Broadening its slate of European films, NDM, the Paris/Mexico based sales company launched by Jaime Romandia’s Mantarraya and Carlos Reygadas’ Nodream Cinema, has acquired world sales rights to Norwegian Ole Giaever’s mountains-set dramedy “Out of Nature.”
The pick-up announcement comes as NDM has also revealed early sales on its two 2014 Cannes titles, both now also selected for Toronto: Bruno Dumont’s “Li’l Quinquin” and Lisandro Alonso’s “Juaja.”
Giaever’s follow-up to the 2011 Berlin Panorama-selected “The Mountain,” “Out of Nature” will world premiere at the Toronto Festival, screening in Contemporary World Cinema.
Also written by Giaver, “Nature” traces a physical, mental and emotional journey inside Martin head and out into wild nature. A family father in his 30s in a small town in Norway who feels alienated in his own life and longs to get away from his job and family, as he sets off alone on a hiking trip into the woods, up to the mountains and the audience hears his uncensored thoughts and brutally honest observations about himself and the people around him as he is forced to confront the way he lives his life.
Giaver himself plays Martin; Maria Ekerhovd produces for the Bergen/Tromso-based Mer Film.
NDM’s Fiorella Moretti tracked “Nature” since she first screened it in rough-cut at January’s Goteborg Festival Nordic Film Market where it proved one of the standouts at the works-in-progress section.
“We hear Martin’s thoughts and fantasies from the most trivial and absurd to his deepest sentiments. The plot is simple but its reach is very large, universal,” Moretti said. Ekerhovd added: “When I first presented ‘Out of Nature’ to NDM, I immediately understood that they got the film’s mix of humor and sincerity..”
“I like the way NDM works very closely with the films they sell, caring about the product, wanting to do what is right for the film. We are very excited to be presenting our film from the North of Norway to the world via NDM.”
Before directing “The Mountain,” where a bickering lesbian couple attempt a relationship reboot on a hiking trip, Giaver helmed “Tommy,” nominated for best short at the 2007 European Film Awards, and “Summer Past,” shortlisted for best screenplay at the Norwegian National Film Awards.
“Out of Nature” marks NDM’s third European pick-up as Mexico’s arthouse scene builds, bringing new energy to the sector, in and outside Mexico. Mantarraya and Nodream Cinema already produced – and NDM hanled sales on – Cannes’ best director winners two years running: Reygadas’ own “Post Tenebras Lux” and Amat Escalante’s “Heli.” They also run a highly active distribution house in Mexico, ND Mantarraya. When it launched seven years ago, it released four films a year and bowed its first film on two copies. Now it bows films every three weeks on up-to-30, Moretti recalled.
Already driving into select European titles, NDM has made early sales on Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight title “Li’l Quinquin,” from France’s Dumont, which screens in Toronto’s Contemporary World Cinema.
Argentine Alonso’s “Jauja,” starring Viggo Mortensen, which scooped a Fipresci Un Certain Regard nod at Cannes, will screen in Toronto’s Wavelengths section.
A tragicomic single movie/ four-episode TV series turning on a police investigation in a small village in northern France, “Li’l Quinquin” has sealed a U.S. distribution in a deal to be announced shortly, Moretti said.
Other first sales territories, made off Cannes, for “Quiquin”: Quebec (Reel Fun Film Festival); Mexico (Cineteca Nacional), Brazil (Sao Paolo Intl. Film Festival); Portugal (Leopardo Filmes); Poland (T-Mobile New Horizons Int.Film Festival).
On “Jauja,” NDM has sealed Japan (Broadmedia Studios Corp.), the U.K. (Soda Pictures), ex-Yugoslavia (Demiurg) and Panama, Dominican Republic and Costa Rica (Wiesner Distribution).
