Louis Talpe en Matteo Simoni samen in zinderend internationaal sportdrama ‘The Racer’

‘The Racer’ is het aangrijpende wielerdrama van Bl!nder Films (‘Love & Friendship‘) in samenwerking met Calach Films (‘Mammal’) en het Belgische Caviar (‘Tabula Rasa’) waarin Louis Talpe en Matteo Simoni de hoofdrollen vertolken. Daarnaast maken onder andere Tara Lee (‘A Date for Mad Mary’) en Iain Glen (‘Game of Thrones’) hun opwachting in de film. De regie is in handen van Kieron J. Walsh (‘Jump’, ‘Finding Joy’, ‘When Brendan Met Trudy‘). De opnames gaan binnenkort van start in Luxemburg en Ierland.

Louis Talpe, (Dom Chabol) “Ik ben erg verheugd deel uit te maken van een geweldige cast die door Kieron J. Walsh is samengebracht om het verhaal te vertellen van een bijzonder toegewijd personage uit één van de grootste sportevenementen ter wereld.”

Matteo Simoni, (Tartare Merino) “Ik ben ongelooflijk enthousiast om deel te mogen uitmaken van dit project en kijk er heel hard naar uit om samen te werken met Kieron. Mijn grootste uitdagingen bij het voorbereiden op deze rol zijn conditie en fysieke uitputting. Los daarvan ben ik enorm blij om opnieuw een Italiaans personage te mogen vertolken, zoveel jaren na mijn doorbraak in ‘Marina’ .“

Synopsis:
Zomer 1998 – De openingsritten van de Tour de France zijn verhuisd naar Ierland. De Belgische wielrenner Dom Chabol, bijna aan het einde van zijn carrière, is één van de beste ‘Domestiques’ (meesterknechten) van de afgelopen 20 jaar in de Tour. Het is een zware, opofferende rol – tempo instellen, wind tegenhouden en ondersteuning bieden zodat de sprinter van het team als eerste over de meet komt – en zelf voor de winst gaan is geen optie. Maar Dom koestert in het geheim een verlangen om de gele trui te dragen – slechts één keer voor het einde van zijn carrière.

Aan de start van wat waarschijnlijk zijn laatste Tour zal zijn, wordt Dom zonder pardon uit het team gezet waar hij zijn hele leven aan wijdde. Zijn beste vriend Sonny (Iain Glen), de masseur van het team, slaagt er niet in om hem gerust te stellen over zijn toekomst. Een toevallige relatie met Lynn (Tara Lee), een jonge Ierse dokteres, verzacht echter de klap en Dom begint het idee van het burgerleven te accepteren en er zelfs van te genieten. Wanneer hij zich klaarmaakt om huiswaarts te keren en zijn vervreemde zus onder ogen te zien, slaat een gigantisch dopingschandaal een andere ploeggenoot uit de Tour en moet Dom terug het zadel op…

Caviar is de Belgische coproducent van de film, die mee ondersteund wordt door Screen Flanders. Kinepolis Film Distribution brengt de film volgend jaar uit in de Belgische zalen.

Voor meer informatie, aarzel niet om contact op te nemen.

About Blinder Films
Blinder Films recent projects include Extra Ordinary, a supernatural comedy starring Maeve Higgins, Barry Ward, Claudia O’Doherty and Will Forte, which had its world premiere in the Narrative Feature Competition at SXSW 2019; Come to Daddy directed by Ant Timpson and starring Elijah Wood which will premiere at the upcoming Tribeca Film Festival as well as feature documentaries A Dog Called Money, which world premiered in the Panorama section at Berlinale 2019, directed by award-winning photographer Seamus Murphy who accompanied musician PJ Harvey on a journey through the creative process behind one of her albums; Grace Jones: Bloodlight and Bami, a documentary on the musical and fashion icon, directed by Sophie Fiennes and released in the US by Kino Lorber; and narrative feature Vita & Virginia starring Gemma Arterton, Elizabeth Debicki, Isabella Rossellini and directed by Chanya Button which had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival 2018 and was also selected as the Opening Night Gala for the 2019 BFI Flare: London LGBTQ+ Film Festival.

Blinder Films previously produced Whit Stillman’s Love & Friendship starring Kate Beckinsale, Chloë Sevigny, and Stephen Fry which premiered to critical acclaim at the Sundance Film Festival 2016, was nominated for a Gotham Award and enjoyed extended releases at both US (Amazon, Roadside Attractions) and UK (Curzon) box offices and The Queen of Ireland, a feature documentary about accidental LGBT activist Panti Bliss which was picked up by Universal Pictures for distribution in the UK and Ireland.

About Calach Films
Calach Films is a production company based in Luxembourg. The company was created end of 2012. It is managed by Jesus Gonzalez who has almost 20 years of experience in international co-productions and who has been production manager, line producer or producer on more than 50 films (animation, short movies, documentaries and feature films).

Calach Films has recently (co)-produced MAMMAL starring Rachel Griffiths, Barry Keoghan and Michael McElhatton, selected at Sundance 2016, TOY GUN, sold in numerous countries including the USA, starring Luke Allen-Gale, Anthony LaPaglia, John Hannah, Julian Sands, Federico Castelluccio and Hana Sofia Lopes, DREAMLAND starring Stephen McHattie, Henry Rollins and Juliette Lewis, SKIN WALKER starring Amber Anderson, Udo Kier and Jefferson Hall.

About Caviar
Caviar is an entertainment company founded in Belgium in 2006. Since then Caviar has been growing. From the beginning, Caviar has found a balance between producing commercials, feature film, documentaries and television series. On top of that, Caviar has its own post-production department, a digital agency and a fully integrated financing department. Caviar also extended its global scope and has currently offices in various places across the world, such as Brussels, Los Angeles, Paris, London, Amsterdam and Madrid.
Caviar Film has produced and coproduced a multitude of award-winning and critically acclaimed features and high-end TV series, of which the following titles are just a few examples: The Rider (Chloé Zao, feature, USA), Tabula Rasa (Kaat Beels/Jonas Govaerts, TV series, Belgium), Black (Adil El Arbi/Bilall Fallah, feature, Belgium), The Brand New Testament (Jaco Van Dormael, Coproduction, Belgium), Clan (Nathalie Basteyns/Kaat Beels/Malin-Sarah Gozin, TV series, Belgium).
About Screen Ireland
Screen Ireland is the national development agency for Irish filmmaking and the Irish film, television and animation industry, investing in talent, creativity and enterprise. Screen Ireland’s mission is to support and promote Irish film, television and animation through fostering Irish artistic vision and our diverse creative and production talent, growing audiences, and attracting filmmakers and investment into the country.

Screen Ireland is committed to providing leadership, direction and advocacy for the Irish screen industries, as well as supporting writers, directors and production companies through investing in Irish filmmaking talent.

The agency delivers on its mission through generating inward investment by promoting Ireland as a film location as well as promoting Irish films to major international markets. Screen Ireland is also committed to supporting the distribution of feature films, bringing Irish film to wider audiences and engaging with European counterparts on mutually beneficial policy initiatives.

Major Irish and international titles to have received support from Screen Ireland (under the IFB name) in recent years include Academy Award®-nominated films such as Nora Twomey’s The Breadwinner, John Crowley’s Brooklyn, Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Lobster, and the Academy Award®-winning Room, helmed by Lenny Abrahamson. Other notable titles include John Carney’s Sing Street, Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Killing of a Sacred Deer and Whit Stillman’s Love & Friendship alongside critically acclaimed domestic titles such as Frank Berry’s Michael Inside, Carmel Winters’ Float Like a Butterfly and Peter Foott’s The Young Offenders.

About Independent
INDEPENDENT specializes in the development, financing, production and distribution of independent feature films. Led by CEO Luc Roeg, COO Cora Palfrey and Managing Director Andrew Orr, Independent has a team of highly motivated and experienced professionals with expertise in project development, production, structured finance, distribution, sales and marketing.

Independent acquires third party rights to manage through its sales division. Latest titles include the upcoming Dirty God directed by Sacha Polak which was in official selection at both Sundance and Rotterdam this year. Independent are also representing The Billion Dollar Game, the ultimate documentary on one of the world’s biggest entertainment franchises of all time, the video game Grand Theft Auto, produced by Salon Pictures, producers behind McQueen. Also, SXSW winner Prospect, TRIBECA Nora Ephron Prize winner Little Woods and TIFF drama The Escape, starring Gemma Arterton and Dominic Cooper.

Upcoming titles include Gavin Rothery’s sci-fi Archive and Abner Pastoll’s A Good Woman is Hard to Find.

Previously the sales team worked on Jim Jarmusch’s Gimme Danger, Duncan Jones’ Moon, Michael Winterbottom’s On the Road, Banksy’s Exit Through the Giftshop and many more.
See: http://www.independentfilmcompany.com