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Argentine filmmaker Fabián Forte has a directing career that stretches back more than twenty years, with his credits including Mala carne, La corporación, Socios por accidente, Socios por accidente 2, Dead Man Tells His Own Tale, Cantantes en Guerra, Legions, which was described as being “an unabashed love letter to Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead series,” and segments of the anthology films Retratos del Apocalipsis and Cursed Bastards. His most recent feature is The Witch Game, a horror film that drew inspiration from the Harry Potter franchise – and Variety reports that the film is securing distribution deals around the world.

Miracle Media will be releasing The Witch Game in North America and the U.K. sometime in the first quarter of 2025. The film has also landed distribution deals in Latin America (Encripta), Germany and Austria (Lighthouse Entertainment), Spain (Wild Duck), Portugal (Cinema Novo), Serbia (Fox Vision), and Cambodia (Westec).

The movie...

A new Argentine horror film inspired by Harry Potter, The Witch Game, is coming to North America and the U.K. with a twist--it will be dubbed with AI.

According to Variety, The Witch Game was acquired by Miracle Media for distribution in North America and the U.K. some time in the first quarter of 2025. Its story follows a teenage girl, played by Lourdes Mansilla, who receives a VR headset for her 18th birthday that allows her to travel to an occult world and a magical school--see where the Harry Potter inspiration kicks in--so she can save her family from being besieged by the devil himself. It sounds like an interesting modern take on a classic story with a horror atmosphere thrown in. But what has put this film in the headlines isn't so much its intriguing premise as something entirely outside the film itself--its English dub. While the original film is in Spanish,...

U.K. genre specialist distributor has sold “The Witch Game,” an Argentine “Harry Potter” inspired horror feature from director Fabian Forte, to Miracle Media in North America and the U.K. The supernatural thriller will be released in the territories in the first quarter of 2025.

Originally shot in Spanish, the film also has an English-language dubbed version, which was created using artificial intelligence technology.

In the film, Lourdes Mansilla stars as a rebellious teenage girl whose family is besieged by the devil himself. On her 18th birthday, the girl receives a state-of-the-art VR video game headset that allows her to travel into an occult world and a medieval school of magic where she can learn the ways of witchcraft to save her family from the lord of the underworld.

Written and directed by Forte, an award-winning screenwriter and filmmaker whose credits include “Mala carne,” “Retratos del Apocalipsis” and the Argentine...

A heartwarming tale of friendship between a lost penguin and a lonely fisherman touches on themes of the transformational power of friendship and love and what it takes to move on. Jean Reno shines in his role as a curmudgeonly fisherman who finds new purpose through his bond with the penguin. A delightful, emotional journey, My Penguin Friend may be too slow and saccharine for some people, but is an uplifting animal movie for the whole family.

Themes of compassion, courage, universal love, and rare friendships are sewn into the creative fabric of My Penguin Friend. Think of it as a bird out of water tale: An adorable, lost penguin finds himself far away from home only to bond with a humble fisherman named Joao (Jean Reno of Ronin and Mission: Impossible). The two hit it off, but both must move on with their lives. In doing so, they may lose each other.

The movie tackles grief with expected penguin antics. Emotional performances elevate the Homeward Bound-like story. Unnecessary subplot impacts pacing and viewer engagement.

Based on a heartwarming true story, My Penguin Friend (2024) promises both laughs and a good cry for the whole family. However, like the movie's animal star, the film doesnt quite soar, but it does manage to hit all the notes associated with this kind of inspirational, family-friendly fare. After all, its hard not to be delighted by the real-life inspiration for David Schurmanns feature. As the closing text reveals, a lost penguin, who really was named DinDim by those who met him, swam over 5,000 miles, from Patagonia to Brazil, for eight years.

My Penguin Friend (2024)

Director David SchurmannRelease Date August 16, 2024Writers Kristen Lazarian, Paulina LagudiCast Alexia Moyano, Nicols Francella, Roco Hernndez, Adriana Barraza, Jean RenoRating PGRuntime 97 MinutesGenres Family, Drama My Penguin Friend Doesn't Shy Away From Tragedy...

It’s been a few decades since last we saw Jean Reno playing a withdrawn curmudgeon protecting a pint-sized charge in “The Professional.” Now, with director David Schurmann’s “My Penguin Friend,” it’s a welcome return to a winning formula.

In the Brazilian filmmaker’s tender-hearted, all-ages adventure, Reno plays a grief-stricken father who gains a small, sweet companion after rescuing him from polluted waters. Inspired by the unshakeable bond between a real-life Brazilian fisherman and a Magellanic penguin thrown off his migration route, the French actor reveals new colors as a performer, shading the picture’s playful and poignant overtones with sensitivity and subtlety, making this a must-see for those who love uplifting stories about redemption, perseverance and empathy.

Reno plays João, whose journey began long before his penguin pal’s arrival, when his cozy, beachside home in Ilha Grande, Rio de Janeiro, was filled with love, music and laughter.

Quick Links My Penguin Friend Plot and Cast The True Story Behind My Penguin Friend Where Are Joo Perei de Souza and Dimdim now?

The resilient nature of penguins has been a source of inspiration for many filmmakers; from documentaries capturing their fascinating habits in March of the Penguins to their playful nature being turned comical in Happy Feet, audiences have certainly become endeared to the flightless birds. My Penguin Friend is set to capture the hearts of audiences when it releases in August, telling the story of an unlikely friendship between a penguin and a fisherman.

While penguin movies certainly know how to deliver an emotional story using the strength of the adorable birds, what makes My Penguin Friend an exciting story to be told on the screen is that it is based on a true story. We will look at the real-life friendship that inspired the heartfelt drama,...

Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, Robert De Niro, and Kevin Hart are among legendary actor Jean Reno's most famous and memorable costars. The My Penguin Friend actor starred alongside Tom Cruise in the very first Mission: Impossible (1996) movie, playing Franz Krieger. He was a stellar scene partner with Tom Hanks, too, in The Da Vinci Code, and turned heads as an American mercenary in the 1998 thriller Ronin, opposite Robert De Niro. More recently, Reno generated buzz working with Kevin Hart on the successful Die Hart series and films.

But theres one costar that may have warmed Renos heart the most: a penguin. Make that 10 penguins, each of whom took turns starring as the lead in Renos heartwarming new film, My Penguin Friend, directed by David Schurmann (The Little Secret). Reno says his bond with one Penguin, called Maui, truly grew during the production.

With some scenes, I had to take...

“My Penguin Friend” is a new family feature, inspired by a true story, directed by David Schurman, starring Jean Reno, Adriana Barraza, Rocío Hernández, Nicolás Francella, Alexia Moyano and Thalma de Freitas, opening August 16, 2024 in theaters:

“…in a sweeping family adventure, ‘My Penguin Friend’ is a triumphant tale of friendship between a lonely father and a little lost penguin who recharges his spirit and heals his family with an unshakable, ocean-crossing loyalty.

“Humble fisherman ‘João’ has turned away from the world in the wake of tragedy. But when he discovers a penguin drifting alone in the ocean, drenched in oil from a spill, his first instinct is to help.

“To his wife’s dismay, he not only rescues the sea creature, but takes the flightless bird under his wing. For the first time in years João starts to feel joy, even if he cannot fathom just how unbreakable a bond is being formed.

"You and DinDim have quite a friendship." Roadside Attractions has revealed a trailer for an adorable true story of a penguin and a fisherman. My Penguin Friend is directed by the Brazilian filmmaker David Schurmann, and it tells the story of a Brazilian fisherman who rescued a penguin and their bond. Starring French actor Jean Reno in the lead role as Joao. A heartbroken fisherman finds a penguin drifting alone in the ocean, drenched in oil from a spill. He not only rescues the sea creature, which migrates hundreds of miles ever year, but takes it under his wing – finding a sense of joy for the first time in years. The penguin and the fisherman become unlikely friends, so bonded that even the vast ocean cannot divide them. The cast also includes Adriana Barraza, Rocío Hernández, Nicolás Francella, Alexia Moyano, Thalma de Freitas, with Pedro Caetano and Pedro Urizzi. This...

Exclusive: Roadside Attractions has acquired U.S. distribution rights from City Hill Arts to the family adventure, The Penguin & The Fisherman, inspired by the incredible true story and viral sensation of João Perei de Souza (Jeno Reno) and a lost penguin who, after being rescued from an oil spill, transforms the life and soul of a heartbroken fisherman. Also starring Babel‘s Adriana Barraza, the film is set for a late summer/early fall wide release.

Lionsgate is aboard for Home Entertainment, with Fortitude International handling foreign sales.

When The Penguin & The Fisherman begins, De Souza has turned away from the world in the wake of tragedy. But when he discovers a penguin drifting alone in the ocean, drenched in oil from a spill, his first instinct is to help. To the dismay of his wife (Barraza) dismay, he not only rescues the sea creature, but takes the flightless bird under his wing.

Exclusive: Biotech entrepreneur Jonathan Lim’s recently launched production and financing entity City Hill Arts has unveiled the first still from The Penguin & The Fisherman — one of its first feature projects, starring 3x César Award nominee Jean Reno (Léon: The Professional), which has now wrapped production.

The film currently in post in Madrid is based on an incredible true story which went viral in 2016 — that of the lost and injured penguin, Din Dim, who finds love and family in another lost and wounded soul, João (Reno).

Related Story ‘Coup!’: Peter Sarsgaard Satire Wraps Production, Film Constellation Shares First Look — EFM Related Story Biotech Entrepreneur Jonathan Lim Launches City Hill Arts; Unveils Slate Of Projects With Stampede Ventures & More Related Story Jean Reno Joins 'Stranger Things' Star Noah Schnapp And Anjelica Huston In 'Waiting For Anya'

João is a Brazilian fisherman, guilt-ridden from a horrible tragedy which occurred as a young man,...