Dubai-based sales agency Cercamon has acquired worldwide rights for Indonesian film “Crocodile Tears,” it was revealed at Hong Kong rights market FilMart.
The film is a co-production between Indonesia’s Talamedia (producer Mandy Marahimin), Singapore’s Giraffe Pictures (producers Anthony Chen and Teoh Yi Peng), France’s Acrobates Films (producer Claire Lajoumard) and Poetik Film (producer Christophe Lafont) and Germany’s 2Pilots Filmproduction (producers Harry Flöter and Jörg Siepmann).
The deal was negotiated by Sebastien Chesneau at Cercamon, Chen at Giraffe Pictures and Marahimin at Talamedia.
The film, Tumpal Tampubolon’s feature debut, follows Johan, who lives alone with his mother on a crocodile farm in West Java. Mother and son live in voluntary exile with only a white crocodile as their confidant. Their life of isolation is disrupted when Johan falls for a girl in town, Arumi, setting off a chain of events that threatens the delicate balance of their lives.
Currently in the final stages of post-production, the film is due to hit the 2024 festival circuit. Tampubolon is known for his shorts, including “The Sea Calls for Me,” which won the Sonje Award for Best Short Fiction at the Busan International Film Festival in 2021.
Established in 2014 by veteran international sales agent Sebastien Chesneau, Cercamon is a global film sales company that manages up to eight feature films annually. Latest features in the lineup include 2023 Cannes Caméra d’Or winner “Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell” and 2024 Berlinale selection “Paradises of Diane.”
“We are thrilled to include ‘Crocodile Tears’ into our catalog of distinguished films,” said Chesneau. “The vibrant cinema scene in Southeast Asia has always captivated us. Our excitement for this project was kindled when we came across an early pre-teaser during its financing phase.”
Marahimin, whose credits include 2023 Locarno winner “Sweet Dreams,” added: “This film is a labor of love for Tumpal and me. It took us seven years to develop and realize the film. We are so glad to have Cercamon partner with us to introduce our film to the world.”
Hong Kong-based Chen, whose directorial venture “The Breaking Ice” debuted at Cannes and was nominated at the Asian Film Awards, said: “It’s great to be working with the dedicated team at Cercamon again after our very successful collaboration on Kirsten Tan’s ‘Pop Aye.’ This is a film that once again showcases the diversity and originality of Southeast Asian cinema, and definitely one to be discovered.”
