The Toronto Film Festival Market was very busy this weekend. Several key films that premiered acquired a distributor and are ready for release.
One of the biggest hits of the Venice Film Festival that was not accepted into the official Toronto lineup was "Locke" starring Tom Hardy ("Inception") and directed by Steven Knight ("Hummingbird"). "Locke" tells the story of a man whose life unravels in a 90 minute race against time. The film garnered great reviews and had all the big distributors fighting for the film. At the end of the bid, A24, the distributor behind "Spring Breakers" and "The Bling Ring," acquired the movie.
Another important deal that came out of Toronto was for "Bad Words" directed by and starring actor Jason Bateman ("Juno"). The movie tells the story of a spelling bee loser who sets out to get revenge by finding a loophole and attempting to win as an adult. According to Deadline, Focus Features acquired the movie for $7 million and expects to release the movie next year.
The last big deal of the festival was "Can a Love Song Save Your Life?" Starring Keira Knightley ("Anna Karenina"), Adam Levine ("The Voice"), Mark Ruffalo ("The Avengers") and Hailee Steinfeld ("True Grit"), the movie tells the story of a dejected music business executive who forms a bond with a young singer-songwriter new to Manhattan. Deadline reported that Harvey Weinstein of the Weinstein Company acquired the film for $7 million with a $20 million P&A deal. Deadline also reported that the company is planning a release for next year. This marks the second acquisition for the company at the festival circuit. A week ago the Weinstein Company took home John Curran's "Tracks" at the Telluride Film Festival.
The Toronto Market will continue throughout the week with major films such as "The Railway Man," "Horns" and "Enemy" still seeking distribution.
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