EXCLUSIVE: Financing and production banner Jovera Pictures has hired former eOne Vice President of Film Rainer Grupe to its team. Grupe was a producer on Joaquin Phoenix starrer Buffalo Soldiers and also handled global sales for documentary George Michael: A Different Story.
The hire comes as Jovera Pictures has completed production on feature Fly Little Bird, the latest film from writer-director Johannes Boesiger (Children of the Open Road). The English-language film stars Majinder Virk (The Arbor) and rising star Zoë Bleu, who recently hit screens in Luc Besson’s Dracula.
The project, which is written and directed by Boesiger, also stars Michael Landes (Cruel Summer), Adam Bakri (Omar), Palestinian singer-songwriter Rasha Nahas, the late Mohammed Bakri, Bollywood star Deepti Naval, German actress Adriana Altaras and Daniel Zuta.
Fly Little Bird follows the story of an American singer struggling with addiction who escapes her family’s West Bank settlement, eventually finding refuge in a Palestinian news agency, implicating those who shelter her.
The project is produced by Eric von Schulhess, Boesiger, Alexa Waugh (Cielo) and Rula Nasser (Rebel). Grupe joins the project as an exec producer and he will steer distribution, sales and marketing. Additional exec producers on the project are Toni Piëch, Markus A. Frey and Ulrich Kohli. Grupe and Waugh will be shopping the film to buyers at the upcoming European Film Market in Berlin later this week.
Fly Little Bird was shot in the Middle East, India, and London and centers on a tale inspired by true events. Music plays a huge element in the project, with composer Nitin Sawhney attached as well as Bleu and Nahas set to perform.
‘Fly Little Bird’
“It was a great privilege to be able to bring this film to life with an incredibly dedicated team of producers, who also allowed me to put together a cast that suited the story,” said Boesiger in a statement. “This made it possible to find discoveries that lend the story great emotional authenticity and warmth. The seeds of this film were sown long ago, when I was living in the Middle East, India and London, searching for catharsis for my own experiences. Fly Little Bird has become a film that is as personal as it is honest.”
Grupe added: “I am incredibly proud of this film. It is a music-driven drama that explores heavy themes such as addiction, grief and identity in a way that feels fresh and natural. With a triple-A music team featuring Nitin Sawhney, Hugh Padgham and Rasha Nahas, combined with Zoë Bleu’s transformative performance, we have something truly special. This is the ideal project to launch Jovera’s slate.”