Samuel Goldwyn Films has confirmed its acquisition of Distant Horizon's I Capture The Castle, Tim Fywell's film of Dodie Smith's classic novel which premiered in the market at Cannes recently. There Samuel Goldwyn beat out other interested buyers such as Paramount Classics and THINKFilm to take North American rights.

Executive produced by Anant Singh of Distant Horizon and David Thompson of BBC Films, the film was produced by David Parfitt (Shakespeare In Love, The Madness Of King George) and stars Romola Garai as the 17 year-old Cassandra Mortmain with Bill Nighy, Rose Byrne, Tara Fitzgerald and Henry Thomas among her eccentric family seen in a castle in 1930's England.

The deal was negotiated by Meyer Gottlieb, president of Samuel Goldwyn Films, and Alan Grodin of Weissman, Wolff, Bergman, Coleman, Grodin and Evallfor Distant Horizon. Scheduled for release in early 2003 in the US through Goldwyn's distribution partnership IDP, the film is produced by BBC Films and Trademark Films.

I Capture The Castle joins a slate from the company including Long Way Home (co-acquired with Fireworks Pictures), He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not, Me Without You (co-acquired with Fireworks), Das Experiment, The Man From Elysian Fields (co-acquired with Fireworks) and Little Secrets.