Cyril Aris’ “A Sad and Beautiful World,” a Beirut-set love story which represented Lebanon in the Oscar race, has secured North American distribution with Watermelon Pictures.
Represented internationally by Paradise City Sales, the movie world premiered at last year’s Venice Days on the Lido and won the People’s Choice Award. It went on to play at more than 30 festivals, including the BFI London, Red Sea and Palm Springs. The movie marks the first narrative feature by Aris, who previously helmed the documentaries “Dancing on the Edge of a Volcano” and “The Swing.”
Spanning three decades in Beirut against the backdrop of its tumultuous history, the film stars Mounia Akl (“Costa Brava, Lebanon”) as Yasmina, and Hasan Akil (“Memory Box”) as Nino, two childhood sweethearts. When they reunite in their late 20s, they grapple with romance, harsh reality and the timeless question of bringing children into an uncertain world amid the tragedies ravaging the country.
“Cyril Aris’s film absolutely floored us, we can’t wait to share this wonderful gem with our expanding audience in the U.S.,” said Munir Atalla, Watermelon Pictures’s head of production and acquisitions.
Paradise City Sales has also closed fresh deals on the film in Italy (Cineclub Internazionale), Sweden (Folkets Bio), Eastern Europe (HBO), Brazil (Belas Artes Grupo), China (JL Film Entertainment) and Benelux (Paradiso Films).
“A Sad and Beautiful World” was produced by well-established Lebanese producer Georges Schoucair at Abbout Productions (“Lebanon”), and is co-produced by U.S. banner Diversity Hire (“Joyland”), alongside Reynard Films in Germany. It is co-produced with Sunnyland Film, a member of ART and Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea Fund.
Paradise City Sales previously sold the film to France (UFO Distribution), Germany/Austria (Neue Visionen), Spain (ADSO Films), Switzerland (Trigon Film), Turkey (Bir Film), MENA (Sunnyland), Taiwan (Sky Digi Entertainment) and Airlines (Skeye).