Sony Pictures Classics has acquired North American distribution rights for Francis Ford Coppola’s Youth Without Youth.
Coppola wrote, directed, and produced Youth Without Youth, adapting the screenplay from a novella by legendary Romanian author Mircea Eliade. Youth Without Youth marks Coppola’s long-awaited return to personal filmmaking — harkening back to earlier projects such as The Rain People and The Conversation. It is his first film in a decade.
Youth Without Youth stars Tim Roth as Dominic Matei, an elderly professor whose mysterious rejuvenation heightens his intelligence and whose apparent immortality makes him a target for the Nazis in this World War II-era parable. “It is a love story wrapped in a mystery,” said Coppola.
“This film was conceived and completed independently. It was made with a small team that worked intensively in Romania for a year and a half. The story revolves around the key themes that I most hope to understand better: time, consciousness, and the dream-like basis of reality,” said Coppola. “I consider Sony Classics the pre-eminent distributor of fine filmmaking. Following in a tradition begun at the side of Arthur Krim, through the excellence of UA and Orion Classics, Michael Barker and Tom Bernard remain for me the ultimate authority of what I consider true cinema — ambitious and satisfying personal films that take their place alongside traditions of literature and art. I consider myself fortunate to be working with such a company and proud that ‘Youth Without Youth’ will be under their care. I am lucky that my number one wish for the distributor of ‘Youth Without Youth’ has come true.”
Michael Barker and Tom Bernard co-presidents of Sony Pictures Classics say, “‘Youth Without Youth’ is what we call a full meal, satisfying in all departments. It is personal, sweeping, and entertaining. It is unlike anything we’ve seen before. It is the kind of innovative movie we’ve come to appreciate from new successful independent filmmakers while at the same time possessing a mastery of story, sound, and visuals that you can only get from a Francis Coppola movie. The title says it all. We are thrilled to bring such a film to the American audience. May Sony Pictures Classics bring the same fresh energy to the release of ‘Youth Without Youth’ as Francis has in its creation.”
The film also stars Alexandra Maria Lara, Bruno Ganz, Andre M. Hennicke, Marcel Iures, and introduces Alexandra Pirici.
Anahid Nazarian and Fred Roos were Executive Producers. The director of photography was Mihai Malaimare Jr; with production design by Calin Papura, and costume design by Gloria Papura. Academy-Award winner Peter King and Jeremy Woodhead designed and executed the special makeup effects and hairstyles. Roman Coppola directed the second unit. Oscar-winner Walter Murch joined Coppola in Romania to edit the film. The music was composed by one of today’s most exciting classical composers, Osvaldo Golijov. The film was a Euro-treaty co-production of SRG Atelier, Pricel, and BIM Distribuzione, and is presented by American Zoetrope. A late Fall 2007 release is planned.
