Mk2 Films has obtained international rights, and Magnolia Pictures acquired North America rights to Raoul Peck’s documentary about Ernest Cole. Mk2 Films will have their sales in Cannes between May 16 through May 27. Magnolia Pictures’ goal is to do a theatrical release in North America, although a date has not been announced yet.

Cole is the first Black freelance photographer in South Africa. The Untitled Ernest Cole Documentary illustrated the brutal life under apartheid in South Africa. It demonstrated the only employment for Black people was to be a laborer. Cole left for the United States in 1966 because he did not follow South Africa’s rules. His photography was then continued in the South and New York. Cole was intrigued by the similarities and differences between the United States and South Africa. Later while living in the United States, Cole published House of Bondage, which showed pictures going against the apartheid in South Africa.

Magnolia Pictures and co-CEO Dori Begley stated, “The opportunity to serve auteurs like the great Raoul Peck is why we do this work. With his comparable vision and integrity as our guide, team Magnolia can’t wait to help share the extraordinary story of this essential artist with audiences.” 

Mk2 Films’ managing director, Fionnuala Jamison, stated: “The combination of a powerful human rights story, Ernest Cole’s struggles as an exiled artist, and the mystery around his negatives and legacy promise to deliver an incredibly moving and thrilling film from the masterful documentarian.” 

After Cole died in 1990, 60,000 film negatives were found in a bank vault in Stockholm, Sweden. With the collaboration of Peck and the Ernest Cole Family Estate, Peck has been given access to Cole’s archive. Peck plans to present Cole’s work to a new generation and understand the mystery of the missing negatives.