SF Studios Scoops International Sales to ‘Grandpas,’ ‘A War Within’ (EXCLUSIVE)
By Elsa Keslassy
LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – SF Studios has scooped international sales rights to Santiago Requejo’s heartfelt comedy drama “Grandpas” and Kasper Torsting’s WWI-set Danish love drama “A War Within” in the run up to Cannes. Both films are third-party pickups.
“Grandpas” is a high-profile Spanish movie starring Carlos Iglesias (“Crossing Borders”), Roberto Álvarez (“Talk to her”) and Ramón Barea (“Everybody knows”). Produced by Carlos Sanz and Santiago Requejo at 02:59 Films, “Grandpas” is planned for an October release in Spain.
“Grandpas” tells the story of three old friends having hard times adapting to the ever-changing job market, which seems uninterested in anyone above 50 years old – no matter the experience or knowledge. Reluctant to the thought of stepping down and retire, they decide to set up a daycare center against all odds.
“This marks an important step for us in our strategy of becoming even more attractive to our distributors around the globe,” said Anita Simovic, head of international sales. She said SF Studios was “actively seeking projects with ‘that special ingredient,’ not only Scandinavian but of any origin as long as it offers great content.”
SF Studios will kick off sales at Cannes, where the movie will have a market premiere on May 17.
Meanwhile, “A War Within,” which was co-written by Torsting and Ronnie Fridthjof, is inspired by the true story of Esben who returns home from war to be with his beloved wife Kirstine and son Karl, only to discover that a charming German officer is about to win Kirstine’s heart and take on the role as Karl’s father. Esben is forced to watch his family slowly slip away before his eyes and decides to do whatever it takes to get his wife and son back.
SF Studio, which is selling worldwide rights excluding Scandinavia and Germany (TV only), will host the market premiere of the international version of “A War Within” at Cannes on May 18. The original version of “A War Within” premiered in Denmark last November and was presented with the Audience Choice Award and Valhalla Award for Best Nordic Film at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival.
