Wide sells 'Time' to the U.S.

'Francaise' to screen at Pusan

By JOHN HOPEWELL

Wide Management, Loic Magneron's Paris-based production and sales company, has sold North American rights on ``Cuando me toque a mi'' (When My Time Comes) to the Global Film Initiative and Gallic rights to Hevadis Films.

Pic, directed by Ecuador's Victor Arregui, world preemed at the Miami Festival in January and played in Switzerland's Locarno fest Open Doors section in June.

``Time'' is just one of a slew of sales and pre-sales, both domestic and U.S., chalked up by Wide.

CTV Intl. has picked up French and Maghreb distribution rights to Jean-Paul Jaud's documentary ``That Should Not be - Our Children Will Accuse Us,'' about how food and the environment affect children's health.

CTV Intl. will release the doc this year on 100-plus prints in France, Wide sources said.

In other Stateside accords, Mahmoud Al Massad's Sundance-player ``Recycle,'' a portrait of the daily life of ex-Mujahideen fighter Abu Amar, now a cardboard collector in Jordon, has been bought by ITVS for U.S. TV and Icarus Film for U.S. all rights, and English-speaking Canada.

TLA Ent. Group, has taken North America, the U.K. and Eire on an in-house Wide production, contempo relationship tale ``I Dreamt Under the Water,'' the feature debut of Gallic helmer Hormaz. Optimale/WE & Co. has taken rights to France.

Wide has pre-sold helmer Volker Schlondorff's $13.5 million Asia Argento starrer ``Gigola,'' produced by Denise Petitdidier at Gaul's Marie Amelie Prods., has pre-sold to CNC for Benelux and Maywin for Russia.

A crux for Wide is major fest berths, said Magneron.

``There are in my opinion too many films, and a real problem on the distribution side of not enough space to open these films. So if you don't have your films selected at a major festival, you can't sell them,'' Magneron said.

At South Korean's Pusan Film Festival, Wide will internationally preem ``Francaise,'' from Souad El Bouhati. Pic stars Hafsia Herzi, who won a breakthrough actress Cesar for ``The Secret of the Grain.''

Spain's San Sebastian Festival will world preem Christian Poveda's ``La vida loca,'' a docu about gangs in El Salvador, in September.

Beyond a probable presence at the Toronto Film Festival, also in September, Wide plans other fest bows.

They include Vinko Moderndorfer's ``Landscape No2'' at the Venice Days, Lionel Baier's ``Another Man'' at Pusan, and four pics at this month's Montreal World Film Festival. They are ``El camino,'' from Costa Rica's Ishtar Yasin, Turk Seyfi Teoman's ``Summer Book,'' and international premieres of Canadian Stephane Gehami's ``Straight to the Heart'' and ``Comme une etoile dans la nuit,'' from France's Rene Feret.