Magnolia Pictures International Acquires Sundance Film ‘Mars One’
Deadline reports that Gabriel Martins’ movie Mars One has been snapped up by Magnolia Pictures International before the pic’s world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival next week in the World Cinema Dramatic Section.
Mars One follows the Martins family, optimistic dreamers who are quietly leading their lives on the margins of a major Brazilian city, following the disappointing election of a far-right extremist president. A lower-middle-class Black family, they feel the strain of their new reality as the political dust settles.
“Gabriel Martins has crafted an uplifting and tender film about a family’s hopes and dreams, set against a Brazil in constant turmoil,” said Lorna Lee Torres, Head of International Sales. “We are beyond excited to champion this beautiful film, and invite audiences to share in these characters’ successes, failures, fears, and loves—all portrayed with delicacy and charm.”
Mars One was financed by a public fund to support Black filmmakers and Black narratives that no longer exists under the current Brazilian presidential administration. The film was shot just after the Brazilian election of 2018, which changed everything in the country, reversing recent civil rights gains and promoting a new strain of conservatism throughout society. Mars One previously won Ventana Sur’s $10,000 Paradiso WIP Award.