Seventh Art takes Winograd's 'Wedding'

BUENOS AIRES -- Specialty distrib Seventh Art Releasing has acquired North American rights to Argentine helmer Ariel Winograd's "My First Wedding." Deal was sealed Sunday at Ventana Sur by Seventh Art principal Udy Epstein and Ricardo Freixas, one of "Wedding's" producers. Seventh Art plans a limited U.S. theatrical release, mid-to-late 2012, Epstein said at Ventana Sur, where "Wedding" made its market debut. Patricio Vega, scribe of Daniel Szifron's hit private-eye TV series "The Pretenders" and "Brothers and Detectives," wrote the screenplay. Winograd's follow-up to Jewish country club-set "Cheese Face," "Wedding" is an upbeat wedding-day romantic comedy. Daniel Hendler ("The Lost Embrace") toplines with Natalia Oreiro ("Francia"). Freixas, a longtime producer of Juan Jose Campanella ("The Secret of Their Eyes"), produced "Wedding" with Tresplanos founder Nathalie Cabiron and Axel Kuschevatzky, head of cinema at broadcaster Telefe. Following on "Secret" and "Chinese Take-Away," "Wedding" joins a bevy of Argentine movies that work as classy mainstream items at home -- released in Argentina by BVI in early September, "Wedding" has sold a healthy 60,000 tickets -- and have art-house breakout potential abroad. "Wedding" is a Spanish-language pic, but Seventh Art won't target the U.S. Hispanic marketplace. "By definition, films that get specialized, boutique arthouse releases are arthouse, not for special interest groups," Epstein said. Seventh Art will premiere "Wedding" at U.S. festivals for critical acclaim before its commercial city-by-city rollout. VOD will come near the end of "Wedding's" theatrical run, he added. Brazil's Art Films bought "Wedding" at Ventana Sur. It still has to strike a sales agent deal, Freixas said. Contact the Variety newsroom at news@variety.com