Kino Lorber has acquired North American distribution rights to Fatih Akin’s coming-of-age drama “Amrum,” which made its world premiere as an Official Selection of this month’s Cannes Film Festival. The film will be released theatrically by Kino Lorber followed by a digital, educational and home video release. Beta Cinema is handling global sales.
Directed by Akin and co-written by Akin and frequent collaborator Hark Bohm (“In the Fade,” “Goodbye Berlin”), Amrum is based on Bohm’s own personal experiences growing up on Amrum Island. Starring Laura Tonke, Diane Kruger, and first-time child actor Jasper Ole Billerbeck, the film marks Akin’s first collaboration with Kruger since “In the Fade,” which won her Cannes’ best actress prize in 2017.
The film is set on Amrum Island in spring 1945. In the final days of the war, 12-year-old Nanning (Billerbeck) braves the treacherous sea to hunt seals, goes fishing at night, and works the nearby farm to help his mother feed the family. Despite the hardship, life on the beautiful, windswept island almost feels like paradise. But when peace finally comes, it reveals a deeper threat: the enemy is far closer than he imagined.
In her review for Variety, Tomris Laffly described the film as “poetic and elegantly spare” and “graceful and profound.” She added that it “offers a taste of a near-extinct big-screen film about the innocence of childhood, its loss and endurance.”
The deal for “Amrum” was negotiated by Kino Lorber VP of acquisitions Karoliina Dwyer and Dirk Schuerhoff, CEO of Beta Cinema.
“We were moved by the meditative beauty and stunning cinematography of Fatih Akin’s ‘Amrum,’ a true standout of this year’s Cannes Film Festival,” said Lisa Schwartz, chief distribution and revenue officer for Kino Lorber. “Eighty years after its conclusion, Akin captures a rarely depicted side of World War II with emotion and poignancy, and found the perfect lead in the remarkable young actor Jasper Ole Billerbeck. We’re proud to continue partnering with the team at Beta Cinema to bring this powerful film to North American audiences.”
Akin said: “I have been following Kino Lorber’s program for many years. Their selection always includes highly sophisticated and distinctive films that have broadened my cinematic horizons. That’s why I am deeply delighted that Kino Lorber will be distributing my film ‘Amrum’ in the United States and Canada. It is a film that reflects the spirit of our times and tells the story of political rifts within a family. I look forward to the collaboration and hope the film will find its audience in America.”
“Amrum” is a Bombero International, Warner Bros. Film Productions Germany production, in co-production with Rialto Film, with the support of FFA, DFFF, Moin Film Förderung Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein, BKM, MBB, MFG and Bayerischer Filmpreis. The film is produced by Akin and Herman Weigel.
Akin broke through in 2004 with “Head-On,” which won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival. He also directed “The Edge of Heaven” (2007), winner of the best screenplay award at Cannes, “Soul Kitchen” (2009), which won the special jury prize at Venice, and “In the Fade” (2016), which won the award for the best actress for Kruger in Cannes, and the Golden Globe for the best foreign-language film.
