Middlebury, Vermont - April 22, 2010
State financial regulators have upgraded their complaint against an Addison filmmaker to now include fraud.
Mac Parker has collected $10 million over the past decade for a movie he's making called "The Birth of Innocence." The state has argued he violated law by selling unregistered securities to more than 600 people to finance the film. In court papers filed Tuesday, regulators allege Parker committed fraud by failing to disclose key information, including his use of investor funds for personal expenses.
Some people who funded his movie have said the funds they gave were personal loans, not investments, and therefore are not regulated by the state; and Parker was free to use the money as he saw fit.
Parker's attorney, Wanda Otero-Ziegler, tells WCAX News she is surprised by the filing and does not believe fraud claims are viable. Parker has begun settlement discussions with the state.
In an open letter to the state, Parker wrote, "Birth of Innocence is my most ambitious project yet, and my hope is that it too will reflect beautifully on our state and our people. How ironic that an agency of this state I love so much is now spending taxpayers' money trying to prove that I'm a bad guy."
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Vt. moviemaker's film financing investigated
Mac Parker responds to legal action
Storyteller investigated for violating state investment law
