26/05/2016 - CANNES 2016: German distributors acquired various titles and projects at the Film Market on the Croisette

French comedies were very much in demand by German distributors at the Film Market at Cannes. One of the most-wanted titles was the new French tragicomedy C’est la Vie by Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano (Untouchable [+see also:
film review
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film profile]), who this time take a look behind the scenes of a grand wedding. German distributor Universum acquired the German rights for this project from Gaumont. Meanwhile, independent distributor Arsenal Filmverleih snapped up the Directors’ Fortnight opener, Tour de France [+see also:
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interview: Rachid Djaïdani
film profile] by Rachid Djaïdani. The road movie stars Gérard Depardieu as a racist who goes on tour with a French-Arab rapper whom his son has sent him as a driver.

Alamode acquired the French comedy Roommates Wanted [+see also:
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film profile] by François Desagnat, about a lonely widower who starts to sublet his huge apartment in Paris, which gradually starts to fill up with all manner of interesting life forms. Meanwhile, Torsten Frehse, the CEO of Neue Visionen, opted to take Il a déjà tes yeux [+see also:
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film profile] by Lucien Jean-Baptiste, about a black couple who adopt a white baby. Furthermore, he picked up the documentary Wrong Elements [+see also:
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film profile] by Jonathan Littell, who interviewed child soldiers who were kidnapped in Uganda at the age of 12. 

Ahead of the competition screenings, Weltkino bought eagerly anticipated titles such as Paterson [+see also:
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film profile] by Jim Jarmusch, Personal Shopper [+see also:
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interview: Artemio Benki
interview: Olivier Assayas
film profile] by Olivier Assayas and the Grand Prix winner, It’s Only the End of the World [+see also:
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film profile] by Xavier Dolan. Gimme Danger, the Iggy Pop-focused music documentary by Jim Jarmusch, will be released by Studiocanal.

Ira von Gienanth, head of acquisitions and licensing at Prokino, did well to acquire the Palme d’Or winner, I, Daniel Blake [+see also:
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film profile] by Ken Loach. Further deals for the firm include the two-time award-winning marriage drama The Salesman [+see also:
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film profile] by Asghar Farhadi, as well as the Un Certain Regard entry The Dancer [+see also:
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film profile] by Stéphanie Di Giusto, about the Belle Époque dancer Loïe Fuller. Kamran Sardar Khan, head of distribution at Camino Filmverleih, was won over by the Belgian drama After Love [+see also:
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interview: Joachim Lafosse
film profile] by Joachim Lafosse, which stars Bérénice Bejo and Cédric Kahn.

While Andrea Arnold’s competition film American Honey [+see also:
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Q&A: Andrea Arnold
film profile] (which also won the Jury Prize at Cannes) will be released by UPI, the Toni Erdmann [+see also:
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Q&A: Maren Ade
film profile] distributor Christoph Ott acquired the romantic drama This Beautiful Fantastic by Simon Aboud (starring Tom Wilkinson) for NFP. Among the deals that Tiberius Film made at Cannes was one for the French comedy Ouvert la nuit by Edouard Baer, starring Audrey Tautou and the late Michel Galabru.

There is also a huge appetite for thrillers among the German distributors. Tiberius Film picked up the remake of the thriller The Lady in the Car with Glasses and a Gun [+see also:
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film profile], while Ascot Elite signed a pre-sale agreement for the French thriller The Last Step by Frédéric Petitjean, with Jean Reno as a hitman who wants to start a new life in Northern Canada. Another hitman plays a key role in the black comedy Small Town Killers [+see also:
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film profile] by Ole Bornedal, which DCM is planning to release in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.