As we head into the final quarter of the year, it’s time to check in on what’s sold from the fall festival circuit. Blake & Wang P.A. entertainment lawyer, Brandon Blake, has the summary so far.
Acquired During Festivals
Among films that actually sold during the festival itself, we have Honeymoon/Funeral, which played in the market at the Toronto International Film Festival, and will be distributed by Black Bear. TIFF has actually seen several in-festival acquisitions this year, with TIFF Centerpiece entry, The Surgeon, going to Sony Pictures, even though we’ve seen a decrease in majors buying at festivals recently.
River may be one of the biggest acquisitions this year, going to Universal Pictures and Blumhouse Atomic Monster from the TIFF Midnight Madness for what’s estimated to be more than $10M after igniting a small bidding war. On the documentary side, Rapinoe, TIFF’s opening night documentary, landed at HBO Documentary Films.
The Before and After
A Day in the Life of Jo: Chapter Phaedra went to 1-2 Special from Venice Orizzonti, although it was actually picked up after its North American premiere at NYFF, if we want to be technical.
Then there’s Babies, which will be distributed by Roadside Attractions and Vertical, and which played in the TIFF Gala Presentation, although it was up for sale nearly a year beforehand. Elsinore, which played at both Telluride and TIFF, ultimately went to Focus Features, and may even see release late this year.
Last, but certainly not least, Ink, a Netflix acquisition that played in competition in Venice, was also snapped up before the festival proper, where it played on the opening night.
So far, it’s a small list, but it’s always good to see festival titles find their final distribution. Let’s hope there will be even more to report in the coming weeks.
