Steve Bannon Documentary 'The Brink' Acquired by Magnolia Pictures

“The Brink,” a documentary about former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon that follows him after his departure from the Trump administration, has been acquired by Magnolia Pictures for worldwide rights ahead of its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, the distributor announced Wednesday.

The film was added to the Sundance lineup earlier in the day. Alison Klayman (“Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry”) directs the film that’s described as a fly-on-the-wall look at Bannon in which Klayman got “unprecedented access.”

“The Brink” was co-financed with RYOT Films and is being planned for a theatrical release in spring of this year.

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Here’s the full synopsis via Magnolia:

In “The Brink,” when Steve Bannon leaves his position at the White House less than a week after the Charlottesville “Unite the Right” rally in August 2017, he is notorious for having saved the Trump campaign and bringing a far-right ideology into the highest echelons of American politics. Now unconstrained by an official post, he is free to peddle influence as a perceived kingmaker – who some say still has a direct line to the White House – in an effort to turn his brand of nationalism into a global movement. The film follows Bannon through the 2018 mid-term elections in the United States and sheds light on his efforts to mobilize and unify far-right parties in order to win seats in the May 2019 European Parliamentary elections. To maintain his newfound power and influence, the former Goldman Sachs banker and media investor reinvents himself – as he has done many times before – this time as the self-appointed leader of a global “populist movement.” A keen manipulator of the press and gifted self-promoter, Bannon continues to draw headlines and protests wherever he goes, feeding the powerful myth on which his survival relies.

Magnolia has already acquired two other documentaries making its world premiere at the festival, “Hail Satan?” and “Ask Dr. Ruth,” the latter which the distributor picked up in partnership with Hulu.

This is the second documentary to arrive on Bannon in recent months, the other being the Errol Morris-directed “American Dharma,” which is still awaiting distribution.

Also Read: Jennifer Kent's 'The Nightingale' Acquired by IFC Films Ahead of Sundance

Directed and filmed by Klayman, “The Brink” was produced by Marie Therese Guirgis and Klayman. Executive producers are Adam Bardach, Hayley Pappas, Bryn Mooser, and Matt Ippolito.

The deal was negotiated by Magnolia EVP Dori Begley and Magnolia SVP of Acquisitions John Von Thaden with RYOT Films COO Matt Ippolito, and Victoria Cook of Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz on behalf of the filmmakers.

Variety was first to report.

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