Gus Van Sant Signs On as Executive Producer of LAURENCE ANYWAYS

Related: LAURENCE ANYWAYS, Breaking Glass Pictures

Laurence Anyways, the third film from Xavier Dolan (I Killed My Mother, Heartbeats), is welcoming two-time Oscar nominated director Gus Van Sant (Good Will Hunting, Milk) as an Executive Producer alongside producers Lyse Lafontaine, Nathanaël Karmitz and Charles Gillibert for the American presentation. Breaking Glass Pictures will be taking the film out to American screens in 2013 following its acquisition at the Toronto International Film Festival.

"As an admirer of Xavier's work, it's my pleasure to join him for his first major US release, Laurence Anyways," says Van Sant. "It's a beautiful film that proves Xavier is one of the most promising young filmmakers working today."

"Obviously, it's a huge privilege to be considered by an artist like Gus," Dolan said. "One of the first encounters I had with a more sophisticated cinema was 'My Own Private Idaho.' It was the first time I had a sense of what cinema could be or should be made of: Freedom, honesty and intimacy. For me to be endorsed by Gus Van Sant is like telling an 8-year old that Batman is his uncle."

"We're so thrilled to be working with Gus Van Sant on the U.S. release of 'Laurence Anyways,'" says Breaking Glass Pictures CEO Rich Wolff. "It's a dream come true for any distributor to collaborate with such a pioneering director, and we can't wait to work with Gus on what's sure to be a very exciting and rewarding film release."

Set in the 1990s, Laurence Anyways is the tale of a young couple and the difficult decisions they must face after the man decides to start living his life as a woman. Laurence (Melvil Poupaud), a French teacher and soon-to-be-published author, enjoys an intense and mutually loving relationship with his fiancée, Frédérique (Suzanne Clément). But on the day after his 30th birthday, Laurence confesses to Fred that he longs to become a woman, asking her to support him in this transformation. The complications that follow frame Dolan's latest masterpiece, asking the ageless question: Is love enough?

Laurence Anyways debuted in the Un Certain Regard section of the 2012 Cannes Film Festival, where it won the Queer Palm and a Best Actress win for Clément. The film also took home the Best Canadian Feature Film Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, in addition to Award of the Youth and the Golden Swann at the Cabourg Romantic Film Festival. Before its release in theaters, Breaking Glass Pictures is planning a rollout of festival showings, among them the Palm Springs International Film Festival.