Maya Entertainment and Blockbuster(R) Team Up to Advance Latino Films With Film Festival...

Maya Entertainment and Blockbuster(R) Team Up to Advance Latino Films With
Film Festival & Screenwriting Competition

LOS ANGELES, March 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Maya Entertainment, the Latino-owned
film entertainment company that brought "How the Garcia Girls Spent Their
Summer" to the big screen, is teaming up with Blockbuster Inc., a leading
global provider of in-home movie and game entertainment, to support the
growing Latino filmmaking industry in the U.S. and spotlight quality examples
of its work.

Together, the companies are presenting two programs. The first is Maya
Independent sponsored by BLOCKBUSTER(R), a 10-city film festival featuring
internationally acclaimed films, actors and filmmakers. The second is Project
Goldenlight, a national screenwriting competition.

"We recognize the growing Hispanic marketplace and the massive opportunity to
further capture those consumers with the launch of these projects," commented
Keith Leopard, director of film content for Blockbuster. "Maya is a great
company for us to work with to promote the Latino film category and further
Blockbuster's focus on delivering diverse entertainment to a broad consumer
base."

Maya Independent sponsored by BLOCKBUSTER(R) will take Latino-themed films and
exhibit them theatrically as part of a mid-year, 10-city tour, including at
theaters owned and operated by Maya's sister company Maya Cinemas. Following
the theatrical tour, the films will be available for rental exclusively at
BLOCKBUSTER stores beginning with Hispanic Heritage Month in September 2009.

"We are excited to team up with Blockbuster to bring quality films to general
audiences in both a theatrical and video platform," said Victor Elizalde, head
of home video for Maya Entertainment.

The film program will include both domestically produced and internationally
acclaimed films never before distributed in North America. Films being
considered for inclusion feature high-profile Latino actors as well as Latino
filmmakers and themes. The official list of entries will be announced shortly.

"Historically these films might not have been released theatrically and as a
result not be seen in the format for which they were created," added Jose
Martinez, Jr., executive VP of Maya Entertainment who oversees acquisitions.
"We are happy to offer this unique opportunity to filmmakers who want to
showcase their work and to afford the U.S. audience an opportunity to enjoy
high-quality films."

Project Goldenlight, the second facet of the relationship, is a screenwriting
competition in which esteemed industry experts will select an original
screenplay from a pool of contestants to be developed by Martinez, who also
manages the development team at Maya. Depending on the output of the project,
the final product will be released theatrically and then have an exclusive
rental window at participating BLOCKBUSTER stores.

Industry experts who will participate in the Project Goldenlight selection
process include Moctesuma Esparza, film producer and CEO of Maya
Entertainment; Alexis Garcia of Endeavor Talent Agency; Keith Leopard of
Blockbuster Inc.; El Mayimbe, Story Analyst & Script Reviewer at
LatinoReview.com; Hernany Perla, Director of Development at Lionsgate; and
Roberto Orci television producer ("Fringe," "Eagle Eye") and screenwriter
("Transformers," "Star Trek").

The Project Goldenlight competition is scheduled to launch in the spring
through www.LatinoReview.com in association with The National Association of
Latino Independent Producers ("NALIP") Producer's Academy.

About Maya Entertainment
Maya Entertainment, headed by award winning producer Moctesuma Esparza and
co-chaired by Jeff Valdez, is the only Latino owned and managed filmed
entertainment company specifically focused on the growing U.S. Latino
film-going audience. Maya Entertainment is the sister company of Maya Cinemas
North America, Inc. a movie theater exhibition company featuring
state-of-the-art multiplex cinemas with a site in Salinas, CA and new sites
soon to be opened in Bakersfield, CA, San Bernardino, Fresno, CA, Santa Fe,
NM, Chicago, IL, San Antonio, TX, Houston, TX, New York and more. For more
info go to: www.maya-entertainment.com.

About Blockbuster
Blockbuster Inc. (NYSE: BBI, BBI.B) is a leading global provider of in-home
movie and game entertainment, with more than 7,500 stores throughout the
Americas, Europe, Asia and Australia. The Company may be accessed worldwide
at www.blockbuster.com.

SOURCE Maya Entertainment

Luz Maria Castellanos of LMC Media for Maya Entertainment, +1-323-924-2835,
lmc@lmcmediaconsulting.com; or Tami Cannizzaro of Blockbuster Inc.,
+1-214-854-3190