EXCLUSIVE: Coda producer Pathé has concluded a raft of sales on its Cannes slate including for starry French drama Masquerade, Directors’ Fortnight entry Paris Memories and Penelope Cruz title L’Immensita.
Nicolas Bedos’ Out of Competition drama Masquerade (Mascarade), starring Pierre Niney, Isabelle Adjani, Francois Cluzet, Emmanuelle Devos and Marine Vacth, was acquired in Europe by Koch Media (Germany and Austria), Lucky Red (Italy), Rosebud.21 (Greece), Cinemundo (Portugal), M2 Films (Poland), Paradiso Films (Benelux, with Alternative Films providing a theatrical release in Belgium), Bir Film (Turkey), Pathé Films AG (Switzerland), and Sun Diamond (Spain).
Sun Diamond also picked up South and Central America, while Canada sold to MK2, Taiwan to Creative Century, and Australia/New Zealand to Madman, rounded off by Skeye who will service airlines.
The film follows Adrien, a dancer whose career was shattered by a motorcycle accident. Adrien squanders his youth in idleness until he meets Margot, who lives off scams.
Alice Winocour’s French-language drama Paris Memories (Revoir Paris), screening in Directors’ Fortnight, stars Virginie Efira and Benoît Magimel as victims of a terror attack who must try to find a way back to happiness.
Pathé sold the movie to Atlantic Film for Scandinavia, Bir Film of Turkey, Outsider Films for Portugal, Paradiso for Benelux, MCF for Ex-Yugoslavia, and Pathé Films AG for Switzerland.
L’immensita Pathé Penélope Cruz headlines Emanuele Crialese’s L’Immensitá which follows the Borghetti family’s trials of moving into a new neighborhood in 1970s Rome. Cannes saw the film acquired by Lucky Dogs for Scandinavia, Israel’s Forum Films, Turkey’s Bir Film, Tanweer Alliances S.A. of Greece, Poland’s Best Film, MCF for Ex-Yugoslavia, and Pathé Films AG for Switzerland.
Driving Madeleine (Une Belle Course), directed by Christian Carion, has also proven popular, selling to European distributors A Contracorriente Films (Spain), Koch Media (Italy), Studiocanal (Germany), and Paradiso Films (The Netherlands), as well as California Filmes (Latin America), Nachshon Films (Israel), Pathé Films AG (Switzerland), and Shochiku Films (Japan).
Dany Boon, Line Renaud, and Alice Isaaz star in the story of 92-year-old Madeleine (Renaud) who calls a taxi to take her to the retirement home where she will be living, and is picked up by a disillusioned driver with a soft heart (Boon). As the pair traverse the streets of Paris, her extraordinary past is revealed.
There are discussions ongoing across the slate, including for Limonov: The Ballad Of Eddie, Kirill Serebrennikov’s drama starring Ben Whishaw as Russian radical Eduard Limonov.
As revealed earlier this week, French giant Pathé has also closed multiple deals on two-part adventure film The Three Musketeers. Pacts included Latin America, Scandinavia, Korea and Eastern Europe. Constantin Film (Germany), DeAPlaneta (Spain), and Notorious Pictures (Italy) were previously aboard.
