Magnolia Pictures has picked up North American rights to “Noma - My Perfect Storm,” a feature-length documentary that follows one of the brightest stars in the culinary world into the kitchen.
The film centers on René Redzepi, whose Copenhagen-based restaurant Noma was voted the best restaurant in the world by Restaurant magazine for four of the past five years. It premieres in North America as part of DOC NYC, the non-fiction film festival taking place in November. Magnolia plans to release the film in theaters, on-demand, and on iTunes on Dec. 18, 2015.
Redzepi helped reinvent Danish cuisine by pioneering an approach called “foraging” that relies on ingredients sourced to parts of Scandinavia. The film follows him as he moves around Denmark, searching for inspiration and coming up with new dishes to challenge palates and refine his craft.
Pierre Deschamps (“Rugby: the Lifeblood of New Zealand”) spent more then three years at Noma capturing Redzepi in action and dissecting the way the restaurant´s kitchen operates.
“Rarely have viewers been given such an intimate glimpse inside the mind of René Redzepi and the high-octane world of Noma,” said Magnolia President Eamonn Bowles. “Pierre Deschamps has crafted a fascinating film about cultural reinvention through food, and what it takes to stay on top.”
Magnolia specializes in foreign and indie films, and has been particularly adroit at multi-platform releasing. Its credits this year include film festival and critical favorites such as “Results,” “Tangerine,” and “The Wolfpack.”
The film is produced by Etta Thompson Deschamps of Documentree Films Ltd.
The deal was negotiated by Magnolia SVP of Acquisitions Dori Begley and Magnolia VP of Acquisitions John Von Thaden, with Susan Wendt of TrustNordisk.