A24 has acquired North American distribution rights to Sean Baker’s “The Florida Project,” an individual with knowledge of the deal told TheWrap.
The film about a homeless family is the follow-up to Baker’s “Tangerine,” which was shot entirely on iPhone and netted two Gotham Awards. It starred Mya Taylor, Kitana Kiki Rodriguez and Karren Karagulian, and was released in 2015.
“The Florida Project,” starring Willem Dafoe, Caleb Landry Jones and newcomers Brooklynn Prince and Bria Vinaite, debuted at the Cannes Film Festival in the Directors’ Fortnight sidebar.
Baker co-wrote the script along with Chris Bergoch.
At Cannes, the firm received strong reviews, enticing interest from multiple buyers including Amazon Studios, Neon and Annapurna. “The Florida Project” was one of the hottest sale titles heading into the festival.
A24 recently won a Best Picture Academy Award for “Moonlight” and also released award frontrunners “20th Century Women, “Ex Machina” and “Room.”
ICM represented the deal with WME and CAA.
Variety first reported the news.