Tarak Ben Ammar’s Italian outfit Eagle Pictures and Italy’s PiperFilm have announced a multi-pronged distribution partnership. Under their deal, PiperFilm will handle world sales on several Eagle-produced titles including upcoming comedy “Leopardi & Co” starring Whoopi Goldberg and Jeremy Irvine.
PiperFilm will launch sales on the English-language film, directed by Italy’s Federica Biondi, at the upcoming European Film Market. In “Leopardi & Co,” Goldberg portrays the agent of an American actor played by Irvine and lands him a part as the great Italian poet Giacomo Leopardi. But since her client knows nothing about Leopardi, a young Italian woman (played by Denise Tantucci) is hired to provide background information. Romance ensues.
The pact will see PiperFilm handling distribution of several Italian films produced by Eagle Pictures, while the Home Entertainment division of Eagle Pictures will handle the home video and transactional rights of PiperFilm’s lineup, starting with Paolo Sorrentino’s “Parthenope.”
Eagle Pictures titles that PiperFilm sales agent Catia Rossi will be selling at the EFM include smash hit “The Boy With Pink Pants,” a teen drama by Margherita Ferri about the harrowing true tale of a 15-year-old boy who took his own life after enduring bullying at school and online. The film has been this year’s surprise big winner at the Italian box office, grossing more than $9 million. Rossi will also be touting Italian rom-com “Get Help,” directed by Tiziano Russo and starring Asia Argento, Matilde Gioli and Pierpaolo Spollon, which will release in Italian cinemas on Feb. 6.
“We are really very pleased with the start of this partnership with Eagle Pictures,” said PiperFilm CEO Massimiliano Orfei in a statement. “Both our companies share a spirit of innovation and independence,” he added, noting that “this collaboration will be able to generate great value for interested parties and for the entire market.”
Commented Eagle Pictures CEO Andrea Goretti: “This partnership with PiperFilm – a new independent player that has presented itself to the market with a very ambitious project – makes us particularly happy and, above all, motivated to ensure that what we have achieved now is only the beginning of a collaboration journey that will have further developments going forward.”
