Sundance 2020: Every Movie Sold So Far, From ‘Ironbark’ to ‘Palm Springs’

While the Sundance 2020 market started slow, sales started to pick up late Sunday night with “The Night House” and “Herself,” followed by “Ironbark” and “Uncle Frank” on Monday morning. Since then a handful of documentaries have sold, and Andy Sambert’s “Palm Springs” set a new festival sales record at $17.5 million.

A lot of films selected as part of the festival program also already had distribution in place. Others pre-sold before the festival even began:  “The Father,” the documentary “Mucho Mucho Amor” and the midnight thriller “His House” have already found homes. We’ll be updating this list with any additional sales as they come in.

*Also Read:* 16 Buzziest Sundance Movies for Sale in 2020, From Julianne Moore's 'The Glorias' to Michael Keaton's 'Worth' (Photos)

Sundance Institute

*“Boys State”*

Apple and A24 bought the global rights to political documentary “Boys State” on Monday, which is playing in the U.S. documentary competition. THR reported that the deal was for $10 million, but sources could not confirm the amount.

The film is produced by Laurene Powell Jobs, Davis Guggenheim, Jonathan Silberberg and Nicole Stott and was also the first sale completed for the newly formed Concordia Studio.

Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine directed the film that is described as something of a coming-of-age story following 17-year-old boys in Texas who all exist on different ends of the political spectrum as it tries to examine how democracy works in today’s America.

A24 will release the film theatrically before it debuts on Apple TV+.

*“His House”*

Netflix on Jan. 22 acquired the worldwide rights to “His House,” a thriller that played in the Midnight section of the festival. Remi Weekes wrote and directed the film about a refugee couple that escapes Sudan and start a new life in a small English town, only to encounter an evil force that begins to haunt their life.

Felicity Evans and Toby Venables wrote the screenplay that became Weekes’ debut film. Wunmi Mosaku and Sope Dirisu star in the thriller.

*Also Read:* 'Mucho Mucho Amor' Film Review: Rapturous Documentary Pays Tribute to Scintillating Oracle Walter Mercado

*“Mucho Mucho Amor”*

On Jan. 19, Netflix acquired the worldwide rights to “Mucho Mucho Amor,” a feature documentary about Walter Mercado, the famed Puerto Rican astrologer and TV personality who dazzled viewers for over four decades before his death last November.

The feature film, directed by Cristina Costantini and Kareem Tabsch, showcases how Mercado broke through gender norms and influenced generations of Latino figures, including Lin-Manuel Miranda, Eugenio Derbez and Raul De Molina, who are all featured in the documentary.

“Mucho Mucho Amor” premiered at Sundance on Jan. 24.

*Also Read:* Walter Mercado, Famed Puerto Rican TV Astrologer, Dies at 87

Courtesy of Sundance Institute

*“The Father”*

Sony Pictures Classics on Jan. 17 acquired the U.S. rights and select international rights to “The Father,” which stars Olivia Colman and Anthony Hopkins in a drama based on French writer Florian Zeller’s own adaptation of his stage play. Colman and Hopkins play daughter and father in a story about battling loss that comes with age.

“The Father” also stars mark Gatiss, Imogen Poots, Rufus Sewell and Olivia Williams. The play first launched in Paris in 2012 and won the Moliere Award for Best Play.

No release information has been set for “The Father.”

*Also Read:* Why 'The Perfect Candidate' Director Haifaa Al-Mansour Returned to Saudi Arabia After 'Cinema Was Legal'

*“The Perfect Candidate”*

Haifaa Al-Mansour’s “The Perfect Candidate” premiered at the Venice Film Festival in 2019, but it’s playing Sundance for its U.S. premiere and was acquired by Music Box Films on Jan. 17.

Al-Mansour’s drama was Saudia Arabia’s official submission to this year’s Academy Awards. It’s the story of a young, Saudi doctor who decides to run for local political office in an attempt to pressure the government to pave the road to her clinic, only to find herself invested as a rare woman entering a political race in her region.

The distributor is planning a 2020 theatrical release followed by a home entertainment rollout.

Courtesy of Sundance Film Festival

*“Uncle Frank”*

On Monday morning, Amazon Studios acquired Alan Ball’s “Uncle Frank” for $12 million. Alan Ball wrote and directed the film, which stars Paul Bettany as an esteemed literature professor at NYU where his teenage niece (Sophia Lillis) enrolls in 1973 and discovers that he has been hiding his relationship with his longtime partner, Wally (Peter Macdissi).

After the sudden death of surly patriarch Mac (Stephen Root), Frank reluctantly returns home for the funeral with Beth and Wally in tow. Along the way, he’s forced to reckon with the ghosts of the past and finally face his family.

The film, which follows the trio’s road trip from the bohemian scene of post-Stonewall New York City to rural South Carolina, also stars Judy Greer, Steve Zahn, Margo Martindale and Lois Smith.

*Also Read:* Benedict Cumberbatch's 'Ironbark' Nears Deal With Lionsgate, Roadside Attractions

Courtesy of Sundance Institute

*“Ironbark”*

On Monday morning, Lionsgate was in the final stages of acquiring U.S. distribution rights to the Benedict Cumberbatch thriller “Ironbark.” Roadside Attractions will handle theatrical distribution as part of the deal following the film’s Friday night premiere at the Sundance Film Festival.

Tom O’Connor wrote the script, which follows Cumberbatch as Greville Wynne, who leads a quiet life with his wife Sheila (Jessie Buckley) until he’s recruited because of his ordinariness to serve his country when rumblings of a mole in the Soviet Union government reach British intelligence agent Dickie Franks (Angus Wright) and CIA official Emily Donovan (Rachel Brosnahan).

Photo credit: Sundance

*“Herself”*

Late Sunday night, Amazon Studios acquired the North American rights to Phyllida Lloyd’s “Herself.”

The distributor is planning a theatrical release for the film later this year. No financial details were disclosed.

“Herself” follows single mother Sandra, who escapes her abusive partner with her two young children, but soon finds herself trapped in temporary accommodations. She then comes up with the idea to self-build an affordable home with the help of friends and neighbors.

Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Elisha Christian.

*“The Night House”*

Late Sunday, there were reports that Rebecca Hall’s “The Night House” was nearing a deal to be acquired by Searchlight Pictures for $12 million.

The David Bruckner film stars Rebecca Hall, Evan Jonigkeit, Stacy Martin and Sarah Goldberg, and was written by Ben Collins and Luke Piotrowski. It follows a widow (Hall) who begins to uncover her recently deceased husband’s secrets.

Courtesy of Sundance Institute

*“Palm Springs”*

On Monday, Neon and Hulu acquired the rights to “Palm Springs,” starring Andy Samberg and Cristin Milioti. The film sold for $17,500,000.69, which conveniently set a new sales record at the festival by 69 cents. The sale beat out the previous record set by Nathan Parker’s “The Birth of a Nation” in 2016.

Max Barbakow directed the film that stars Samberg and Milioti as two reluctant wedding goers who find themselves unable to escape the venue or each other.

J.K. Simmons, Meredith Hagner, Camila Mendes and Peter Gallagher co-star in the film. Samberg also produced with Becky Sloviter, Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone, Dylan Sellers and Chris Parker.

Sundance Institute

*“The Truffle Hunters”*

Sony Pictures Classics nabbed the worldwide rights to “The Truffle Hunters,” a documentary playing in the World Cinema Documentary Competition at the festival. Gregory Kershaw and Michael Dweck directed the feature about a group of dogs and their owners in a region in Italy who are the only people in the world who know how to find one of the rarest and most valuable truffles around.

“Call Me By Your Name” director Luca Guadagnino executive produced the documentary. Submarine brokered the deal.

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