‘Anora’ First Look: Sean Baker’s Rom-Com Marks His Return to Cannes

Sean Baker is officially returning to Cannes with his new rom-com “Anora.”

While the plot details remain under wraps, the feature is billed as an adventure rom-com, with the first look image showing a neon-lit club scene. Baker writes and directs the feature, which will debut at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.

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The cast includes Mikey Madison, Mark Eydelshteyn, Yura Borisov, Karen Karagulian, and Vache Tovmasyan. Drew Daniels served as director of photography and shot the feature on 35mm film. The feature was filmed in Brooklyn and will be released by Neon later this year.

“Making an independent film is never easy no matter how many you have under your belt!” Baker said in a 2023 press statement (via Variety). “I feel so fortunate to have been given the resources and support to fulfill my vision in an uncompromised way. Thank you to my collaborators including Glen Basner and the FilmNation team, my incredible cast, crew and producers, and to the city of New York for providing a rich cinematic backdrop for our story. I look forward to sharing this with filmgoers around the world next year.”

“Anora” is Baker’s latest film to debut at Cannes, following 2021’s “Red Rocket” and 2017’s “The Florida Project.” “Anora” is Baker’s eighth film writing and directing. Baker also produces “Anora” along with
Alex Coco and Samantha Quan.

In addition to “Anora,” the Cannes lineup includes Mohammad Rasoulof’s return to the festival with “The Seed of the Sacred Fig,” Andrea Arnold’s buzzy “Bird” starring Barry Keoghan and Franz Rogowski, and Oliver Stone’s documentary “Lula” about the thrice-elected Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

Josh Mond’s sophomore feature “It Doesn’t Matter” also debuted a first look for the Cannes adjacent program ACID, run by France’s Association for the Diffusion of Independent Cinema (ACID). ACID takes place parallel to the Cannes Film Festival. “It Doesn’t Matter” stars Christopher Abbott and Jay Will and centers around a redemptive relationship between a lost man from Staten Island and a young filmmaker. “It Doesn’t Matter” is writer/director Mond’s first movie since his breakout Sundance 2015 directorial debut “James White,” which also starred Abbott. In addition to directing, Mond previously produced Sean Durkin’s “Martha Marcy May Marlene” and Antonio Campos’ “Simon Killer.”

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