Short film agency Talantis is branching out into feature films. The company has picked up all French rights on Winnego, a first film by US film-maker Nick James which is to star Salma Hayek and Mickey Rourke.

The $3.9m title is currently in development. Talantis are handling foreign sales on James' short film An Eye For Talent, featuring Mexican-born actor Danny Trejo.

Created in January 1998 by Sylvain Chivot and Serge Sabahi, Paris-based Talantis sells rights to European and US short films to television channels worldwide, including, in the US, PBS, HBO, the Sundance Channel and Bravo.

The agency has moved on from selling completed films to setting up financing for short film projects as well as series of short films through pre-sales and/or co-production deals. Moving onward to feature films is a logical move for Talantis, as the partners have developed close links with a number of the talents they represent and short films can help pitch a first project by a new director.