New York, NY (January 14, 2011) – IFC Films, the leading American distributor of independent and foreign films, announced today that the company is acquiring the U.S. rights to director Rowan Joffe’s debut feature BRIGHTON ROCK. Joffe, whose previous writing credits include 28 WEEKS LATER and THE AMERICAN, adapted the script from Graham Greene’s 1939 iconic crime novel of the same name. Produced by Paul Webster (ATONEMENT, EASTERN PROMISES) and co-produced by Paul Ritchie (NOWHERE BOY, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE), the film stars Sam Riley (CONTROL), Andrew Riseborough (NEVER LET ME GO), John Hurt (IMMORTALS), and Helen Mirren (THE LAST STATION) and will be released by IFC Films in the summer of 2011.
The deal was negotiated by Arianna Bocco, Senior Vice President, Acquisitions & Productions, and by Anna Marsh at Studio Canal on behalf of the filmmaker. Jenny Borgars, Will Clarke, and Lamie Laurenson executive produced the project. Produced in association with the BBC and UKFC, BRIGHTON ROCK is the first of an ambitious slate of high-level British productions financed by Studio Canal to be released in the UK by its company Optimum.
BRIGHTON ROCK embraces the classic elements of film noir and the British gangster film to tell the story of Pinkie (Riley), a desperate youth who is hell bent on clawing his way up through the ranks of organized crime. When a young and very innocent waitress, Rose (Riseborough), stumbles on evidence linking him to a revenge killing, he sets out to seduce her to secure her silence.
President of IFC Films Jonathan Sehring said, "BRIGHTON ROCK is a brilliant update of a noir classic that manages to be thrilling and beautiful. Sam Riley carries the film with his charismatic performance, and Andrea Riseborough and Helen Mirren round out the cast exquisitely. We look forward to getting it out to a wide audience."
About IFC FILMS
Established a decade ago, IFC Films – a division of Rainbow Media’s IFC Entertainment – is the leading U.S. distributor of independent and foreign film. Its unique day and date distribution model makes independent films available to a national audience by releasing them simultaneously in theaters as well as on cable’s On Demand platform and through Pay-Per-View, reaching nearly 50 million homes. IFC Films’ "IFC Midnight" label, launched in 2010, offers the very best in international genre cinema, including horror, sci-fi, thrillers, erotic arthouse, action and more. Some of the company’s successes over the years have included My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Y Tu Mama Tambien, Touching the Void, Me and You and Everyone We Know, 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, Gomorrah, Che, Summer Hours, In the Loop, Antichrist, The Human Centipede, Cairo Time, Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work, and Wordplay. IFC Films has worked with established and breakout auteurs, including Steven Soderbergh, Gus Van Sant, Spike Lee, Richard Linklater, Miranda July, Lars Von Trier, Gaspar Noe, Todd Solondz, Cristian Mungiu, Susanne Bier, Olivier Assayas, Jim McKay, Larry Fessenden, Gregg Araki, Jacques Rivette, Claude Chabrol, as well as more recent breakouts such as Andrea Arnold, Mia Hansen Love, Corneliu Porombiou, Joe Swanberg, Barry Jenkins, Lena Dunham, Aaron Katz, Daryl Wein and Abdellatif Kechiche.