EXCLUSIVE: Participant has partnered with TelevisaUnivision’s Pantelion Films and 3Pas Studios on Radical, the Eugenio Derbez-led film written and directed by Chris Zalla. Radical will be released in U.S. and Mexico theaters on October 20. Additionally, international sales have been made in several territories including the UK, Germany and Australia.
Radical will be distributed in the U.S. by Paul Presburger and Edward Allen’s Miercoles Entertainment on behalf of Pantelion Films. The announcement arrives following the film’s successful turn at the Sundance Film Festival where it earned the “Festival Favorite Award” from a field of 111 films.
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“We are so excited to bring Radical to as wide an audience as possible, giving us the opportunity to share this powerful story with both Eugenio’s massive core audience as well as the specialty market. To reach these very different markets and audiences, we could not be more thrilled to bring together the team behind most of Eugenio’s box office successes, combined with Participant’s theatrical expertise and unsurpassed social impact engine,” Odell said in a statement to Deadline.
Radical, inspired by a Wired Magazine article by Joshua Davis, follows the 6th-grade students at Jose Urbina Lopez Elementary in Matamoros, who are among the worst-performing students in Mexico. The world they know is one of violence and hardship, and their school is a place of discipline, not possibility. Everything changes when teacher Sergio Juarez (Derbez) arrives with an outside-the-box approach.
In addition to Derbez, the film also stars Daniel Haddad and Jennifer Trejo; is directed and written by Christopher Zalla; produced by Ben Odell, Eugenio Derbez and Joshua Davis; executive produced by Javier Williams, Josh Bearman, Avelino Rodriguez and Patricia Sanchez.
“Partnering up with 3Pas and Participant brings the best of all worlds to ensure Radical’s masterful narration, mesmerizing performances and profound story is available to inspire millions of people around the world. We are sure this film is going to resonate with audiences across borders and will continue to garner the attention and immense recognition of the industry this year,” shared Rodrigo Mazón, Chief Content Officer ViX at TelevisaUnivision.
“Children connect all of us, and Radical tells the beautifully inspiring story of a teacher who refused to accept that circumstances dictated what his students could achieve,” added Participant CEO David Linde. “Eugenio’s performance is amazing and we are proud to work with TelevisaUnivision’s Pantelion Films and 3Pas Studios to share this story with audiences.”
The deal was negotiated by Gabriel Brakin, COO; Rob Williams, Senior Vice President, Content Strategy; and Adam Macy, Senior Counsel, Business and Legal Affairs, for Participant; and Paul Presburger and Edward Allen of Miercoles on behalf of TelevisaUnivision and the filmmakers.
International sales are being handled by Andrew Herwitz’s The Film Sales Company. Sales include the UK (Altitude); Germany, Austria and Switzerland (Ascot Elite); Israel (Lev Cinema); and Australia and New Zealand (Madman).
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