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Atopia to open new distribution arm with launch of Federico Hidalgo’s award-winning film A Silent Love in Canada and the US
Montreal, August 24, 2004 - Atopia will launch a new distribution arm in conjunction with the release of the award-winning debut feature film by Federico Hidalgo’s A Silent Love across Canada and the US in the fall of 2004.
Montreal-based Atopia’s primary objective will be to acquire and release independent films in Canada and the US. Initially focusing on releasing Atopia produced films, the distribution arm will focus on acquiring foreign films as of early 2005, specializing in Latin-American cinema. Plan for spring 2005, is to acquire Canadian films at script level. Atopia is currently seeking partnership with leading Canadian & US video distributors to access the growing DVD market.
Head of Atopia, Pascal Maeder is producer of such films as Between the Moon and Montevideo and SPIT: Squeegee Punks In Traffic (2001). In 2000, he founded Atopia through which he produced El Ring (2002); A Silent Love (2003) and Jimmywork (2004).
Since premiering at Sundance in January 2004, A Silent Love has garnered numerous awards including Best Screenplay at the Miami Latin Film Festival and Brooklyn International Film Festival, along with Outstanding Performance for Susana Salazar at the Miami Latin Film Festival. The film stars Vanessa Bauche (Amores Perros), Noel Burton and Susana Salazar.
To head the new distribution division is Joëlle Medina. Hailing from Alliance Releasing in Toronto where she handled marketing, publicity and promotion for such films as Life is Beautiful, Shakespeare in Love, she later moved to Montreal to become Director of Marketing and Development at Remstar and is known for having created the marketing campaigns in Canada and the US for the controversial French film Baise- Moi.
Atopia’s latest production Jimmywork will have its world premiere at the 2004 Toronto International Film Festival. Written and directed by Simon Sauve, JIMMYWORK is an electrifying cross between Film Noir and Cinema Vérité. Slated for production next year are Hidalgo’s second feature entitled IMITATION, a dramatic comedy set in Montreal, and THE AFRICAN DREAM, Attila Bertalan’s latest project set in Africa.
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Tuesday, August 24, 2004
Award-winning A Silent Love to open in Canada and the US after Canadian Premiere at the Montreal World Film Festival
Montreal, August 10, 2004 - Atopia is pleased to announce that A SILENT LOVE by Federico Hidalgo continues its extensive and successful international film festival circuit by being showcased at the 2004 Montreal World Film Festival. Canadian theatrical release will start in Montreal as of September 10, 2004. Vancouver (September 17) and Toronto (September 24) openings will precede a TIFF Film Circuit tour of the film across Canada this fall. A SILENT LOVE will open at the Quad Cinema in New York City on October 15, 2004 followed by openings in L.A., San Francisco, Chicago and Miami.
Starring Vanessa Bauche (Amores Perros) who "radiates a crackling intelligence and south-of-the-border spunk" [Variety], A SILENT LOVE is a love-triangle comic drama that unfolds both in Montreal and Mexico. The film has won two Best Screenplay awards, at the Brooklyn International Film Festival and the Miami Latin Film Festival, where Mexican discovery Susana Salazar picked up an Honorable Mention for her outstanding performance: "Salazar basks gloriously in one of those rare roles that allows an actress of "a certain age" to seem funny, sexy, vital..." [Variety] A SILENT LOVE has also garnered public and critical acclaim at some of the world's most prestigious film festivals and showcases, including Sundance 2004, the Guadalajara Muestra de Cine, and the Museum of Modern Art's Canadian Front: New Films showcase. A SILENT LOVE is a first feature by Argentine-Canadian writer/director Hidalgo and is produced by Pascal Maeder. Hidalgo, Maeder along with Mexican actresses Vanessa Bauche and Susana Salazar will be present at the Montreal World Film Festival along to promote the film.
Noel Burton plays Norman, a shy, middle-aged teacher from Montreal who meets Gladys, a beautiful, impulsive Mexican woman (Bauche), through the services of an Internet agency. Full of hope, Norman flies off to Mexico to ask Gladys to marry him and move to Montreal. Gladys agrees on one condition, that her widowed mother, Fernanda (Salazar) comes along. Norman readily agrees, unaware of the romantic sparks about to fly. Unexpected feelings and desires between Norman, Gladys and Fernanda heat up and culminate in an emotional showdown.
Atopia's production branch was founded in 2000 and the company recently expanded its operations to domestic distribution. Several projects are slated for production and distribution, including Federico Hidalgo's next film. Further information on A SILENT LOVE and high resolution stills can be found at www.asilentlove.com.
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Screening dates and times for A SILENT LOVE at the FFM:
August 29, 9:30 pm - Parisien 4
August 31, 7:00 pm - Parisien 4
Tuesday, August 10, 2004
Federico Hidalgo’s Award-Winning A Silent Love at the 2004 Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival
Montreal, July 7, 2004 - Atopia is pleased to announce that A SILENT LOVE by Federico Hidalgo has been officially selected as part of the 2004 Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF).
Starring Vanessa Bauche (Amores Perros) who “radiates a crackling intelligence and south-of-the-border spunk” [Variety], A SILENT LOVE is a love-triangle comic drama that unfolds both in Montreal and Mexico. The film has won two Best Screenplay awards, at the Brooklyn International Film Festival and the Miami Latin Film Festival, where Mexican discovery Susana Salazar picked up an Honorable Mention for her outstanding performance: “Susana Salazar basks gloriously in one of those rare roles that allows an actress of "a certain age" to seem funny, sexy, vital…” [Variety] A SILENT LOVE has also garnered public and critical acclaim at some of the world's most prestigious film festivals, including Sundance 2004, the Guadalajara Muestra de Cine, and the Museum of Modern Art’s New Canadian Film Showcase. A SILENT LOVE is a first feature by Argentine-Canadian writer/director Federico Hidalgo and is produced by Pascal Maeder. Bauche, Hidalgo, and Maeder will attend the 2004 Latino International Film Festival to promote the film. Theatrical release in the US and Canada is scheduled for Fall 2004.
Noel Burton plays Norman, a shy, middle-aged teacher from Montreal who meets Gladys, a beautiful, impulsive Mexican woman (Bauche), through the services of an Internet agency. Full of hope, Norman flies off to Mexico to ask Gladys to marry him and move to Montreal. Gladys agrees on one condition, that her widowed mother, Fernanda (Salazar) comes along. Norman readily agrees, unaware of the romantic sparks that are about to fly. Unexpected feelings and desires between Norman, Gladys and Fernanda heat up and culminate in an emotional showdown.
Atopia’s production branch was founded four years ago and the company recently expanded its operations to domestic distribution. Several projects are slated for production, including Federico Hidalgo's next film. Further information on A SILENT LOVE can be found on its official web site at www.asilentlove.com.
A SILENT LOVE will be presented on July 22nd at 9H15 PM at the Egyptian Theatre, 6712 Hollywood Blvd. Los Angeles, California.
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Wednesday, July 7, 2004
World Premiere of A Silent Love at 2004 Sundance Film Festival
Montreal, December 2, 2003 - Atopia is pleased to announce that A SILENT LOVE by Federico Hidalgo has been officially selected as part of the World Cinema programme of the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. Starring Vanessa Bauche (Amores Perros), this love-triangle comic drama unfolds both in Montreal and Mexico. A SILENT LOVE is a first feature by Argentine-Canadian writer/director Federico Hidalgo and is produced by Pascal Maeder. Bauche, Hidalgo and Maeder will attend the 2004 Sundance Film Festival to promote the film and to secure sales and distribution deals for US and international territories.
Norman (Noel Burton) is a quiet, middle-aged teacher in Montreal who meets Gladys (Bauche), a beautiful Mexican woman , through the services of an Internet agency. Hope knows no bounds: disrupting his serene life, Norman flies off to Mexico to ask Gladys to marry him and move to Montreal. The young woman agrees on one condition: that her widowed mother, Fernanda (Susana Salazar), comes along. Norman readily agrees, unaware of the unpredictable consequences about to unfold. As love eludes the couple, unforeseen feelings and desires between Norman, Gladys and Fernanda boil over. Within a complex tangle of intimate relationships, tensions mount, culminating in an emotional showdown.
Atopia is currently developing several projects with Canadian filmmakers including Federico Hidalgo’s next film. The Montreal-based company most recently produced the feature-length documentary SPIT: Squeegee Punks in Traffic, which was released to wide critical and public acclaim across Canada.
Canadian broadcasting rights have been licensed to The Movie Network, Movie Central and Showcase. The production was financed by Telefilm Canada, SODEC (Québec) and The Harold Greenberg Fund. The film was shot on location in Montreal, Canada and in Toluca, Mexico.
In March 2004, A SILENT LOVE will continue its US festival tour with a special presentation at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.
Further information on A SILENT LOVE can be found on its official web site at www.asilentlove.com/
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Tuesday, December 2, 2003
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