Focus Features has acquired worldwide rights, excluding France, to director Laure de Clermont-Tonnerre’s drama “Mustang.”
Matthias Schoenaerts (“The Danish Girl”) and Jason Mitchell (“Kong: Skull Island”) will star in the film, which will begin production in September from a script by de Clermont-Tonnerre with Mona Fastvold and Brock Norman Brock.
Schoenaerts will play a convict named Roman who is given the chance to participate in a rehabilitation therapy program training wild mustangs.
With little connection to his fellow inmates, Roman now struggles to communicate with the animals.
Working under the firm guidance of veteran trainer and alongside another young convict (Mitchell), Roman forges a strong bond with a particularly difficult mustang, which forces him to confront his harsh past and innermost demons.
Alain Goldman is producing through his company Legende, with Molly Hallam serving as executive producer.
France 3, Canal + and Ad Vitam will handle distribution in France.
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De Clermont-Tonnerre developed “Mustang” through the Sundance Labs and received the Sundance Institute/NHK Award for the project in 2015.
Mitchell is repped by UTA, Authentic Talent and Literary, and Ziffren Brittenham; Schoenaerts is repped by CAA and UBBA.
Focus has been on a bit of a buying streak on the Croisette, having already acquired Wim Wenders’ documentary “Pope Francis, a Man of His Word.”