IFC Films has acquired the US rights to Bahman Ghobadi’s No One Knows About Persian Cats from Wild Bunch. It plans an April release.

The Iranian film had its North American premiere at the AFI Fest in Los Angeles last November. It will be screened in a special presentation at the upcoming SXSW Film Festival in March, and as part of a retrospective of Ghobadi’s films at the Film Society of Lincoln Center in April.

Persian Cats, which is Ghobadi’s fifth film, explores Tehran’s youth and underground music scene and its unapologetic desire for creative expression in the face of an oppressive government.

It had its world premiere in Un Certain Regard at last year’s Cannes film festival, where it also won the special jury prize.

The deal was negotiated by Arianna Bocco, IFC Films’ vice-president of acquisitions and co-productions, with Carole Baraton of Wild Bunch.

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