Shout! Studios has acquired North American distribution rights to Into The Wonderwoods (Angelo dans la forêt mystérieuse).
The French-language animated fantasy is directed by Vincent Paronnaud, co-director of the Cannes jury prize winner and Oscar-nominated Persepolis (2007) set during the 1979 Iranian revolution, and Alexis Ducord, co-director of the César-nominated Franco-Belgian monster comedy Zombillenium (2017).
Wonderwoods played at the 2024 Cannes and Annecy film festivals, and has thus far been released in France, Russia, Estonia, and Ukraine. The story, which is based on a graphic novel authored by Paronnaud under his pseudonym ‘Winshluss,’ is about an imaginative 10-year-old on a visit to his grandmother who becomes separated from his parents, and then discovers an enchanted forest populated by giant ogres, living foliage, menacing robots, and a rebellious wood-sprite.
Watch the French-language trailer below:
Budgeted at under €10m (Usd$10.5 million), the film was produced by Je Suis Bien Content, Gao Shan Pictures in France, and Zeilt Productions in Luxembourg.
Shout’s North American rights include theatrical, video-on-demand, broadcast, packaged media, and airlines in U.S. and Canada. Paris-based Urban Sales handled the sale to Shout.
Deadline first reported on the Shout! Studios’ acquisition, and quoted the studio’s executive vice president Melissa Boag:
“Into the Wonderwoods offers a wondrous movie adventure enriched by stunning animation, memorable characters, and positive messages that will appeal to both families and animation enthusiasts. We look forward to building a broad audience across all major distribution platforms.”
