casTHE CONTEMPORARY EDGE-OF-YOUR-SEAT THRILLER
THE SKELETON KEY
Casts its Spell on DVD NOVEMBER 15, 2005
from Universal Studios Home Entertainment

Sad
songs may say so much, but it’s scary stories that really get our blood
pumping. Next Tuesday, November 15th, sees the DVD release of The Skeleton Key, a supernatural thriller starring Kate Hudson that weaves a tale of terror and suspense!

When
Caroline Ellis (Hudson) takes a job in Louisiana’s bayous, she unlocks
a deadly secret involving magic, conjure and sacrifice that pulls her
into a terrifying world of strange, frightening and unexplained
incidents. The key to escaping may lie in a decrepit attic, but if she
dares to believe in what she discovers, everything she fears will
become real! Filled with endless suspense and bone-chilling scares,
hold on for this terrific ride with "one of the best twists since The
Sixth Sense" (Melanie Moon, WB-TV)!


The Skeleton Key DVD opens a Pandora’s box of extra features, as it lifts the veil on some of the filmmakers’ supernatural secrets:
– Deleted Scenes with Commentary by Director Iain Softley

Behind the Locked Door – Making The Skeleton Key: A behind-the-scenes
making of The Skeleton Key that includes interviews with Director Iain
Softley, Kate Hudson, Peter Sarsgaard, and John Hurt.

– Exploring Voodoo/Hoodoo: Explore the symbols, chants, and history of hoodoo, and the religion of voodoo.
– Kate Hudson’s Ghost Story: Kate Hudson tells a chilling true ghost story from her past.
– Recipe & Ritual: Making the Perfect Gumbo!

Blues in the Bayou: Music Supervisor Sara Lord and Director Iain
Softley discuss the roots and history of bluegrass music and how its
spirituality adds suspense to the film.


Plantation Life: Learn the true history of Plantation Life through
interviews with plantation owners Stan and Irma Waguespack and Norman
Marmillion.


Casting The Skeleton Key: Through interviews with cast and filmmakers,
we discover why the actors chose to play these characters.

– John Hurt’s Story: John Hurt reads a disturbing excerpt from the book Voices from Slavery.
– A House Called Felicity: Through interviews with cast and crew, we discover how the film’s locations were chosen.
– Gena’s Love Spell: Gena Rowlands shows the viewer a voodoo spell that will create love and friendship.
– Audio Commentary with Director Iain Softley

csaUniversal
Studios Home Entertainment is teaming up with CHUD to offer a very cool
and very unique contest. One lucky winner is going to get:

– a 27” flat screen TV

– a DVD player

– and a ten pack of scary Universal DVDs

How
do you win? It’s not so simple this time – you’re going to have to
actually work for this one! Just as Kate Hudson shares her own personal
ghost story on The Skeleton Key’s
DVD bonus features, to be eligible to win our prize, you’ll need to
share an original scary ghost story of your own! And…I won’t be
deciding on the winner – that’ll be up for a vote by all CHUD readers!

What
are the restrictions on your ghost story? None, but remember that it’s
being voted on by readers, so keep in mind what will make people want
to read the whole thing and then vote for you.

Get writing! The
contest begins immediately and we will stop accepting entries on
November 22. We will have polls set up on our message board where
readers can vote on each day’s batch of stories. Then we’ll have a big
final vote with each day’s winners.

Send your story – in a Word Document only – along with your name and mailing address, to devin@chud.com with THE SKELETON KEY DVD in the subject.

1.
Eligibility: The Skeleton Key DVD Contest (the "Contest") is open only
to legal residents of the fifty (50) United States and the District of
Columbia who are at least thirteen (13) years old at the time of entry.
ENTRANTS WHO ARE UNDER 18 YEARS OF AGE MUST GET PERMISSION FROM THEIR
PARENTS OR LEGAL GUARDIANS TO ENTER THE CONTEST. Employees of
www.chud.com (the “Sponsor”) and Universal Studios (“Universal”) and
their parent and affiliate companies (collectively, the “Contest
Entities”) as well as the immediate family (spouse, parents, siblings
and children) and household members of each such employee are not
eligible. Subject to all applicable federal, state, and local laws and
regulations. Void where prohibited. Participation in this Contest
constitutes entrant’s full and unconditional agreement to abide by
these Official Rules and any and all of Sponsor and Administrator’s
decisions, which are final and binding in all respects. Winning a prize
is contingent upon fulfilling all requirements set forth herein.
2. Sponsor: CHUD.com – Cinematic Happenings Under Development 4915 Camberbridge Dr. Alpharetta, GA 30022.
3.
Timing: The Contest begins on November 9 at 12:00 am Eastern Standard
Time ("ET") and ends on November 23, 2005 at 11:50 p.m. ET (the
"Promotion Period"). For the purposes of this Contest, the 24 hours
between 12:00:00 a.m. ET to 11:59:59 p.m. ET constitute a "Day."
4.
How to Enter: Visit www.chud.com (the “Website”) and submit an original
ghost story (in Word Document format only) via email to devin@chud.com
during the Promotion Period. The Website’s clock will be the official
time keeper for this Contest. All requested information on the entry
form at the Website must be completed to enter and to be eligible to
win. Except as otherwise provided in these Official Rules, such
information will be used in accordance with the Website privacy policy.
Limit one entry per person and/or per e-mail address per Day.
5.
Grand Prize Drawing: The winner will be decided by a voting system
operated by the Website. The potential winner will be notified by mail,
email or phone. The potential winner will be required to sign and
return to Sponsor, within ten (10) days of the date notice or attempted
notice is sent, an affidavit of eligibility, and liability/publicity
release in order to claim his/her prize. If the winner is a minor in
his/her place of residence, the winner’s parent/legal guardian must
accept the prize on the minor’s behalf. If a potential winner cannot be
contacted, or fails to sign and return the affidavit of eligibility and
liability/publicity release within the required time period, potential
winner forfeits prize. Potential winner must continue to comply with
all terms and conditions of these Official Rules, and winning is
contingent upon fulfilling all requirements. In the event that a
potential winner is disqualified for any reason, Sponsor will award the
applicable prize to an alternate winner by random drawing from among
all remaining eligible entries. Use of any automated system to
participate or vote is prohibited and will result in disqualification.
In the event of a dispute as to the identity of an entrant, any on-line
entry will be deemed submitted by the authorized account holder of the
e-mail account from which it was sent, provided such account holder
must still meet the eligibility requirements for the Contest. The
authorized
cas
account holder shall be the natural person to whom the applicable email
address has been assigned by the Internet access provider, service
provider, or other online organization responsible for assigning e-mail
addresses for the domain associated with the submitted e-mail address.
A potential winner may be requested to provide the Sponsor with proof
that the potential winner is the authorized account holder of the
e-mail address associated with the winning entry. If a dispute cannot
be resolved to Sponsor’s satisfaction, the entry will be deemed
ineligible.
6. Release: By receipt of any prize, winner agrees to
release and hold harmless Sponsor, Administrator, Universal, and their
respective subsidiaries, affiliates, suppliers, distributors,
advertising/promotion agencies, and prize suppliers, and each of their
respective parent companies and each such company’s officers,
directors, employees and agents (collectively, the "Released Parties")
from and against any claim or cause of action, including, but not
limited to, personal injury, death, or damage to or loss of property,
arising out of participation in the Contest or receipt or use or misuse
of any prize.
7. Publicity: Except where prohibited, participation
in the Contest constitutes winner’s consent to Contest Entities’ and
their agents’ use of winner’s name, likeness, photograph, voice,
opinions and/or hometown and state for promotional purposes in any
media, worldwide, without further payment or consideration.
8.
General Conditions: Sponsor reserves the right to cancel, suspend
and/or modify the Contest, or any part of it, if any fraud, technical
failures or any other factor beyond Sponsor’s reasonable control
impairs the integrity or proper functioning of the Contest, as
determined by Sponsor in its sole discretion. Sponsor reserves the
right in its sole discretion to disqualify any individual it finds to
be tampering with the entry process or the operation of the Contest or
to be acting in violation of these Official Rules or in an
unsportsmanlike or disruptive manner. Any attempt by any person to
deliberately undermine the legitimate operation of the Contest may be a
violation of criminal and civil law, and, should such an attempt be
made, Sponsor reserves the right to seek damages from any such person
to the fullest extent permitted by law. Sponsor’s failure to enforce
any term of these Official Rules shall not constitute a waiver of that
provision. Any prize depicted in promotional packaging or otherwise in
connection with this Contest is for illustrative purposes only and may
not represent the actual prize that is awarded. In the event there is a
discrepancy or inconsistency between disclosures or other statements
contained in any Contest promotional materials and the terms and
conditions of these Official Rules, these Official Rules shall prevail
and govern. Details of prizes or parts thereof not specified herein are
at the sole discretion of Sponsor.
9. Limitations of Liability: By
participating in this Contest, entrants (and parent/legal guardian if
entrant is a minor) agree (A) that the he Released Parties are not
responsible for: (1) any incorrect or inaccurate information, whether
caused by entrants, printing errors or by any of the equipment or
programming associated with or utilized in the Contest; (2) technical
failures of any kind, including, but not limited to malfunctions,
interruptions, or disconnections in phone lines or network hardware or
software; (3) unauthorized human intervention in any part of the entry
process or the Contest; (4) technical or human error which may occur in
the administration of the Contest or the processing of entries; or (5)
any injury or damage to persons or property which may be caused,
directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, from entrant’s
participation in the Contest or receipt or use or misuse of any prize
and (B) that the Released Entities have not made any warranty,
representation or guarantee express or implied, in fact or in law, with
respect to any prize, including, without limitation, to such prize’s
quality or fitness for a particular purpose. If for any reason an
entrant’s entry is confirmed to have been erroneously deleted, lost, or
otherwise destroyed or corrupted, entrant’s sole remedy is another
entry in the Contest, provided that if it is not possible to award
another entry due to discontinuance of the Contest, or any part of it,
for any reason, Sponsor, at its discretion, may elect to hold a random
drawing from among all eligible entries received up to the date of
discontinuance for any or all of the prizes offered herein.
10.
Disputes: Except where prohibited, entrant agrees that: (1) any and all
disputes, claims and causes of action arising out of or connected with
this Contest or any prize awarded shall be resolved individually,
without resort to any form of class action; (2) any and all claims,
judgments and awards shall be limited to actual out-of-pocket costs
incurred, including costs associated with entering this Contest, but in
no event attorneys’ fees; and (3) under no circumstances will entrant
be permitted to obtain awards for, and entrant hereby waives all rights
to claim, indirect, punitive, incidental and consequential damages and
any other damages, other than for actual out-of-pocket expenses, and
any and all rights to have damages multiplied or otherwise increased.
All issues and questions concerning the construction, validity,
interpretation and enforceability of these Official Rules, or the
rights and obligations of the entrant and Sponsor in connection with
the Contest, shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with,
the laws of the State of Michigan, U.S.A. without giving effect to any
choice of law or conflict of law rules (whether of the State of
Michigan or any other jurisdiction), which would cause the application
of the laws of any jurisdiction other than the State of Michigan.
11.
Entrant’s Personal Information: Information collected from entrants
will not be sold to any Third Parties or used for sales purposes.
However, the name of the prize winner will be shared with Universal for
prize distribution purposes only unless entrant elects to opt-in and
permit Universal to use such information for other purposes in
accordance with its privacy policy.