EXCLUSIVE: After receiving rave reviews from its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival which instigated a bidding war, Sony’s Stage 6 Finnish feature Sisu has been scooped up by Lionsgate. The film will receive a theatrical release at some point in the future.
The movie is from filmmaker Jalmari Helander (Rare Exports, Big Game) and follows Aatami, an ex-soldier in 1945 who discovers gold in the deep wilderness of Finland while on his way into the city. Brutal Nazis on a scorched-earth mission discover his treasure trove. He must go through outrageous lengths to get his gold back – even if it means killing every last Nazi. Aatami is portrayed by the filmmaker’s long-time collaborator Jorma Tommila.
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Sisu currently holds 100% (fresh) rating on Rotten Tomatoes and was one of the best-reviewed films out of TIFF. The film also recently held its European premiere at the Sitges Film Festival, where over the weekend it was honored with four awards: SOFC Best Feature Film, SOFC Best Actor, SOFC Best Cinematography, and SOFC Best Original Music. (SOFC designates the film as In-Competition.)
The pic also stars Aksel Hennie, Jack Doolan, Mimosa Willamo, and Onni Tommila.
Petri Jokiranta produced the film through Subzero Film Entertainment, in association with Good Chaos. Mike Goodridge, Gregory Ouanhon and Antonio Salas are EPs. The film is backed by Finnish Film Foundation, Business Finland – Audiovisual Production Incentive, Film Tampere and Finnish TV and streaming channel MTV Cmore. Stage 6 Films financed the film and retains international rights, excluding Nordics, which is held by Nordisk Film.
Eda Kowan, Lionsgate’s EVP of Acquisitions & Co-Productions, said, “Sisu screened as a TIFF Midnight Madness selection, and it was so exciting to experience it as the audience went crazy for it. And the critics agreed – 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s a symphony of outrageous, visceral action and a real crowd-pleaser. We are confident that it will connect with a wider audience.”
“When we first read Jalmari’s script, we knew he had crafted an outrageous and explosive thrill-ride that needed to be seen in a theater. The positive response from TIFF only validated our instinct, and we are excited to be working with Lionsgate to show the world the meaning of the word Sisu,” said Joe Matukewicz, Head of Sony Picture’s Stage 6 Films.
Eric Charles oversaw the film for Sony’s Stage 6 Films.
Kowan, Michael Meyer, Christopher Davis, and Kaycee Holcomb negotiated on behalf of Lionsgate. WME Independent negotiated the deal on behalf of Stage 6 Films. Helander is repped by WME and Jerome Duboz of Ithaka Media.
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