As the Toronto Film festival got underway last night with the opening of "Looper," buyers began searching for their next big hit and the next big awards film.
The big film on the market is the new movie by Derek Cianfrance "The Place Beyond the Pines" which premieres tonight. The film starring Ryan Gosling reunites director and actor after their successful film "Blue Valentine."Buyers such as Film District have revealed that they are "salivating for the film." Buyers have also stated that there are many great films out there but "that this film is the one with all the goods." With all the hype, producers are trying to play down all expectations because they don't want to be choked by all the buzz
.Other films that have good prospects at the market are the post 9/11 ideological exploration "The Reluctant Fundamentalist," the Kristen Wig character comedy "Imogene," the Colin Firth-Emily Blunt movie "Arthur Newman," and Noah Baumbach's "Frances Ha."
The other big film hoping to ride with its buzz from Telluride and Venice is "The Iceman." With Michael Shannon's performance, buyers are excited as he could be a potential awards bid for best actor. Variety stated that the film was "a model of lean, incisive filmmaking fronted by a commanding Michael Shannon and backed by a terrifically offbeat supporting cast."
Among buyers looking for films are Fox Searchlight which has a weak slate of films for the fall. They are looking for another potential awards film that can produce the goods such as 2008's "Slumdog Millionaire" or 2009's "The Wrestler" which they acquired a few years ago in Toronto and went on to win many awards. Fox Searchlights on has "The Sessions" coming out in the fall.
The Weinstein Company and Sony Pictures are also looking for more films even though they have a filled slate for this fall. Other smaller distributors are expected to buy including Open Road and Film District as well as IFC and Magnolia.