12/09/2013 - Friends from France, Giraffadaand The Amazing Catfish: three first features selected in Toronto in the line-up of the French sales company

Regularly betting on young talented filmmakers, French sales company Pyramide International (directed by Eric Lagesse and managed by Lucero Garzon) unveiled three first features at the Toronto Film Festival (which ends on Sunday). In the Contemporary World Cinema section, Friends from France [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by duo Anne Weill - Philippe Kotlarski (read the article) was screened for its world premiere. Recounting the mishaps of two young Frenchmen travelling through the USSR in 1979 with the secret goal of contacting local Jews in order to prepare their escape from a country in which they are persecuted, the film is played by Soko (nominated for the César 2010 for Best Newcomer for In the Beginning [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] and mesmerizing in Augustine [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile]) and Jérémie Lippmann. This Films du Poisson production with Germany (Vandertastic), Canada and Russia will be distributed in France by Pyramide on November 27.

The world premiere of Giraffada [+see also:
trailer
film profile] byRani Massalha (photo) will take place in the Discovery programme. The film tells the story of a son and father attempting to steal a giraffe (to save its life) from an Israeli zoo and bring it back to Palestinian territory. The cast features young actor Ahmad Bayatra, Saleh Bakri and Roschdy Zem and was produced by French outfit Mact Productions with the Italians form Lumière & Co and Germans from Heimat Films.

In Toronto, Pyramide also pursued the sales of Mexican production The Amazing Catfish (Los insólitos peces gato) by Claudia Sainte-Luce, also selected in the Discovery section. Discovered in Locarno in the Filmmakers of the Present competition (Best Film for the Young Jury), this first film features French cinematographer Agnès Godard.

Pyramide International also took advantage of the informal market of the Canadian festival to work on three other titles in its line-up: Leviathan by Russian director Andrey Zvyagintsev (Le Retour, Elena), Le dernier coup de marteau by Alix Delaporte (read the article) and Le beau monde by Julie Lopes Curval (with Ana Girardot, Bastien Bouillon and Spanish actor Sergi Lopez). Private screenings will also be organized for Miss and the Doctors [+see also:
trailer
film profile] by Axelle Ropert (article – with Louise Bourgoin, Cédric Kahn and Laurent Stocker in the cast). In terms of films in post-production, it is worth mentioning Hope by Boris Lojkine (article) and the documentary School of Babel by Julie Bertuccelli (Since Otar Left and The Tree [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Julie Bertuccelli
film profile]) who immersed herself in a class full of teenagers from different countries. Finally, Pyramide pursued the sales amongst others of its competitor from Cannes Wakolda [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] byLucia Puenzo, which will be released in France in November 6.

(Translated from French)