Constantin Film Acquires Neal Shusterman's UNWIND

By: Dec. 19, 2012
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Constantin Film has acquired the motion picture rights to Neal Shusterman's critically acclaimed bestselling science fiction novel Unwind.

Young adult readers in high schools and colleges across the country were instrumental in driving Unwind up the bestseller charts, thanks to the Internet frenzy unleashed by these loyal young fans. The novel's unsettling themes hit a nerve with a generation searching for an identity and a voice in an increasingly complex society.

Driven by huge fan support, Unwind went on to be one of the ALA Best Book for Young Adults and a Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Readers. Overall the book has won 34 awards globally and has been translated into 11 different languages.

Published in 2007 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, Unwind is a gripping and thought-provoking novel that blurs the line between life and death while challenging ideas about what it means to be alive. Set in a dystopian future in which parents of teens between the ages of 13 and 18 can choose to have their child "unwound" - a process where the teen's organs are transplanted into different donors.

Shusterman is the author of many novels for young adults, including the recently published sequel to Unwind entitled Unwholly, The Skinjacker Trilogy and Downsiders, which was nominated for twelve state reading awards. Shusterman also writes screenplays for motion pictures and television shows such as Animorphs and Goosebumps andis currently working on the third book in the Unwind trilogy.

Robert Kulzer, Co-President of Constantin Film in Los Angeles, brought the project to the company and will serve as producer on UNWIND alongside Marc Benardout, Catherine Kimmel,
Julian Stone and Charlotte Stoudt who will produce for Stay Whole Productions. Martin Moszkowicz, member of the board of Constantin Film and responsible for Film & TV, will executive produce. Kulzer and Moszkowicz are also producing and executive producing, respectively, the highly anticipated book-to-screen adaptation of THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS: CITY OF BONES due out next summer.

Shusterman is repped by APA and Underground.

Constantin Film has been synonymous with quality and success for over 30 years. It has played a crucial role in establishing German cinema both nationally and internationally. Between 1977, when Bernd Eichinger established the company, and 2009, when it was integrated into media conglomerate Constantin Medien AG, Constantin Film emerged as the most successful independent production and distribution company in the German media industry. Constantin Film's operations include German and English language motion picture theatrical production, theatrical distribution, home entertainment distribution, licensing and television production.

Constantin Film's diverse slate includes box office hits and award-winning films alike, ranging from comic book to literary adaptations, historical dramas, action and genre, among them THE NEVERENDING STORY, THE FANTASTIC FOUR film franchise, THE NAME OF THE ROSE, WICKIE THE MIGHTY VIKING, NOWHERE IN AFRICA, DOWNFALL, THE BAADER MEINHOF COMPLEX, POPE JOAN, THE HOUSE OF SPIRITS, and the RESIDENT EVIL film franchise. Upcoming films include 3,096 DAYS about real-life kidnap victim Natascha Kampusch and the highly anticipated film adaptation of Cassandra Clare's #1 New York Times Bestseller THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS: CITY OF BONES.

Stay Whole Productions is a collaboration between Contagionfilm and Tasty Films, working with Associate Producer Faber Dewar:

Contagionfilm projects in development include a found footage UFO thriller set in Mexico's notorious Zone of Silence, and prison zombie epic, THE RED MILE by award-winning writer and former bank robber Joe Loya. Independently, Catherine Kimmel has produced live events with Lady Gaga, Al Gore, and Mikhail Gorbachev among many others; Charlotte Stoudt is currently working on the Showtime drama, HOMELAND.

Building on successful, award-winning careers on both sides of the camera, Marc Benardout and Julian Stone formed Tasty Films to develop challenging and fresh material. Apart from UNWIND, they are currently developing SUZE, a film based on the wild autobiography of Playboy's first female photographer (co-producing with actress Evangeline Lilly) and FRIDAY, about a 1970's working-class hero who had ridiculous talent and a shockingly entertaining life, based on the cult biography penned by Paul McGuigan (from the band, Oasis) and Paolo Hewitt.



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