American Vantage Media's Film Distribution Units in Market with Four Acclaimed Titles; Theatrical and DVD Releases Target Different Markets.

SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- American Vantage Media Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of American Vantage Cos. (NASDAQ: AVCS), reports today impressive numbers from its four separate films in release in different markets. Wellspring, the company's independent film distributor, has "Tarnation" and "Red Lights" in theatrical release. AVM's documentary distributor, non-fiction films, has George Butler's "Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry" in home video release and "In the Face of Evil: Reagan's War in Word & Deed" in limited theatrical release.

Jonathan Caoutte's "Tarnation" is one of the most acclaimed independent films of the year. Receiving across-the-board rave reviews, "Tarnation" was hailed by A. O. Scott in the New York Times as "An amazing debut. No one has ever made anything like it." Lou Lumenick said in the New York Post that "Tarnation" "is an unqualified masterpiece." Roger Ebert in the Chicago Sun-Times remarked about "Tarnation," "A triumph! A film of remarkable power. One of the best documentaries of recent years."

Originally made for $218 and edited on an Apple iMac, "Tarnation" marks the debut of Caouette. The film documents his life over 20 years and focuses on his relationship with his mother who was in and out of mental institutions. The film is executive produced by Gus Van Sant and John Cameron Mitchell. It screened at the Sundance, Cannes, Los Angeles, Toronto and New York Film Festivals before kicking off its run at New York City's Film Forum where it has grossed approximately $20,000 since last Wednesday. The film will expand to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, Detroit and Chicago this weekend.

"Red Lights" has become an unexpected hit grossing $460,000 since its opening in New York City on Sept. 3. The film will go into its seventh week in Manhattan and sixth week in Los Angeles this weekend and is also playing in other top markets throughout the country. Adapted from a Georges Simenon novel, "Red Lights" tells the story of a married couple who are separated on the road after a quarrel. The two both come in contact with an escaped killer who changes their fate. Stephen Holden of The New York Times called the film, "A brilliant, sinister French thriller." Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times hailed the film as "A taut, atmospheric, impeccably made psychological thriller. A combination of 'The Lost Weekend' and 'The Lady Vanishes.'" Peter Travers of Rolling Stone calls the film, "A red-hot psychological thriller. Pins you to your seat." The film is currently expanding in the top 20 markets and will be on screen through the end of the year.

Ryan Werner, Wellspring's head of theatrical, said, "My colleague Marie Therese Guirgis and I have spent the last several weeks working on building a formidable release slate mixing renowned international filmmakers like Jean-Luc Godard and emerging filmmakers like Jonathan Caouette ('Tarnation') and Cedric Kahn ('Red Lights'). We are happy to see these films connecting with filmmakers and audiences. We are looking to make a few more major announcements in the coming days."

AVM's prestigious documentary label, non-fiction films, will release "Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry" on DVD on Oct. 19, three weeks after ThinkFilm's 165 print national rollout on Oct. 1. Reviews have been extremely favorable across the board; Ebert and Roeper gave the film "Two Thumbs Up!" Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly raved, "Eye-opening and potent ... Grade A" and Michael Wilmington called the film "essential viewing" in the Chicago Tribune. "Going Upriver" was an official selection at the 2004 Toronto Film Festival. In the initial release, DVD sales have been brisk both to individual consumers ordering through a direct response Web site and retailers such as amazon.com, Musicland and Netflix. The film is currently No. 59 on amazon.com's DVD sales ranking and is No. 10 as an early adopter product.

"In the Face of Evil" has grossed nearly $80,000 on 14 screens located principally in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex region. The feature documentary has been well received in the politically conservative community. "The must-see film of the year," said Maggie Gallagher in the New York Post. "A masterpiece," said Joseph Farah, publisher of WorldNet.Daily, on his syndicated radio talk show. "Brilliant," said Rush Limbaugh. "4-out-of-5 stars," said ABC's affiliate "Good Morning Texas" television show.

The film's Web site (www.inthefaceofevil.com) has received more than 2.5 million hits in four weeks and has averaged over 175,000 hits per day over the past week. Approximately 100 individuals have signed up to sponsor group sales for church and youth groups to attend future screenings in theatres nationwide.

David Schulte, vice chairman of AVM, said, "The initial success of these films confirms AVM's business model of marketing our films to specific demographics. We are utilizing available distribution avenues to create positive responses within appropriate targeted audiences. 'Tarnation' and 'Red Lights' are both critically acclaimed, while 'Going Upriver' and 'In the Face of Evil' have each found loyal viewers who are strengthening and reinforcing our promotional activities. We hope to capitalize on the initial responses received by these four films with increasing theater receipts and DVD sales, as well as create good will and a welcome environment for our future production and distribution projects."

Certain statements in this press release are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such forward-looking statements may be identified by words such as "anticipates," "believes," "can," "continue," "could," "estimates," "expects," "intends," "may,"

"plans," "potential," "predicts," "should," or "will" or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. Such statements and all phases of American Vantage Cos.' operations are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, including overall economic conditions and other factors and uncertainties as are identified in American Vantage Cos.' Form 10-KSB for the year ended July 31, 2003, Form 10-QSB for the quarter ended Oct. 31, 2003, transition Form 10-QSB for the two months ended Dec. 31, 2003, Forms 8-K and Forms 8-K/As (Dates of Forms 8-K and 8-K/A Reports: Dec. 31, 2003, Feb. 4, 2004 and June 2, 2004). Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. American Vantage Cos.' actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements may be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. The company undertakes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements in this press release.