Roughly a yr after its launch, Italian state broadcaster RAI’s new gross sales unit for movie is at Cannes with its first full-fledged slate headlined by surreal Western “Heads or Tails” starring John C. Reilly as Buffalo Invoice throughout his keep in Italy that’s launching in Un Sure Regard.

The RAI Cinema Worldwide Distribution slate additionally features a new under-the-radar doc by distinguished Russian documentary filmmaker Victor Kossakovsky, identified for “Gunda” and “Aquarela.” Kossakovsky is now making one other ecology-themed doc titled “Tears for Firs” in collaboration with Italian botanist Stefano Mancuso, a pioneer within the plant neurobiology motion who has written a number of best-selling books together with “Tree Tales.” “It’s about the whole life cycle of timber and the correlation between flowers and the lifetime of our planet,” mentioned RAI Cinema chief Paolo Del Brocco.

“Tears for First” is being produced by Rome-based Be Water Movie with RAI Cinema.

Del Brocco in Cannes spoke to Selection about how the brand new Italian gross sales outfit has been faring and what’s in its pipeline.

Why did you launch a gross sales unit and the way has it been going?

We’re Italy’s foremost film producers, so it made sense for us to finish the mixing of our movie enterprise by beginning to instantly deal with gross sales on a small portion of the movies that we produce, co-produce, and distribute with a purpose to give them higher visibility in world markets. Each when it comes to industrial gross sales and distribution and in addition higher participation in festivals. We’ve primarily geared our gross sales aspect primarily in the direction of new Italian cinema, as our slate exhibits. And after a yr now we have a extra strong lineup and a few outcomes to point out. We began with Margherita Vicario’s musical comedy “Gloria!” which bought to 40 nations, we bought Trudy Styler’s documentary “Posso Entrare? An Ode to Naples” to 35 nations, together with to Hulu within the U.S. And we lately had nice success with “Madly” by “Excellent Strangers” director Paolo Genovese that has bought to 40 territories and continues to be promoting. Extra importantly, like “Excellent Strangers” we’re promoting remake rights. We simply bought “Madly” to China and Paolo will likely be attending the Shanghai Movie Pageant with this movie.

What are your expectations for ‘Heads or Tails’ when it comes to gross sales?

So, first off, it’s the second characteristic by these two administrators, Alessio Rigo de Righi and Matteo Zoppi, whose earlier movie “The Story of King Crab” made a splash in Administrators’ Fortnight. It’s a really authentic movie which I believe goes to promote nicely and we’re additionally distributing it in Italy, so we actually consider in it. The solid is superb as a result of, in addition to John C. Reilly ,it has Alessandro Borghi (“Supersex”) and French star Nadia Tereszkiewicz (“Purple Island”). And it’s a really gripping story about when Buffalo Invoice got here to Italy. So it’s a really buzzy movie and we’ve had loads of patrons on the market screenings. After all the truth that it’s enjoying in the direction of the top of the competition means we are able to’t profit from critiques but, however it’s sparking nice curiosity and these are administrators who we wish to proceed to work with going ahead.

Under are different standout recent titles in RAI Cinema Worldwide Distribution slate:

— “A 12 months of College,” directed by Laura Samani. That is the second characteristic by Samani who made a splash with “Small Physique” that was a 2021 Cannes Critics’ Week standout. It’s an adaptation of Italian creator Giani Stuparich’s 1929 novel of the identical identify that’s been transposed to 2007 and set in all-male high-school class in Trieste the place the arrival of an exuberant 17-year-old Swedish lady named Fred disrupts present dynamics.

— “Siblings,” directed by Greta Scarano. Matilda De Angelis (“Fuori”) stars because the sister of an autistic man named Omar who’s compelled to return to her hometown to look after her older brother named Omar on this tender comedy that marks the directorial debut of Scarano, an actor identified for roles in “The Title of The Rose” and the Italian adaptation of British TV collection “Liar.”

— “Elisa — Io la volevo uccidere.” A brand new psychological drama by Italian director Leonardo Di Costanzo (“The Interior Cage,” “The Intruder”) toplining French-Moroccan multi-hyphenate Roschd Zem (“Days of Glory,” “The Harmless”) and Italy’s Barbara Ronchi (“Kidnapped”). 

–– “Christmas Tune,” a doc by Roberta Torre (“Tano to Die For”) about feminine inmates in a Milan penitentiary who’re getting ready to carry out Christmas carols behind bars and gives a number of backstories of why they’re in jail.