TORONTO, ON (September 10, 2014) – Sundance Selects announced today from the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival that the company is acquiring US rights to Christian Petzold’s PHOENIX. The film, written and directed by Petzold, stars Nina Hoss and Ronald Zehrfeld and was produced by Florian Koerner von Gustorf and Michael Weber from Schramm Film. PHOENIX had its world premiere this week in the Special Presentation section of the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival, and will have its European Premiere later this month in competition at the San Sebastian Film Festival.
In PHOENIX, a gripping drama from leading German filmmaker Christian Petzold, a concentration-camp survivor (Nina Hoss) searches ravaged postwar Berlin for the husband who might have betrayed her to the Nazis. PHOENIX is Petzold’s first film since the 2012 critical success “Barbara,” for which he won the Silver Bear at the Berlin Film Festival.
Jonathan Sehring, President of Sundance Selects/IFC Films, said: “Petzold has created an impressive work – a truly haunting portrait of what it takes to rise from the ashes of a life destroyed.”
The deal for the film was negotiated by Arianna Bocco, Senior Vice President of Acquisitions & Productions for Sundance Selects/IFC Films with The Match Factory on behalf of the filmmakers.
Sundance Selects is a sister label to IFC Films and IFC Midnight, and is owned and operated by AMC Networks Inc.
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About SUNDANCE SELECTS
Established in 2009 and based in New York City, Sundance Selects is a leading U.S. distributor of prestige films focusing on American independents, documentaries and world cinema. Previous releases include David France’s Oscar nominated documentary HOW TO SURVIVE A PLAGUE; Wim Wenders’ Oscar-nominated documentary PINA; Werner Herzog’s CAVE OF FORGOTTEN DREAMS; Adam Leon’s GIMME THE LOOT; Abdellatif Kechiche’s award-winning BLUE IS THE WARMEST COLOR, starring Adèle Exarchopoulos; Richard Rowley’s Oscar nominated DIRTY WARS; and John Maloof and Charlie Siskel’s FINDING VIVIAN MAIER. Sundance Selects is a sister label to IFC Films and IFC Midnight, and is owned and operated by AMC Networks Inc.