Picturehouse has purchased the North American rights to HELLBOY director Guillermo del Toro's dark fairy tale PAN'S LABYRINTH for nearly $6 million, reports the trades. Picturehouse president Bob Berney and Wild Bunch's Carole Baraton netted the long-in-the-works deal at Sundance.
Set in fascist, 1940s Spain, the story follows Ofelia, a lonely, dreamy child who tries to come to terms with an era of postwar repression by creating a world filled with mythical creatures. Maribel Verdu, Sergi Lopez, Ivana Baquero and Doug Jones star.
Picturehouse will platform the film starting in October. The film is the first Spanish-language release for Picturehouse, a joint venture between HBO and New Line Cinema.
Alfonso Cuaron (Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN, HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN) co-produced the $17.8 million movie with partners Frida Torresblanco and del Toro as well as Tequila Gang's Bertha Navarro. Spanish network Telecinco, via its production arm Estudios Picasso, funded most of the budget. Estudios Picasso head Alvaro Augustin served as exec producer.
Wild Bunch has worldwide sales rights while Warner Bros Intl. owns the rights to Spain and Latin America.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
