Hollywood’s Master Storytellers™, the long-running film series that showcases the most celebrated and successful filmmakers in the motion picture industry, moves to Mann Theatres’ world famous Grauman’s Chinese Theatres complex at Hollywood & Highland on February 16, with a special presentation of Steven Spielberg’s 2005 film, War of the Worlds, it was announced by Peter Dobson, CEO of Mann Theatres, and Gordon Meyer, the creator, host and one of the executive producers of the influential series.

Hollywood’s Master Storytellers™ features conversations in front of a live audience with some Hollywood’s most talented artists, including George Clooney, James Cameron, Drew Barrymore and Oliver Stone to name just a few of the celebrated people who have appeared before Hollywood’s Master Storytellers™ audiences since the series debuted in January, 2003.

“Our relationship with Mann began when we hosted the official 25th Anniversary of the movie The Blues Brothers, in association with Universal Studios and National CineMedia,” explains Nadine Hamdan, head of marketing for Hollywood’s Master Storytellers Entertainment and one of the executive producers of the series along with Meyer and HMS Entertainment partner John Culton. “We had such a fabulous experience with Mann’s executives and the staff and management of the Chinese, that when the opportunity came for us to make Mann’s Chinese as our regular home, we happily made the move.”

“It’s especially satisfying for me to bring Hollywood’s Master Storytellers™ to the Chinese and Hollywood & Highland, both for personal reasons and as a film buff,” adds Meyer. “My first job out of college was as the assistant manager of Grauman’s and I have many fond memories of working there. There’s also almost 80 years of motion picture history that this complex has been a part of. And with the rebirth of Hollywood, including having the Academy Awards ® right next door at the Kodak Theatre and millions of visitors coming from around the world, the Hollywood & Highland complex has become the living symbol of Hollywood,” adds Meyer. “So it’s only right that a series dedicated to showcasing Hollywood’s finest talents have its home in the very heart of Hollywood.”

For Mann CEO Peter Dobson, it was a perfect fit. “Tourists from all over the world come to Hollywood to see red carpet events, including the numerous premieres that we host at the Chinese; but they can only watch from a distance because these are invitation-only events. As the new home of Hollywood’s Master Storytellers™, we can give fans a true taste of Hollywood in a very meaningful and exciting way.”

While most Hollywood’s Master Storytellers™ presentations will be in the Chinese sixplex, located on the third level of the Hollywood & Highland complex, periodically the series will move next door to the 1200 seat Grauman’s Chinese Theatre for special high profile events. “Had we been at the Chinese at the time, because of intense demand, we would have presented our Empire Strikes Back and Back to the Future 20th Anniversary events at Grauman’s,” John Culton explains, using two of Hollywood’s Master Storytellers’™ most popular events to date as examples of the kind of high profile events audiences have to look forward to.

The War of the Worlds event on February 16 will feature the Oscar ® nominated visual effects team from Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), led by Dennis Muren who, with eight Academy Awards ® and a total of fourteen nominations, has won more Oscars ® than any artist living today. ILM’s effects teams were nominated for two of the three Visual Effects Oscars ® this year and have garnered including thirty five Oscar ® nominations and 14 wins.

Although this event is on a Thursday, future Hollywood’s Master Storytellers™ events will take place on the first, third and fifth Tuesdays of each month. Tickets for all Hollywood’s Master Storytellers™ programs at Mann’s Chinese are available at the Chinese Theatres’ box office and online at MovieTickets.com. Direct links to online ticket sales can also be found at www.HollywoodsMasterStorytellers.com , hosted by FilmStew.com.

Hollywood’s Master Storytellers™, which is open to the public, provides audiences with the opportunity to meet some of Hollywood’s best Storytellers, telling the always-fascinating “Great Stories Behind the Great Stories™” and is a production of Hollywood's Master Storytellers Entertainment. Since its launch in January 2003, Hollywood’s Master Storytellers™ has been host to such luminaries as Academy Award ® winning writer/director James Cameron, actor/producer Drew Barrymore, three-time Academy Award ® winning writer/director Oliver Stone, director Richard Donner, and actor/producer/director George Clooney. Hollywood’s Master Storytellers™ broadcasts select programs to motion picture theatres around the country via the nation’s leading exhibitors. More information is available at www.HollywoodsMasterStorytellers.com , hosted by FilmStew.com.