Fassbinder Biopic Gets Foreign Distribution in US, UK, and Other Markets

‘Enfant Terrible,’ new biopic about the life and career of German filmmaker Rainer Werner Fassbinder, has now received foriegn distribution deals from the US, UK, and other countries, Variety reports. The film is directed by Oskar Roehler and stars ‘Dark’ and ‘Look Who’s Back’ alum Oliver Masucci.

The film initially premiered in Germany earlier this month on October 1 at the Hamburg Film Festival. Other festivals that it was slated to be screened at or will be soon are Cannes, Ghent, Istanbul, and Seville Film Festivals. 

Excluding these festivals, the film has started negotiating for outside distribution. The first couple being in the US and the UK. The US distribution will be handled by Dark Star Pictures, while  Benelux with Arti Film or BFI will handle the UK rights. Among other distributors Cinobo(Greece), Rocket Releasing(Commonwealth of Independent States), and Transilvania Film(Romania) will hold the rights for their respective countries.

The film follows the quite riveting and almost unimaginably poignant life of director Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Fassbinder was a prolific filmmaker in the second half of the 20th century. In the 1970’s, he wrote, directed, and produced over thirty projects including film and tv credits. Most famous for his films ‘The Marriage of Maria Braun’ and ‘Fox and His Friends,’ the filmmaker was a complete force. 

His life is not simple though. A two hour film cannot capture the plethora of films he made, but also his complex relationships with the studios and the actors of his films. His magnum opus, 1974’s ‘Ali Fear Eats the Soul’ contextualizes this with one of his partners actually being the lead in that film. The film, about an old woman and a younger man in his 30’s, in many ways is autobiographical to Fassbinder. There is a genuine feeling in the film that can only be created by a similar feeling of internal struggle that Fassbinder clearly felt. 

The distribution rights are set and regardless of how good the biopic ‘Enfant Terrible’ is, Fassbinder certainly has a plethora of films that are equally about himself.