More foreign Oscar fare
'Volver,' 'Banquet' picked
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"Volver," toplining Penelope Cruz, will represent Spain. Pic won an acting prize for its six femme leads at the Cannes Film Festival. It will be released in the U.S. by Sony Pictures Classics, Almodovar's longstanding domestic distrib, on Nov. 3.
Almodovar's relationship with the Spanish Academy has blown hot and cold. In 2002, it submitted Fernando Leon's "Mondays in the Sun" rather than Almodovar's "Talk to Her," which went on to win the Oscar for original screenplay.
"The Banquet," a co-production between Hong Kong's Media Asia and Chinese shingle Huayi Brothers, reps Hong Kong. Pic, helmed by Feng Xiaogang, is loosely based on "Hamlet."
Industryites believe this choice means that China's entry will almost certainly be helmer Zhang Yimou's third period romancer, "Curse of the Golden Flower." It will be released in Asia in December and in North America by Sony Pictures Classics.
Meanwhile, Taiwan has opted for "Blue Cha Cha," by helmer Cheng Wen-Tang, about a woman's first months out of jail.
The Czech Film and Television Academy has submitted Jan Svankmajer's surrealist outing "Lunacy."
Svankmajer's shingle Athenor had support from Czech TV, Barrandov Studios and Czech and Slovak state funding. Pic is a wild adaptation of two Edgar Allan Poe stories and tales of the Marquis de Sade.
Sweden has entered helmer Jesper Ganslandt's debut feature "Falkenberg Farewell," which screened at Venice and Toronto this month. Coming-of-age pic follows five childhood friends in a small Swedish town.
Pic is co-written by helmer Ganslandt, who also stars in the film with four friends. Anna Anthony of Memfis Film produced the film and Trust Film Sales is handling international sales.
Iceland has opted for helmer Ragnar Bragason's low-budget "Children," about the roles of children and parents, which is the first installment of a two-part feature. It will be followed by "Parents" later this fall. Pic screened at the San Sebastian fest.
"Children" is produced by Gisli Orn Gardarsson and Bragason for Vesturport and is represented internationally by the Works.
(John Hopewell in Madrid, Vicki Rothrock in Hong Kong, Will Tizard in Prague and Pia Lundberg in Stockholm contributed to this report.)
