Canadian Director Patricia Rozema’s Early Films Enjoy Revival As Kino Lorber, Mubi Take Rights To 4K Restorations

Melanie Goodfellow and Andreas Wiseman
·4 min read
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EXCLUSIVE: Montreal-based film sales and marketing consultancy Film Associates International has unveiled a slew of international deals on new 4K restorations of the work of celebrated Canadian director Patricia Rozema.

New York-based arthouse distributor Kino Lorber has acquired North America for her second and third features White Room (1990) and When Night Is Falling (1995) and U.S. rights for more recent work Mouthpiece (2018).

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Regarded as a classic in the LGBTQ+ cinema canon, the lesbian love story When Night Is Falling revolves around a literature professor in a religious college, in a relationship with a male colleague, who embarks on a passionate affair with a female circus performer.

Following its debut at the Berlinale in 1995, its North American release prompted unexpected controversy after Canada’s ‘The Globe and Mail’ dropped an advertisement for the film showing two women kissing, and in the U.S. the Motion Picture Assn. of America applied an NC-17 rating.

Rozema, who will be the head of Toronto’s Platform jury this year (following in the footsteps of Riz Ahmed and Jia Zhangke), remains active as a filmmaker but has seen her early work gain traction in recent months following Kino Lorber’s release of her debut film I’ve Heard The Mermaids Singing in 17 key cities across the U.S. this spring.

Now celebrating the 35th anniversary of the work’s Prix de la Jeunesse Award at Cannes, Rozema’s directorial debut launched on the Criterion Channel this month and will be released on Blu-Ray in North America by Kino Lorber on September 13.

The disc release will feature extras including a new commentary by Patricia Rozema, a Q&A conversation with Rozema and artist Laurie Anderson, a video essay from film historian Daniel Kremer, as well as a selection of the director’s short films.

“A bracingly innovative and trailblazing artist, Patricia Rozema stands apart as one of the foremost independent filmmakers of her generation,” said Richard Lorber, President & CEO of Kino Lorber. “Her nimble, intelligent filmmaking celebrates the rich inner lives of women and queer people, and her wide-ranging oeuvre remains every bit as relevant today as upon original release.

“Kino Lorber was honored to release the 4K restoration of I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing earlier this year and introduce a new generation of cinephiles to Patricia’s work. With this latest partnership, we couldn’t be more thrilled to share more of her boldly inventive and richly charming films with audiences across the United States and Canada.”

In addition to partnering with Kino Lorber for North America, Film Associates International co-founder and partner Brigitte Hubmann has also recently negotiated Mubi’s year-long acquisition of I’ve Heard The Mermaids Singing, making it available in more than 230 territories worldwide as a double-bill with Mouthpiece.

Hubmann has also overseen deals to German distributor Salzgeber & Co. which has acquired rights for I’ve Heard The Mermaids Singing and When Night Is Falling for Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Mouthpiece is also distributed with Bulldog Films in the U.K.

Rozema, who was a member of the Toronto New Wave of the 1980s and early 1990s, is regarded as one of Canada’s most daring and versatile directors, who pushed boundaries by exploring lesbian and female themes when few others were.

I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing is still considered one of Canada’s most successful films and was voted by 100 international critics and filmmakers as one of Canada’s 10 best films.

Rozema’s more recent work includes Mansfield Park (1999), Into the Forest (2016), Six Gestures part of the Yo-Yo Ma: Inspired by Bach film  (1997), Samuel Beckett’s Happy Days (2000), Women Who Act (2015) as well as penning the award-winning Grey Gardens (2010) and Kit Kittredge, An American Girl (2008) for New Line & HBO and directing other TV projects, including pilots for HBO & Netflix.

The director is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. She is represented by Rowena Arguelles and Angela Dallas at CAA and Ralph Zimmerman at Great North Artists in Canada.

The new 4K restoration of When Night Is Falling was made possible by the Canada Media Fund’s Encore+ YouTube channel in partnership with Telefilm Canada.

To commemorate Canada 150 in 2017, I’ve Heard The Mermaids Singing was digitally restored by Library and Archives Canada, Cinematheque Québécoise, The Cinematheque, and TIFF. Its 4K restoration made possible by The Government of Canada, Canada 150, RBC, Ontario 150 and Telefilm.

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