Having already had four of the titles on its slate screened in the Cannes Critics’ Week (in 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2018) since it was founded, this time around, Paris-based international sales agent Alpha Violet has managed to slip one of its trump cards into the Directors’ Fortnight, and it fully intends to reap all the benefits that this will bring at the Marché du Film (unspooling from 15-25 May as an integral part of the 72^nd Cannes Film Festival). The movie in question is Sick, Sick, Sick [+leggi anche:
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Produced by Brazil, France and the Netherlands, this feature debut by the director, who was born in Rio de Janeiro in 1987 and who completed her training as a filmmaker and editor by studying at Le Fresnoy, hinges on a screenplay that she co-wrote with Leonardo Levis. The plot revolves around Silvia (Luiza Kosovski) and Artur (Juan Paiva), whose teenage romance starts abruptly and ends just as suddenly after a serious accident. Silvia gets sick, and her days become shrouded in darkness. Her mourning turns into an obsessive quest to bring Artur back to life. Also among the cast are Digão Ribeiro, Silvia Buarque, Lourenço Mutarelli, Ismar Tirelli Neto, Valentina Luz and Nahuel Perez Biscayart.

“We really like this debut film on account of its strong visual style and its subject matter: it’s a romantic and captivating story that flirts with genre and beguiles thanks to the sensuality of these characters,” stresses Virginie Devesa (who heads up Alpha Violet together with Keiko Funato). “It’s a story of love and lovesickness; a tale about faith, which enables you to carry on living, and it has a bit of a fantastical side, an island, a touch of magic and a hint of voodoo.”

Produced by Brazil’s Estúdio Giz together with France’s Ikki Films and the Netherlands’ Baldr Film, Sick, Sick, Sick secured support from Ancine (the Brazilian National Film Agency), the BRDE (the Far South Regional Development Bank), the Fundo Setorial do Audiovisual, the Hubert Bals Fund, the Netherlands Film Fund, the CNC’s World Cinema Support, Ciclic (the Centre-Val de Loire region) and Le Fresnoy – National Studio for Contemporary Arts.

At the Cannes Marché du Film, Alpha Violet will also be pressing on with pre-sales for three features that are currently in post-production: Uncle [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Yaron Shani
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scheda film], which was premiered in the Berlinale Panorama in 2019).