On February 23, 2003, an op-ed article about director Roman Polanski’s U.S. fugitive status appeared in the Los Angeles Times. What was most remarkable about it was not the fact that it was written by Samantha Geimer, the now 45-year-old woman whose sexual encounter as a 13-year-old with the Polish-born filmmaker triggered 1977 rape charges and a high-profile Los Angeles indictment. No, it was the fact that Geimer, the perceived “victim” of Polanski’s actions, was making the case that his Oscar-nominated film The Pianist should be judged on its own merits. Two days later, Geimer followed up the article with an appearance on Larry King Live. “I got over it [the sexual encounter] a long time ago,” she told King. “I wasn’t prepared to carry a lot of bad feelings with me and further damage my life and continue the trauma of it.” Among those watching Geimer’s appearance on the program with attorney Lawrence Silver was documentary filmmaker Marina Zenovich, also now 45. That was ultimately the spark that led to Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired, which, after screening to acclaim at this year’s Sundance and Cannes film festivals, premieres tonight on HBO and later hits theaters courtesy of ThinkFilm. For the full feature interview with Zenovich, from FilmStew, click here.