The Orchard Acquires Award-Winning Sundance Doc ‘Life, Animated’
The Orchard has acquired North American distribution rights to Roger Ross Williams‘ documentary, “Life, Animated.” The film has been acquired from A&E IndieFilms. The doc, which earned Williams the U.S. Documentary Directing Award at the festival, is based on the bestselling book, “Life Animated: A Story of Sidekicks,” from Pulitzer Prize winner Ron Suskind.
The official synopsis reads: “‘Life, Animated’ is a coming-of-age story about Owen Suskind, who ceased speaking at three years old, disappearing into autism. The film tells the story of how Owen found a pathway to language in Disney animation, and a framework for making sense of the world.”
“‘Life, Animated’ is about the power of movies, which is why we could have no better partner to bring our film to the world than The Orchard, who are so passionate about this film,” said Williams in an official statement.
The film inventively tells Owen’s inspiring true story through traditional documentary footage and animated sequences from both classic Disney movies and his own drawings. Considering The Orchard was the distribution company behind current Best Documentary Oscar nominee “Cartel Land,” Williams and his heartfelt film are in the perfect hands.
Danielle DiGiacomo, VP of Acquisitions for The Orchard, negotiated the deal with Josh Braun of Submarine on behalf of the filmmakers. No release date has been set.
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