Sony Pictures Classics has acquired the rights to Niki Byrne’s “The Julia Set,” starring Chase Infiniti, following the film’s world premiere at TIFF.
Written and directed by Byrne, the film was one of the festival’s highlights, thanks in large part to Infiniti’s impressive performance. The “One Battle in a Row” and “Testament” star received rave reviews; Diversity — as Julia Fischer, a mathematical prodigy on her way to becoming the youngest, most talented student at her elite preparatory course, while engaging in an abusive romantic relationship with her teacher’s assistant, Pascal (Christopher Briney). Amid these pressures, the film’s synopsis explains: “Julia must find the strength to follow the path she is destined to follow.”
Jason Isaacs and Gillian Anderson also play Pascal’s parents, while Nina Hoss, Carmen Ejogo, Chloe Bailey, Nico Hiraga, Liz Lin and Alex Dillard complete the acclaimed cast.
“Growing up, I didn’t understand that people made movies. I thought they were the purview of the gods, that they fell from the sky and if we were lucky, we caught them,” Byrne said in a statement. “For 35 years of my life, Michael Barker, Tom Bernard and their team at Sony Pictures Classics have ensured that audiences have been treated to movies worth watching. I couldn’t be prouder to add ‘Julia Set’ to their extraordinary library and know that movies will be seen together as they were meant to be seen: in a darkened theater.”
Sony Pictures Classics, led by Michael Barker and Tom Bernard, will distribute the film in the United States, Benelux, Switzerland, Italy, Scandinavia, Spain, the United Kingdom, Eastern Europe (excluding Poland), Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Israel and Asia (excluding Singapore). The studio plans to release it in theaters next year.
“Taking on topics as diverse as feminism, romantic passion, class differences, family conflict, bullying and love, and even what it means to be a mathematical genius, Niki Byrne’s emotionally compelling and moving directorial debut brings meaning to living in the modern world,” the Sony Pictures Classics team added.
“Seeing the enthusiastic response at TIFF confirms what promises to be a huge theatrical success, and also reinforces that Chase Infiniti’s much-lauded performance in ‘One Battle After Another’ was no coincidence,” the studio’s statement continued. “He is at the center of this incredibly rich, even suspensefully entertaining film, supported by a superb cast.”
The deal was negotiated between Sony Pictures Classics and Gersh.