Leo Barraclough / Variety
Jon Nguyen and Olivia Neergaard-Holm’s “David Lynch: The Art Life,” an “intimate” documentary portrait of the director, has found a U.K. home with distributor Soda Pictures, after premiering at theVenice Film Festival.
The “immersive” documentary, which is narrated by Lynch himself, explores the formative years of his life, from “his idyllic upbringing in small-town America to the dark streets of Philadelphia,” according to a statement, and looks “in compelling detail at the events that helped shape one of cinema’s most enigmatic and revered directors.”
The film, which incorporates Lynch’s art, music and films, will receive its U.K. premiere at the BFI London Film Festival next month, as part of the Documentary Competition section. It is slated for a “substantial” theatrical release in the U.K. in the spring.
The deal was negotiated between Edward Fletcher, managing director of Soda Pictures, and Film Constellation founder and CEO Fabien Westerhoff.
“The film celebrates the creativity behind the cinema we all love, through the life of one of its most remarkable directors,” Fletcher said. “We’re hugely excited to be working on this wonderful documentary, and are looking forward to a significant theatrical release next spring. Cinema audiences are in for a treat.”
In the U.S., Film Constellation has licensed the film to Amazon and Janus Films for a spring theatrical release. In Europe, distribution rights were licensed to NFP in Germany, Potemkin Films in France, Vertigo in Spain, Wanted Cinema in Italy, Angel Films in Scandinavia, Midas Films in Portugal and Fabula in Turkey, while Canada, Australia and Japan are in negotiation, among other territories.
Upcoming releases from Soda include Sundance entry “Lovers and the Despot,” and Cannes competitors “Paterson” and “Toni Erdmann.”