PatrickFrater

Belgiandirector Lucas Belvaux's trilogy An Amazing Couple, On The Run and After Life has clinched a US dealwith boutique distributor Magnolia Pictures, taking rights to North America,excluding French-speaking Canada. In a separate deal, Telepool bought Germanrights.

French sales outfit Films Distributionsaid that the Magnolia deal was completed after a dinner with US distributorson Monday night. "This is a great deal for everyone," said FrancoisYon, co-chief of Film Distribution, who succeeded in obtaining a minimumguarantee and a bonus based on box office performance. The films are expectedto be released in June or July after they appear in the Tribeca Film Festival.

Thecompany, which also clinched a deal on Jean-Claude Brisseau's ChosesSecretes with Future Film for Scandinavia, has picked up a quartet of otherpictures in advanced stages of production.

Theseare Brazilian director Marcos Bernstein's The Other Side Of The Street, SebastienLifshitz's Wild Side, Marc Recha's Les Mains Vides and SolveigAnspach's Stormy Weather, which starsElodie Bouchez and Baltasar Kormakur.