New Dubai-based distribution and production studio The Plot Pictures is headed for the Cannes Marche du Film after snapping up Middle East, North Africa and Turkey (MENAT) rights to a slew of indie titles across different genres.
They include “Locust,” a first feature film from Taiwanese American multidisciplinary artist Keff that is playing in Critics Week, and Nick Hamm’s epic “William Tell.”
The Plot Pictures CEO Pratixa Shah and head of sales Ozge Conduroglu – who was previously with Starz Play Arabia – are assembling a slate spanning “different genres, regions, and languages,” as Shah put it in statement. “We are agnostic to language and country of origin,” she said, noting that “the hyper local is often what global audiences are looking for, even if it is not local to them.”
The studio, which officially launched in Dubai in March, are co-producers on “Locust.” The film is set in Taiwan where, just as the 2019 Hong Kong protests erupt across the strait, a mute young man named Zhong-Han leads a double life: he works at a family restaurant by day, and hangs with gangsters at night.
Other fresh fare for which The Plot Pictures have snapped up MENAT rights include “William Tell,” which stars Ben Kingsley, Claes Bang and Jonathan Pryce; Iranian rom-com “My Favourite Cake” that premiered in Berlin; horror film “Terrifier 3” from Damien Leone and Phil Falcone; “Exhuma,” the chiller that’s recently been a South Korean box office phenomenon; Korean revenge thriller “Revolver”; and Thai action-horror “Operation Undead.”
The Plot Pictures has also acquired MENAT rights to action-thriller “Ballistic” co-starring Lena Headey and Amybeth McNulty and crime thriller “The Last Stop in Yuma County” by first-time director Francis Galluppi.
The studio’s animation slate comprises Chantelle Murray’s “The Lost Tiger,” touted as the first animated feature from Australia to be written and directed by an Indigenous woman, and “Rebellious” from Magic Frame Animation and Creation Entertainment Media, which is about a headstrong princess who is kidnapped by an evil sorcerer named Kezabor.
“We are committed to sourcing exceptional titles globally, catering to diverse audiences and partners,” Conduroglu said in the statement. “Beyond entertainment, we aim to be cultural catalysts, enriching the global cinematic landscape.”