EXCLUSIVE: Bankside also sells Rowan Athale’s debut feature to France, Japan and airlines; Ben Drew’s urban drama iLL Manors sells to six new buyers.

London-based Bankside Films has sold UK and Ireland rights to Momentum Pictures for Rowan Athale’s Toronto buzz title Wasteland.

The film has also been sold to Films Distribution for France, Nettai Museum for Japan and Encore Inflight for world airlines. Bankside said a “significant number of additional territories are under negotiation.”

Wasteland, which was in TIFF’s Discovery Programme, is also up for the Best British Newcomer award at the BFI London Film Festival next month. Momentum has not yet set a theatrical release date.

For full details visit

Athale, who was a 2011 Screen International Star of Tomorrow, also wrote the script. Luke Treadaway, Iwan Rheon, Matthew Lewis, and Gerard Kearns play four friends from a northern council estate who hatch a dangerous plan to better their lives. The cast also features Vanessa Kirby and Timothy Spall.

Prodcuers are Gareth Pritchard (partnered with Athale in Mischief Films), Ed Barratt of Hook Pictures and Mark Foligno of MoliFilms. Financiers include MoliFilms, Bankside Films and Lip Sync. Executive producers are Phil Hunt, Compton Ross, Norman Merry, Peter Hampden, Brad Moore and Iain Richardson.

Bankside Head of Sales Stephen Kelliher, said: “We could not be happier with the response Wasteland received in Toronto. Rowan has delivered a fresh and original take on the British heist genre which buyers internationally have absolutely responded to. Momentum’s enthusiasm for the film is second to none and they are the perfect partners for the film in the UK.”

“We are very happy to be introducing British audiences to the first feature from this exciting new director and we look forward to helping it become the first of many successes for him,” added Henry Beattie, Acquisitions Manager, Worldwide at Momentum.

Also, Bankside has sold Ben Drew’s iLL Manors, which was in the Vanguard section at Toronto, to Australia/New Zealand (Vendetta Films), Benelux (Benelux Film Distributors), France (Synergy Cinema) Former Yugoslavia (Karantanija), Japan (Doma Inc) and Switzerland (Rialto).

 

Topics