Yahoo News Mohammad Rasoulof’s Cannes Prizewinner ‘The Seed of the Sacred Fig’ Lures International Buyers, Including for the U.K., Japan and Germany (EXCLUSIVE)
Rolling off the Cannes Film Festival where it won several awards, Mohammad Rasoulof’s “The Seed of The Sacred Fig” has been acquired by a flurry of high profile distributors in major international territories.
Films Boutique, which represents the critically acclaimed political drama globally, has sold it to Lionsgate UK for the U.K. and Ireland; Gaga Corporation in Japan; Alamode in Germany and Austria; as well as Sharmill Films in Australia and New Zealand; Triart Film in Sweden.
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The rest of the deals signed by Films Boutique off of Cannes include Camera Film in Denmark, Trigon in Switzerland, M2 Films in Poland, Green Narae in South Korea, New Cinema in Israel, Impacto Cine in Latin America, Film Europe in Czech Republic and Slovakia, Edko Films in Hong Kong, Cinemanse in Finland, Kino Pavasaris in the Baltic territories, MCF Megacom in Former Yugoslavia, Bad Unicorn in Romania, Beta Film in Bulgaria and Anticipate Pictures in Singapore.
Rasoulof attended the Cannes Film Festival at great personal risk, fleeing an eight-year prison sentence for making “The Seed of the Sacred Fig.” The film, which was acquired by Neon for North American distribution ahead of its world premiere, explores the country’s recent Women, Life, Freedom movement through a middle-class family whose two daughters question their father’s role in the regime. Along with a Special Prize from the jury, the movie won the Fipresci prize, the Prize of the Ecumenical Jury, the Prize of the French independent cinemas (“Prix des cinémas Art et Essai”), the François Chalais Prize.
Besides the North American deal closed with Neon, “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” was picked up for France with Pyramide, Italy with BiM Distribuzione and Lucky Red, Benelux with September Film Distribution, Spain with Bteam Pictures, Greece with Ama, Hungary with Cirko Film, Norway with Selmer Media, Portugal with Leopardo Filmes, Taiwan with Hooray Films and Turkey with Bir Film.
Films Boutique is currently in negotiations with worldwide Airlines rights, the Indian sub-continent, the MENA region, Indonesia and Thailand.
“The reactions have been overwhelming following the Cannes premiere. It is just the start of the journey as the film will now travel everywhere on the planet with the finest distributors and festivals,” said Jean-Christophe Simon, Films Boutique CEO who also co-produced through the banner Parallel 45.
Julien Razafindranaly, head of sales at Films Boutique,” said “rarely a film leaves such an imprint on both a market and a festival and the reactions we have received from the press, the audience, the festival programmers, and international distributors are nothing short of amazing.”
“We are particularly grateful for the strong commitments we received from such established international distribution companies, as we now can rest assured that the career of the film will benefit from the enthusiasm, the experience and the resources of some of the most influential film companies all over the planet,” Razafindranaly continued.
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