NEW YORK, NY (Dec 7, 2020) – IFC Films announced today that it is acquiring U.S. rights to FALLING FOR FIGARO from acclaimed director Ben Lewin (The Catcher Was A Spy, Please Stand By, The Sessions). FALLING FOR FIGARO is a romantic comedy set in the fierce world of opera-singing competitions, starring BAFTA-winner Joanna Lumley (Absolutely Fabulous, Me Before You, The Wolf of Wall Street) and rising star Danielle Macdonald (Dumplin’, Patti Cake$, Skin).
The film is an official Australian and UK co-production written by Ben Lewin and Allen Palmer, and produced by Philip Wade (I Am Mother), Judi Levine (The Sessions) and Arabella Page Croft (Sunshine on Leith). It is executive produced by Timothy White and John Wade. In association with Wade Brothers Films, the film received principal production funding from Screen Australia and Screen Scotland, and was financed with support from Film Victoria. IFC Films will release the film in 2021.
The film also stars Hugh Skinner (Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again; TV’s Fleabag and W1A), Gary Lewis (Filth; TV’s His Dark Materials and Outlander), Shazad Latif (TV’s Star Trek: Discovery) and Rebecca Benson (TV’s Flack).
Millie (Macdonald) is a brilliant young fund manager, who decides to leave her unfulfilling job and longterm boyfriend behind to chase her lifelong dream of becoming an opera singer – in the Scottish Highlands! She begins intense vocal training lessons with renowned but fearsome singing teacher and former opera diva Meghan Geoffrey-Bishop (Lumley). It is there she meets Max, another of Meghan’s students who is also training for the upcoming “Singer of Renown” contest. What begins as a brutal competition between Millie and Max slowly turns into something more…
Arianna Bocco, President of IFC Films said, “We’re thrilled to work with Ben again after the success of THE CATCHER WAS A SPY. We see the same clear path to audiences with yet another heartfelt and supremely entertaining film in FALLING FOR FIGARO.”
Director Ben Lewin added, “I associate IFC Films with classy and exciting products. I am very proud to be working with them again, particularly on such a different and delightfully fun movie.”
The deal for the film was negotiated by President of IFC Films Arianna Bocco with WestEnd Films’ managing director Maya Amsellem, acting on behalf of the filmmakers.
WestEnd Films, who is handling worldwide sales, has previously announced deals in other key territories including the UK (Entertainment Film Distributors), Spain (Twelve Oaks), Benelux (Splendid), China (Huanxi Media Group), Israel (United King), former Yugoslavia (Investacommerce) and Umbrella Entertainment in Australia and New Zealand.
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ABOUT IFC FILMS
Established in 2000 and based in New York City, IFC Films is a leading U.S. distributor of independent film. Its unique distribution model makes independent films available to a national audience by releasing them in theaters as well as on cable’s Video On Demand (VOD) and digital platforms.
Upcoming releases include Ekwa Msangi’s FAREWELL AMOR and Sam Pollard’s acclaimed documentary MLK/FBI. Some of the company’s successes over the years have included BOYHOOD, THE DEATH OF STALIN, FRANCES HA, MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING, Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN, THE BABADOOK, TOUCHING THE VOID, 4 MONTHS, 3 WEEKS AND 2 DAYS, CHE, SUMMER HOURS, ANTICHRIST, IN THE LOOP, JOAN RIVERS: A PIECE OF WORK, TINY FURNITURE, and CARLOS. IFC Films has worked with established and breakout filmmakers, including Steven Soderbergh, Gus Van Sant, Spike Lee, Richard Linklater, Miranda July, Lars Von Trier, Gaspar Noé, Todd Solondz, Cristian Mungiu, Susanne Bier, Olivier Assayas, Jim McKay, Larry Fessenden, Paul Dano, Gregg Araki, Jacques Rivette, Claude Chabrol, Abdellatif Kechiche, Kore-eda Hirokazu, Abbas Kiarostami, Alfonso Cuaron, Noah Baumbach, Lena Dunham, Ethan Hawke and many more. IFC Films is a sister label to IFC Midnight, and is owned and operated by AMC Networks Inc.
ABOUT WESTEND FILMS
WestEnd Films is a dynamic London-based production, financing and international sales company for feature films and TV. It offers filmmakers finance, production and sales expertise as well as an extensive network of contacts across all sectors of the industry.
In addition to FALLING FOR FIGARO, WestEnd’s current line-up includes new drama THE LAST RIFLEMAN starring Pierce Brosnan, THE SCORE, a heist musical starring Johnny Flynn, Will Poulter and Naomi Ackie, MR. MALCOLM’S LIST, a romantic comedy starring Frieda Pinto and Constance Wu, THE COW, a comedy directed by Marc Forster starring Ewan McGregor, LAMYA’S POEM, an animated feature by Alexander Kronemer, THE BANISHING, a horror by Chris Smith, starring Jessica Brown Findlay and Sean Harris, SHOPLIFTERS OF THE WORLD, a Smiths-infused drama starring Ellar Coltrane and Joe Manganiello, COTTONTAIL, a moving drama from the producer of Philomena and HBO Max TV series VALLEY OF TEARS, from the writers and creators of Euphoria and False Flag.
ABOUT SCREEN SCOTLAND
Screen Scotland is the dedicated partnership for screen in Scotland. Sitting within Creative Scotland, it is a partnership with Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Skills Development Scotland, Scottish Funding Council, working in close collaboration with the sector to ensure its success. With funding from Scottish Government and The National Lottery, Screen Scotland is driving the cultural, social and economic development of all aspects of the sector in Scotland, through enhanced funding, services and support. For further information please visit: screen.scot and follow @screenscots on twitter and @screenscots on Instagram.