MURDER OR MASS SUICIDE?

FOUR-HOUR TELEVISION MINI SERIES INSPIRED BY TRAGIC SECT STORY

Released: June 19, 1996

(Regina, Saskatchewan Canada) Oscar Wilde aptly noted "Where there is sorrow, there is holy ground." His observation becomes reality in The Lost Daughter, an international co-production of Minds Eye Entertainment of Regina, Canada and Condor Films of Zurich, Switzerland.

The story is inspired by the activities of a Swiss-Canadian religious sect, which believes that personal growth can only be found in death - the ultimate sacrifice of its followers. In sect compounds in the countryside of Switzerland and Quebec, more than 50 members of a worldwide cult are found dead; among them, women and children, deathly quiet, awaiting their absolution in ceremonial robes, desperately clutching the symbolic crosses of their leader.

In The Lost Daughter, the story is as macabre. At the death count, the cult leader and his lover, the daughter of a wealthy Canadian businessman, are missing. When the girl's father searches for her, he discovers a twisted tale of the cult's secret bank accounts, illegal arms dealing and strange sex rituals. And in his quest, he unearths the truth - about the sect, its leader, his cherished daughter, and ultimately, about himself.

The Lost Daughter brings together two friends - Kevin DeWalt of Mind's Eye and Condor's Peter-Christian Fueter, members of IQ - International Quorum, a worldwide organization of high-calibre film industry professionals. The two men embody the vision of IQ, to provide a forum for international film collaboration.

With a budget of $7.2 million, the 2 X 96 minute movie of the week will utilize the skills of an international cast and crew while filming in Zurich, Montreal and Regina. The melding of these two production companies will result in 5 weeks of shooting in Switzerland and 6 weeks filming in Montreal and Regina.

The four hour mini-series is directed by French-Canadian Roger Cardinal whose credits include: the feature film Malarek and the drama series Rene Levesque. The story is written by Peter Palliser of London, England, whose screenplays have been filmed around the world. He is best known for his dramas - the Yorkshire TV Series Circle of Deceit, In the Name of the Queen, a five-part mini series and the feature film Museum Street.

Minds Eye Entertainment credits include the BBC/CBC movie Lyddie; On My Mind, a series for pre-teens; the action-thriller DECOY, Starring Peter Weller (Robocop) and Robert Patrick (Terminator 2); the critically-acclaimed TV drama Eli's Lesson with Academy-award winner Jack Palance (City Slickers), winner of 15 national and international awards.

DeWalt says, "With what's happening in the world as of late in such places as Oklahoma City and Yokohama, Japan, dramatizing the whole issue of fanaticism and religious sects is very timely. It's tragic really, for all involved, yet we must develop some sort of understanding of how this kind of thing happens."

Condor Films is the Academy-award winning producer of Journey of Hope (Best Foreign Film 1991). The company is active across the whole spectrum of film and video production, nationally and internationally. Condor has produced more than fourteen feature length films, 23 TV movies and series, which include: the 13-part series, Eurocops, distributed world-wide by ABC; for Germany's RTL and SAT.1 5 Studen Angst Geiseldrama im Kindergarten; the tv series Alpine Academy, and; Tobias, Switzerland's first television sitcom.

About the project, Fueter says, "It is truly a universal story about a father and daughter that transcends international borders."

Partners in the financing of The Lost Daughter are: SaskFILM, SAT.1 Television Network (Germany), Westcom TV Group Ltd - WIC/Western International Communications (Canada), Allarcom Television Limited (Superchannel), Evergreen Releasing Ltd. (Toronto), Telefilm Canada, and The Cable Production Fund.

The Lost Daughter will target a national and international adult audience. THIS IS A FICTIONAL STORY. WHILE IT IS INSPIRED BY ACTUAL INCIDENTS, IT IS NOT A PORTRAYAL OF ANY ACTUAL PERSONS OR EVENTS.