From big-budget to medium-budget productions, documentaries to animated films, sales deals have got off to a flying start for all film types for StudioCanal this year at Cannes.
First of all there is the interest aroused by "The Crimson Rivers 2," which has reached heights rarely seen by films shot in the French language. The film’s results look set to cover its entire budget (€22 million) even before its release in France in 2004. Directed by Olivier Dahan, "The Crimson Rivers 2" was sold last year to Japan by Légende, and since then has been snapped up by Tobis for Germany and by Filmauro for Italy.
We have seen the first pre-sale tests for the megaproduction "L’ Aventurier" by Christophe Gans (a film shot in English, co-produced by Eskwad) considered more than satisfying. Then there is "Rrrrr," the new comedy by Alain Chabat, currently in production, "Comme une image," the latest film by Agnès Jaoui and Jean-Pierre Bacri (Les Films A4), "Nathalie" by Anne Fontaine (Alain Sarde), "A la P’tite Semaine" by Sam Karmann (Les Films A4) and "Confidences trop intimes" by Patrice Leconte, all of which also appear to be off to a good start. And finally, two documentaries have secured buyers: "Rages In The Waves" by Stacey Peralta (Forever Productions) and, in particular, "Genesis," by the makers of "Microcosmos," which has been sold to almost all territories.
