EXCLUSIVE: Hot on the heels of its world premiere last night (August 7) in Locarno’s Piazza Grande, The Birthday Party, directed by Miguel Angel Jimenez and starring Willem Dafoe, has secured distribution across a wide range of international territories.
The film, which started pre-sales at this year’s European Film Market, is represented by Heretic and Bankside Films. Both companies said the Locarno premiere has added momentum to the global sales push.
Paradiso has acquired rights for Benelux, with Praesens on board for Switzerland. Warner Bros Discovery has purchased the broadcast rights to the film, set to be launched after its theatrical run on HBO Europe and streaming platform Max.
Hagi Film will distribute in Poland, and CinemArt has taken rights for the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Additional sales include Pris for Portugal and Rosebud.21 for Greece.
Arthouse Traffic has picked up the title for Ukraine, with Budapest Films releasing in Hungary. MCF will handle the former Yugoslavia, CineLibri has acquired Bulgaria, GPI is on board for the Baltics, and Film Clinic will distribute across MENA. The film will also be distributed in the CIS territory.
Screen’s review described The Birthday Party as a “stylish tale of hedonism and heartbreak,” with “echoes of classic Agatha Christie”.
Adapted from Panos Karnezis’s novel of the same name, The Birthday Party features an international cast including Vic Carmen Sonne, Joe Cole, Emma Suárez, Carlos Cuevas and Christos Stergioglou.
Set on a secluded Mediterranean island in the summer during the 1970s, the film follows two charged days of secrets, ambition, and simmering familial tension beneath the surface of an extravagant celebration.
A Greek, Spanish, Dutch, and UK co-production, The Birthday Party was shot entirely in Greece, with locations in Corfu and Athens. The film was financed with support from the Greek Film Centre, ICEC, the Netherlands Film Fund, and the BFI’s Global Screen Fund. Additional backing came from Hellenic Film & Audiovisual Center – Creative Greece, ERT, Kalamata Films, Eolo Film Productions, Hopeless Romantic and Frontstage.
Executive producers on the project include Ginevra Bulgari, Alexandra Daskalopoulou, Ivan Samokhvalov, Ioanna Stais, Talal Abu Ghazaleh, Mohamed Hefzy, Lee Broda, Alexander Tsekalo, Shane West, Richie Walls, Jeff Rice, Claudia Romero, Gabriel Kaplan, Bruno Lowagie, Ingeborg Willaert, Martien Uyttendaele, Dirk De Lille, Edgar Daarnhouwer, Olivier Mortagne and Dries Phlypo.