New Wave breaks on two more pics

Film distrib buys 'Noel,' 'Sleep'

By LEO BARRACLOUGH

LONDON -- Neophyte U.K. arthouse distrib New Wave Films has continued its recent buying spree with the purchase of Arnaud Desplechin's "Un conte de Noel" (A Christmas Tale) and Gideon Koppel's docu "Sleep Furiously."

"Noel," which stars Catherine Deneuve and Mathieu Amalric, screened in competition at Cannes and has gone on to make $4.8 million in France. Wild Bunch sold the pic, which has been picked up by IFC for the U.S.

Wales-set "Sleep," which preemed at the Edinburgh Film Festival, was acquired from Bard Entertainments.

New Wave, which specializes in upscale auteur pics, was set up by former Artificial Eye toppers Pam Engel and Robert Beeson in February.

Purchases so far this year include four other Cannes competish pics -- Atom Egoyan's "Adoration," Nuri Bilge Ceylan's "Three Monkeys," the Dardenne brothers' "The Silence of Lorna" and Jia Zhangke's "24 City" -- as well as Sergey Dvortsevoy's Un Certain Regard winner, "Tulpan."

It has also acquired Joanna Hogg's "Unrelated," Andrzej Jakimowski's "Sztuczki" (Tricks) and Antonello Grimaldi's "Quiet Chaos," which stars Nanni Moretti.