Momentum Pictures has acquired UK and Spanish rights to JustFriends from up-and-coming LA-based salesand financing outfit Inferno Distribution.

The two-territory deal was negotiated and closed in Berlinby Inferno partners Jim Seibel and Bill Johnson with Momentum's head ofacquisitions Lara Thompson.

New Line Cinema has acquired US rights to the romanticcomedy which is currently in production. Directed by Roger Kumble (CruelIntentions), it stars Ryan Reynolds as aguy unexpectedly reunited with his best friend and old high school crush whodiscovers that she is his one true love.

Amy Smart, Chris Klein and Anna Faris co-star. Inferno isproducing the film with Infity Media, Cinerenta and Benderspink and arrangedthe financing in association with First Look Media.

Momentum will release Just Friends in the UK, with its sister company AurumProducciones handling Spanish distribution. "Just Friends is a very exciting project for both Momentum andAurum," said Momentum managing director Xavier Marchand. "This filmwill be a lot of fun to work on."

Meanwhile Johnson and Seibel are building an impressivelineup of pictures for foreign buyers including Richard Kelly's eagerlyawaited Southland Tales which will starSarah Michelle Gellar and Seann William Scott, and Victor Salva's PeacefulWarrior which is being produced with SobiniFilms and DEJ Productions. German film fund Academy has committed $42m to thesetwo projects and a third which is tentatively titled License ToSteal.