The Lift and Hidden Content, Producers of Sundance-Bound ‘Rotting in the Sun,’ Forge Development Deal (EXCLUSIVE)

Mexico City and London-based The Lift and Hidden Content, with offices in Mexico City and the U.S., have inked a multi-year development deal ahead of the Sundance premiere of their co-production, Sebastian Silva’s “Rotting in the Sun.”

New pact encompasses both film and TV content aimed at discovering and fostering both new and established Latin American talent for a global audience.

Said The Lift partner-executive producer Gabriel Stavenhagen: “With the industry reevaluating its business models, the value of IP is set to rapidly advance. We are excited about the opportunity to work with bold creative voices through our ability to finance projects and nurture them to find their audience.”

“In the new era of filmmaking, the audience for any story can be a global one. We’re excited to join forces with The Lift, which will help us expand our ability to keep creating films and television that are unique in style and tone, impactful and meaningful in their messaging, and geared to reach more people in the process,” said Jacob Wasserman, producer of “Rotting in the Sun” and co-founder of Hidden Content.

Dark comedy “Rotting in the Sun” marks a return to Sundance for Silva and his lead Catalina Saavedra, who took home a World Cinema Special Jury Prize for Acting at Sundance 2009 for “The Maid.”  Silva also won the Grand Jury Prize, World Cinema – Dramatic for “The Maid.”

In “Rotting in the Sun,” Silva plays a scathing version of himself who is sent by his manager to a nude gay beach in an attempt to snap him out of his state of depression. There Silva nearly dies trying to save social media influencer-actor Jordan Firstman from drowning. Saavedra plays Silva’s put-upon housekeeper in Mexico City.

Hidden Content is a full-service development and production studio with offices in New York and Los Angeles aside from Mexico City.  Its content slate includes award-winning feature films, branded content, and virtual reality experiences, among them previous Sundance titles “Piercing,” “Tyrel,” and “Eyes of My Mother.”

Founded in 2005, The Lift has collaborated with award-winning production companies Prettybird, Somesuch and Love Song among others and has an entertainment division, launched in 2021, to develop and produce long format projects, including “Plebes,” which won the best director award at the Buenos Aires Film Festival and “Destilando Mexico,” in co-production with Sony Entertainment TV.