Focus Features has partnered with Indian Paintbrush on “Asteroid City,” the upcoming film written and directed by beloved auteur, Wes Anderson, based on a story by Anderson and Roman Coppola. The collaboration is a reunion among Anderson, Focus, and Indian Paintbrush following 2012’s “Moonrise Kingdom.” Focus and Universal International will handle worldwide distribution of the title.
The film is produced by Anderson and longtime collaborators Steven Rales, founder of Indian Paintbrush, and Jeremy Dawson.
“Asteroid City” has an all-star ensemble cast including Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Jeffrey Wright, Tilda Swinton, Bryan Cranston, Ed Norton, Adrien Brody, Liev Schreiber, Hope Davis, Stephen Park, Rupert Friend, Maya Hawke, Steve Carell, Matt Dillon, Hong Chau, Willem Dafoe, Margot Robbie, Tony Revolori, Jake Ryan, Grace Edwards, Aristou Meehan, Sophia Lillis, Ethan Lee, Jeff Goldblum, Rita Wilson and many more.
Peter Kujawski, Chairman of Focus Features, said, “We are beyond thrilled to be the global home for “Asteroid City,” bringing Focus back in business with Wes and his producing partners. Wes is a generational talent whose films delight audiences around the world; and we’re sure that the combination of his incredibly emotional story and vision combined with the insanely talented group of actors he has assembled, will mean that “Asteroid City” will be no different.”
“Asteroid City” is a poetic meditation on the meaning of life. It tells the story of a fictional American desert town circa 1955 and its Junior Stargazer convention, which brings together students and parents from across the country for scholarly competition, rest/recreation, comedy, drama, romance, and more.
Anderson’s works beyond “Moonrise Kingdom” include “The Royal Tenenbaums,” “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” “Isle of Dogs,” “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” “The Darjeeling Limited,” “The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou” and most recently, “The French Dispatch.”
Anderson is represented by UTA and Jackoway Tyerman.
About Indian Paintbrush
Indian Paintbrush is a film production company founded in 2006 by Steven Rales. The company has produced and financed all of Wes Anderson’s films since 2006, including: “The Darjeeling Limited,” “Fantastic Mr. Fox,” “Moonrise Kingdom,” “The Grand Budapest Hotel,” “Isle of Dogs,” “The French Dispatch,” and the upcoming, “Asteroid City.” The longstanding collaboration between Anderson and Indian Paintbrush has resulted in numerous awards, including 4 Academy Awards and a Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for “The Grand Budapest Hotel.” Other notable films include: Sundance Grand Jury Prize Winner, “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” (2015), “Stoker” (2013), “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World” (2012), Sundance Grand Jury Prize Winner, “Like Crazy” (2011), and the Duplass brothers helmed, “Jeff, Who Lives at Home” (2011).
About Focus Features
Focus Features acquires and produces specialty films for the global market and holds a library of iconic movies, with 143 Academy Award Nominations and 27 wins from fearless filmmakers. Upcoming and current releases from Focus include Jim Archer’s “Brian and Charles” starring David Earl and Chris Hayward, “Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris” directed by Anthony Fabien and starring Lesley Manville, Isabelle Huppert, Jason Isaacs, Ellen Thomas and Lucas Bravo in collaboration with the house of Dior, Blumhouse’s “Vengeance,” the directorial debut from writer/star B.J. Novak, also starring Issa Rae and Ashton Kutcher, Adamma Ebo’s “Honk for Jesus, Save Your Soul” starring Regina Hall and Sterling K. Brown, “Silent Twins” starring Letitia Wright and Tamara Lawrance and directed by Agnieszka Smoczynska, Todd Field’s “TÁR,” starring Cate Blanchett in the titular role, James Gray’s “Armageddon Time” starring Jeremy Strong and Academy Award winners Anthony Hopkins and Anne Hathaway, “Champions” directed by Bobby Farrelly and starring Woody Harrelson, A.V Rockwell’s directorial debut “A Thousand and One” starring Teyana Taylor, “Spoiler Alert” based on Michael Ausiello’s Memoir and starring Jim Parsons, Sally Field, and Ben Aldridge, and “Polite Society” directed by Nida Manzoor and starring Ritu Arya, Vasilis Katsoupis’s “Inside” starring Willem Dafoe and Bill Holderman’s “Book Club 2: The Next Chapter” starring Jane Fonda, Diane Keaton and Andy Garcia. Universal Pictures International has led distribution in select markets for titles including “Armageddon Time” and “TÁR.”
Focus is part of Universal Filmed Entertainment Group (UFEG), which produces, acquires, markets and distributes filmed entertainment worldwide in various media formats for theatrical, home entertainment, television and other distribution platforms. UFEG’s global division also includes Universal Pictures, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, and DreamWorks Animation. UFEG is part of NBCUniversal, one of the world’s leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production and marketing of entertainment, news and information to a global audience. NBCUniversal owns and operates a valuable portfolio of news and entertainment networks, a premier motion picture company, significant television production operations, a leading television stations group, world-renowned theme parks and a suite of leading Internet-based businesses. NBCUniversal is a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation.