The North American rights deal brings in the first film under the recently announced partnership to get the branding support of the Kevin Smith’s SModcast Pictures Presents label.

The high school comedy about a trio of virgins who head for the big city to reenact the events of The Catcher In The Rye will get a theatrical release through Phase 4 in June and a tour and Q&A series featuring Smith and the filmmakers. Bindlestiffs won the narrative audience award at Slamdance in January.

The distribution partners are attending SXSW in Austin for possible new material and plan to release up to 12 films a year, four of which will get theatrical release and the tour.

Andrew Edison directed and co-wrote Bindlestiffs with Luke Loftin and they star and produced alongside Mike Akel and Matt Patterson.

Phase 4’s Larry Greenberg and Katharyn Howe negotiated the deal with William Morris Global and Caliber Media on behalf of the filmmakers.

  • Oscilloscope Laboratories has acquired North American rights to Todd Louiso’s Sundance opening night film Hello I Must Be Going and all US rights excluding TV to Sundance documentary Chasing Ice. Melanie Lynskey stars in Hello I Must Be Going as a divorcee who moves back with her parents and embarks on a liberating affair with a wise 19-year-old. O-Scope’s David Fenkel negotiated the deal with WME Global’s Liesl Copland and the distributor plans a theatrical release later this year. The Chasing Ice deal was negotiated with Submarine, who also licensed Canadian rights to Films We Like, Australia and New Zealand to Madman and Jaguar for worldwide airline and ship rights.