty little secrets of the underworld he’s managed to unearth this time.