[ANNECY '19] GKIDS Film Adopts 'Marona's Fantastic Tale'

Romanian director Anca Damian has had a fascinating career. After graduating from film school in Bucharest she became Romania's first female Director Of Photography on a number of narrative feature films and documentaries. When she moved into directing, she produced a mix of live-action and animated films. Her first animated film Crulic- The Path To Beyond was awarded the Cristal for Best Feature at Annecy in 2012.

In 2019, Damian is back at the festival with a new animated film, Marona's Fantastic Tale. And on the day of its premiere screening, GKIDS Films have announced that they have picked up the film's release rights in North America.

Crulic may have been a serious adult drama, but Marona looks like a much lighter-hearted affair. The Marona of the title is  a dog, a mixed-breed labrador "whose life leaves deep traces among the humans she encounters." Following an accident, she reflects back on all the homes she's had and all the experiences she's had along the way.

As the synopsis has it:

As Marona's memory journeys into the past, her unfailing empathy and love brings lightness and innocence into each of her owners' lives, in this beautiful and deeply emotional story of an average dog and her extraordinary life.

This sounds cute.. but we think they might be underplaying something here. "After an accident." Is this going to be a dog looking back from the afterlife? For the sake of all the dog lovers out there- we hope not! Is this the arthouse All Dogs Go To Heaven?

"We have been excited about this film since we saw the first images several years ago," says David Jesteadt, GKIDS President. "The film combines a unique and wildly inventive visual style with a universal story that goes straight to the heart for anyone who has been lucky enough to spend time with a dog. We are sure audiences are going to fall in love with the film as much as we have."

No release date has been announced at this time.