Mars Distribution Picks Up French Rights to ‘Moonlight’
Mars Distribution, one of France’s most successful independent film companies and a top purveyor of prestige English-language imports, has acquired French rights to “Moonlight” from A24.
“Moonlight,” the first film to be fully financed and produced by A24 in partnership with Plan B and Adele Romanski, was written by director Barry Jenkins based on Tarell Alvin McCraney’s play “In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue.”
The movie world-premiered at Toronto in the competitive Platform section, where it earned unanimous praise, and opened the Rome Film Festival on Oct.13. The film also won best ensemble performance at the Gotham Awards and the Audience nod at the Mill Valley Film Festival.
On top of being considered a hot contender for more awards, “Moonlight” bowed in the U.S. on Oct.21 and scored the year’s biggest opening weekend average for an indie film, grossing $402,075 from four screens in New York and Los Angeles.
A personal film dealing with self-discovery and modern masculinity, “Moonlight” follows the coming of age of Chiron, an African American youth living in Florida, and is told in three chapters over the course of 16 years.
The movie, Jenkins’ follow-up to his 2008 feature “Medicine for Melancholy,” stars Trevante Rhodes, André Holland, Janelle Monáe, Ashton Sanders, Jharrel Jerome, Naomie Harris and Mahershala Ali.
Mars Distribution, whose slate includes Xavier Dolan’s “The Death and Life of John F. Donovan” and Jeff Nichols’s “Loving,” will release “Moonlight” in France on Feb. 1.
Related stories
'Moonlight' Could Be This Year's Indie Box Office Breakout
Ruth Negga, Dev Patel, 'Moonlight' Trio to Be Honored at Santa Barbara Film Festival
Naomie Harris Had to Overcome Her Own Judgment to Play 'Moonlight' Role
Get more from Variety and Variety411: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter
