Pathe Pictures International has announced that itwill be selling the worldwide rights to French-language feature film TheDiving Bell and the Butterfly, whichis based on the best-selling memoir by Jean-Dominique Bauby.

Principal photography began on the film on Sept 4 in France under thedirection of Julian Schnabel, director of Basquiat and Before NightFalls. The screenplay was adapted from the novel by Ronald Harwood, whoseprevious writing credits include Oliver Twist, Being Julia and The Pianist. It is produced by Kathleen Kennedy and Jon Kilik.

The film stars Mathieu Amalric, who previouslyappeared in Kings & Queens, Emmanuelle Seigner from Frantic, Marie-Josee Croze from Munich,Anne Consigny from 36 Quai des Orfèvres, Emma de Caunes from TheScience of Sleep, and Max Von Sydow from Minority Report. The director of photography is two-time Academy Award-winner JanuszKaminski, who has worked on Schindler's List, Saving Private Ryan and Munich.

The film tells the truestory of ex-French Elleeditor-in-chief Jean-Dominique Bauby, who at 43 suffered a stroke thatrendered his brain stem inactive. The only body mobility he retained was theability to blink his left eye, which he used to communicate with others,developing a code for the alphabet and subsequently writing a memoir.

Mike Runagall,Head of Pathe Pictures International, said, "We are absolutely delighted to beinvolved in this project and are convinced it will resonate with audiencesacross the globe as did the best-selling book."

TheDiving Bell and the Butterfly is a Pathe Renn ProductionFilm in coproduction with France 3 Cinema and in association with Canal+.

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