EXCLUSIVE: Ketchup Leisure has acquired North American rights to Ozi, Voice of the Forest, an animated characteristic produced by Appian Approach Productions, Mike Medavoy and GCI Movie, which incorporates a voice forged led by Amandla Stenberg.
World premiering ultimately yr’s Annecy Animation Movie Pageant, the movie is slated for a large theatrical rollout later this yr.
The movie, directed by Tim Harper, follows Ozi (Stenberg), an orphan orangutan who makes use of her influencer expertise to save lots of her forest and residential from deforestation.
Meant to lift consciousness across the points our planet’s rainforests face as a consequence of rising ranges of deforestation, and the way this impacts ecosystems and local weather change, the movie additionally options the voices of Dean Charles Chapman, Djimon Hounsou, Donald Sutherland, Laura Dern, RuPaul Charles, and Urzila Carlson. Meant as the primary movie in a climate-themed franchise, to be adopted by Ocean — a movie now in improvement — it incorporates a title track penned by Honorary Oscar winner Diane Warren.
“OZI, VOICE OF THE FOREST is a movie the entire household can get pleasure from,” acknowledged Ketchup Leisure CEO Gareth West. “We’re thrilled to be working with Appian Approach, GCI and Mike Medavoy and sharing this well timed story with audiences in North America.”
Added Adam Stanhope, Director of GCI Movie, “Ketchup are an thrilling distributor; their bold dedication to theatrical is vital step in introducing Ozi and the Voices Franchise to US audiences.”
Just lately distributing Michel Franco’s Reminiscence, starring Jessica Chastain and Peter Sarsgaard, which introduced Sarsgaard the Venice Movie Pageant’s Volpi Cup for Greatest Actor and Chastain, an Unbiased Spirit Award nomination, Ketchup Leisure’s different notable current tasks embody Michael Mann’s Ferrari (distributed alongside Neon) and the Ben Affleck starrer Hypnotic. Up subsequent, the corporate will launch movies together with Hallie Meyers-Shyer’s comedy Goodrich, starring Michael Keaton and Mila Kunis; Brian Taylor’s Hellboy: The Crooked Man starring Jack Kesy; and George Huang’s Weekend in Taipei, starring Luke Evans and Gwei Lun-mei.
The deal was brokered by Fred Hedman at GFM.