Many of the season's biggest films are arriving at festivals with distribution, but there's still plenty for distributors to choose from.
This year’s fall festival season features a tapestry of in-person, virtual, and hybrid programming from Telluride, Venice, TIFF, and NYFF. One throughline: many of the most anticipated premieres — from “Dune” to “The Power of the Dog” — are arriving to festivals with distribution in hand.
Though the festivals have pared down the size of their lineups amid the pandemic, there’s still plenty for buyers to choose from, from discovery titles to those with bankable elements. Gastón Duprat and Mariano Cohn’s “Official Competition” features Antonio Banderas and Penélope Cruz in a rare appearance on screen together; it still has North American rights available ahead of its Venice premiere. In “Lakewood,” Phillip Noyce directs Naomi Watts as a mother racing to her child during an active-shooter incident, it premieres at TIFF. And “Beba,” a personal documentary from first-time feature director Rebeca Huntt, is catching early buzz as a potential TIFF breakout.
Distributors have already been busy scooping up titles that will screen in fall festivals after premiering at earlier festivals. Relativity Media nabbed Justine Bateman’s directorial debut “Violet,” which stars Olivia Munn and Justin Theroux, after its SXSW premiere. It’s also playing at TIFF, for example.
Below find a constantly updated list of acquisitions out of the fall festivals, beginning with world premieres acquired ahead of their debuts in the coming weeks, along with other recent acquisitions.
Title: “The Village Detective: a song cycle”
Festival: Telluride
Buyer: Kino Lorber
Bill Morrison’s latest meditation on cinema’s past begins with the discovery of a Soviet film in an Icelandic fisherman’s net, an incomplete print of a popular comedy starring beloved Russian actor Mihail Žarov, offering a portal into a history that has endured on celluloid.
Kino Lorber acquired the film, which premiered at International Film Festival Rotterdam, ahead of its Telluride debut. It will open the film at IFC Center on September 22 before expanding to cities nationwide.
Title: “Huda’s Salon”
Festival: TIFF
Buyer: IFC
Palestinian writer-director Hany Abu-Assad, who earned Oscar nominations for “Paradise Now” and “Omar,” is back with what is being billed as a feminist thriller that unfolds against the backdrop of the geopolitical conflict in the West Bank. It follows Reem (Maisa Abd Elhadi) who goes to Huda (Manal Awad) for a haircut and an attentive ear, only for the visit to backfire when Huda blackmails her.
IFC acquired North American rights to the film a month ahead of its TIFF premiere.
Title: “One Second”
Festival: TIFF
Buyer: Neon
Oscar-nominated Chinese director Zhang Yimou’s latest film is adapted from a novel about a man who escapes a labor camp for a chance to catch a glimpse of his daughter, set during China’s Cultural Revolution.
The film was set to premiere at the 2019 Berlin Film Festival, but was pulled at the last minute due to “technical reasons” that some speculated was actually a result of a lack of OK from Chinese censors. After reshoots, the movie was released in China last fall with a disappointing $10.6 million gross.
Neon acquired North American rights in July.
Title: “A Banquet”
Festival: TIFF
Buyer: IFC Midnight
Scottish filmmaker and visual artist Ruth Paxton’s feature debut stars Sienna Guillory (“Resident Evil”) as a widow who is radically tested when her teenage daughter (Jessica Alexander) insists that her body is no longer her own, but in service to a higher power. While her daughter refuses to eat while losing no weight, Guillory’s character is forced to confront the boundaries of her own beliefs.
IFC Midnight acquired North American rights to the movie back in December.
Title: “Belfast”
Festival: Telluride, TIFF
Buyer: Focus Features
Kenneth Branagh describes “Belfast” as his most personal film, one set against the tumult of the start of the Troubles in 1960s Ireland. It follows the childhood of a boy (Jude Hill), his parents (Jamie Dornan, Caitriona Balfe), and his grandparents (Judi Dench, Ciaran Hinds).
Focus acquired domestic rights to the film in December and plans to release it November 12. Universal will handle international.
Title: “The Starling”
Festival: TIFF
Buyer: Netflix
Ted Melfi directs Melissa McCarthy and Chris O’Dowd in a film about a married couple trying to rebuild their relationship after a tragedy. McCarthy’s character tries to heal by growing a beautiful garden in her backyard, only to find herself attacked by a starling. She turns to an animal psychiatrist (Kevin Kline) who ends up making a larger impact on her life.
Netflix bought the film in April 2020 reportedly based on a script and sizzle reel for $20 million. The streamer will release the film in theaters on September 17 and on the platform September 24.
Title: “Wolf”
Festival: TIFF
Buyer: Focus
Writer-director Nathalie Biancheri’s film stars Lily-Rose Depp and George MacKay, who plays a man suffering from species dysphoria — he believes he is a wolf trapped in a human body.
Focus acquired rights to the film after production wrapped in October 2020. Universal will handle international. It’s set to hit theaters December 3.
Title: “The Electrical Life of Louis Wain”
Festival: Telluride, TIFF
Buyer: Amazon
“Flowers” filmmaker Will Sharpe helms this biographical drama about Louis Wain (played by Benedict Cumberbatch), an eccentric English victorian painter known for his surreal works featuring large-eyed cats. The ensemble cast also includes Claire Foy, Andrea Riseborough, Toby Jones, Taika Waititi, and Sharon Rooney.
Amazon pre-bought U.S. rights to the project several years ago. It’s set to be released in theaters October 22 before its Prime Video bow on November 5.
