Vanessa Kirby & Lauren Dark’s Aluna Entertainment Board Swiss Oscar Entry ‘Thunder’ As Exec Producers

EXCLUSIVE: Vanessa Kirby and Lauren Dark have come aboard as exec producers for Swiss Oscar entry Thunder from writer-director Carmen Jacquier. Kirby & Dark’s Aluna Entertainment will back the awards push for the film in the race for Best International Feature.

Set in 1900, Thunder stars Lilith Grasmug as 17-year-old Elisabeth, who is summoned home to her mountain village following the sudden death of her older sister. After five years in a convent, Elisabeth returns to help her family’s farm, but finds herself stifled by the suffocating rules of the village and the silence around her sister’s death – prompting her to fight for her right to experience life and love in rebellion against the community’s strict expectations.

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“From the moment we saw Thunder at the Marrakech Film Festival we were blown away by Carmen’s astonishing debut, which marks the arrival of an exciting new voice in cinema,” said Kirby and Dark. “Carmen’s filmmaking is both daring and lyrical and we couldn’t be prouder to champion her as a profound new talent.”

Jaquier said: “I have admired Vanessa Kirby for a long time and am truly delighted that she and Lauren Dark have joined to support Thunder. The goal with this film is to inspire a more just world: a world where women are free from violence and grant themselves the right to experience their bodies and their spirituality in any way they choose. To have Vanessa and Lauren join me in this mission is empowering.”

Thunder made its world premiere in the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival, European premiere in San Sebastián, and went on to prize-winning runs in Zurich, Rome, Thessaloniki, and more, winning over a dozen awards. Jaquier was presented with Women in Motion’s Emerging Talent Award at this year’s Cannes Film Festival following Thunder’s two Swiss Film Prize wins.

Dekanalog is distributing Thunder in the U.S., where it opened New York’s IFC Center on October 25 and will expand to Los Angeles on November 10. Written and directed by Jaquier, Thunder was produced by Close Up Films’ Flavia Zanon & Joëlle Bertossa.

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