The international sales team (led by Alice Lesort) of Parisian outfit Les Films du Losange (directed by Margaret Ménégoz) are heading for the 44th Toronto International Film Festival (running 5 to 15 September), pinning their hopes on The Audition [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Ina Weisse
intervista: Ina Weisse
scheda film], among others, by Germany’s Ina Weisse, which will have its world premiere in Canada on 8 September within the Discovery section of the Festival, before travelling on to compete in the 67th San Sebastian International Film Festival (20 to 28 September).

This second feature film by the actress, following on from The Architect [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] (screened at the 2009 Berlinale within the German Cinema line-up), brings together German star Nina Hoss, France’s Simon Abkarian, Ilja Monti, Serafin Mishiev and Denmark’s Jens Albinus. Written by the director herself alongside Daphné Charizani, the story centres around Anna Bronsky, a violin teacher at a music-focused high school. Against the advice of her colleagues, Anna drives through the admission of a student, Alexander, in whom she sees a remarkable talent. Highly committed, she prepares him for the end-of-year exam, all the while neglecting her young son Jonas, also a violin student as well as an ice hockey enthusiast. She becomes increasingly distant from her loving husband, violin maker Philippe. As the audition draws near, Anna pushes Alexander to deliver ever more exceptional performances. On the big day, however, an accident takes place, with far-reaching consequences… The feature film has been produced by German outfit Lupa Film and co-produced by French firm Idéale Audience with the support of Port Au Prince Film & Kulturproduktion, ZDF/Arte, the German Federal Film Fund (DFFF), Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg (MBB), Mitteldeutsche Medienförderung (MDM), the French-German co-production mini treaty (led by the CNC and the FFA) and Panoptimo.

The latter will also be selling the Laurent Micheli-directed Belgian-French co-production Lola [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Laurent Micheli
scheda film] during their time in Toronto, which did very well at the recent Festival du Film Francophone d’Angoulême and which is due to have its international premiere in a major festival this autumn.

Likewise featuring in the Losange line-up is The River [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Lebanese director Ghassan Salhab, a work currently in post-production. This 7th fiction feature by the filmmaker, who made his name with The Valley [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] (unveiled in Toronto’s Contemporary World Cinema section in 2014 and screened in the 2015 Berlinale Forum), Terra incognita (presented in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section in 2012) and The Last Man (Filmmakers of the Present in Locarno 2006 and in competition in Tribeca in 2007), to name but a few, stars Palestine’s Ali Suliman and American-Lebanese actress Yumna Marwan. The story centres around a young woman and a man who are lunching on a restaurant terrace nestled in a mountainous landscape in Lebanon. Suddenly, fighter planes appear out of nowhere, criss-crossing the sky. A war seems to break out in the distance. The couple leave the restaurant, forging ever deeper into the nature that surrounds them; an ever-more spectral form of nature that mirrors their relationship… Production is headed up by Lebanese firm Khamsin Films and French outfit Survivance, with The Postoffice in a co-producing role.

Last but not least, Toronto will see Les Films du Losange continuing sales efforts for Wonders in the Suburbs [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Jeanne Balibar (unveiled last month in Locarno’s Filmmakers of the Present section) and for its Cannes titles: Burning Ghost [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by Stéphane Batut (the winner of the Jean Vigo Award in 2019, currently touring French cinemas), Particles [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Blaise Harrison
scheda film] by Blaise Harrison and the documentary Oh les filles! [+leggi anche:
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scheda film] by François Armanet.