Sundance Selects has acquired U.S. rights to Francois Ozon's "Young and Beautiful" from Wild Bunch, the company announced Wednesday at the Cannes Film Festival.
The film stars Marine Vacth as a teenage girl who goes from virgin to prostitute and her transformation. Produced by Eric and Nicolas Altmayer, and with a screenplay by Ozon (photo below with Vacth), "Young and Beautiful" made its world premiere in the Competition section of the festival earlier this week.
Also read: Cannes Review: 'Young & Beautiful' Supplies Sex and Nudity, but Where's the Soul?
“With films like 'Swimming Pool' and 'In the House" François Ozon has proven himself to be a master storyteller when it comes to sensuality in cinema," Sundance Selects/IFC Films President Jonathan Sehring said in a statement.
"Now, with 'Young & Beautiful,' he has delivered another must-see film. We were all blown away by the incredible performance from Marine Vacth and can’t wait for our audiences in the U.S. to be too.”
The film co-stars Geraldine Pailhas, Frederic Pierrot, Fantin Ravat, Johan Leysen, Charlotte Rampling, Nathalie Richard and Djedje Apali.
Sundance Selects’ sister label IFC Films previously released two films from Ozon, "Angel" and "Ricky."
The deal for the film was negotiated by Sundance Selects president of acquisitions and productions Arianna Bocco, with Carole Baraton and Henri Fabre of Wild Bunch representing the filmmakers. Wild Bunch is an independent Paris-based film company.
This marks the third acquisition during the festival for Sundance Selects. It picked up U.S. rights to another Competition title, Abdellatif Kechiche‘s "Blue Is the Warmest Color," and Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne’s "Two Days, One Night," starring Oscar-winner Marion Cotillard. That film is in pre-production.
Sundance Selects is owned and operated by AMC Networks.