Warsaw-based sales outfit New Europe Film Sales is looking to continue its recent run of success in Israeli cinema with the acquisition of world rights to The Delegation, one of the projects selected for this year’s Pitch Point showcase at Jerusalem Film Festival (which takes place on Friday, July 27).
The film marks the second feature of director Asaf Saban, whose debut Outdoors was released in Israel in 2017 and saw its star Noa Koler nominated for the Israeli Film Academy’s best actress award. Saban has also directed numerous short films, including 2009’s On Leave, which premiered at Telluride and was repped for sales by New Europe’s shorts wing.
The Delegation is a coming-of-age story following a group of Israeli teenagers on a school trip to concentration camps and memorials in Poland. It is an Israeli-Polish-German co-production. The Israeli producer is Yoav Roeh from Gum Films with co-producers Agnieszka Dziedzic of Polish outfit Koi Studio and Roshanak Behesht Nedjad of German production company IGC Films. The project already has support from the Israeli Film Fund and Polish-German Co-Development Fund.
The deal continues New Europe’s recent hot streak in Israeli cinema, which has seen the company represent the winners of JFF’s Best Israeli Feature for the last two years - Asaph Polonsky’s One Week And A Day in 2016 and Matan Yair’s Scaffolding in 2017, both of which played here following Cannes premieres.
New Europe’s CEO Jan Naszewski commented: “I have known Asaf for many years and I love his approach to storytelling, which is very cinematic, smart and emotional.”
“We are very happy to collaborate with New Europe Film Sales on the film. The story is set on a place on Polish soil and there is no company better suited to represent it,” added producer Yoav Roeh.
New Europe’s acquisitions exec Marcin Łuczaj is attending this year’s JFF.
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