Standout Paris-based sales outfit Luxbox (“1976”) has acquired international sales rights to the debut solo feature effort from Chilean multi-hyphenate Vinko Tomičić Salinas(“Durmiente”),“The Dog Thief” (“El Ladrón de Perros”), which bows in the international narrative competition at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, running June 5-16.
The film follows an adolescent shoe shining orphan, Martín (Franklin Aro Huasco), in his quest to get closer to Mr. Novoa, a lonely tailor in town whom he believes is his father.
After a twisted ruse is hatched to excuse his further prying, the teen winds up against a wall in a situation that could cause him to lose the nascent, yet budding, relationship.
Novoa, played by Pablo Larraín regular Alfredo Castro, last seen in “El Conde,” reluctantly opens-up to the youngster and the two form an undeniable bond in this drama that takes quotidian life to new heights by infusing it with boundless sentiment and the ubiquitous yearning for belonging and community that can lead to desperate and self-defeating ends.
“We’re extremely happy to join the journey of ‘The Dog Thief,’ a film that discusses fatherhood and love and universal subjects through a local and intriguing story that happens in La Paz, Bolivia,” Luxbox CEO Fiorella Moretti told Variety.
The project is produced by Salinas’ Chile-based Calamar Cine (“Cockroach”) alongside Matias de Bourguignon, Alvaro Manzano Zambrana at Bolivia’s Color Monster, Gabriela Maire and Edher Campos at Mexico’s Zafiro Cinema, co-produced by Nadia Turincev and Omar El Kadi at France’s Easy Riders, Pavel Quevedo at Ecuador’s Aguacero Cine and Francesca van der Staay with Mario Mazzarotto at Italy’s Movimento Film. The cast is rounded out by Teresa Ruiz, María Luque, Julio César Altamirano and Ninón Dávalos.
“We’re thrilled to be represented by Luxbox, a company we’ve always wanted to collaborate with. We were familiar with their dedication to the titles they handle, and we have always aspired to work with someone who would treat our project with the same care, attention, and affection that we poured into it,” Manzano, managing partner and director at Color Monster, relayed.
“With Fiorella and her team, we share a vision of what this film can bring and the significance of ensuring that Bolivian and Latin American cinema is distributed and seen in more places,” he added.
The film participated in Guadalajara’s Co-production Meeting and was selected at Venice Biennale College Cinema and EAVE Puentes, the Europe-Latin America film development workshop backed by the E.U. Media Program.
