The 55-year-old Spanish film screenwriter and film director’s Goya Awards-nominated film Sentimental will be getting a remake.
Euro distributor and producer Ascot Elite Entertainment has secured the Swiss remake rights to the successful Spanish comedy, which is also known as The People Upstairs.
The film will feature all German-speaking parts of Europe from Filmax and be known asDie Nachbarn Von Oben, which translates to The People Upstairs.
Written and directed by Gay, the 2020 Spanish original starred Belén Cuesta and Javier Cámara as a couple who spend most of their time arguing decide to invite their upstairs neighbors for dinner despite their differences. As the night goes on, various secrets about the couple come to light.
The Spanish original was nominated for five Goya Award, including Best Film, Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Actor. It earned Alberto San Juan the Best Supporting Actor award.
Sabine Boss will direct the film, and will feature Swiss stars Sarah Spale, Max Simonischek, Ursina Lardi and Roeland Wiesnekker in the cast.
The film will be produced by Ascot Elite’s Karin G. Dietrich (CEO), Ralph S. Dietrich (CEO), Stephan Giger (CEO) and Roger Kaufmann (producer). Ascot Elite plans a theatrical release for Switzerland in early 2023.
A German remake produced by Ascot Elite Entertainment is also in the works.
Sabine Boss said: “In this gripping comedy, the situation threatens to escalate when Anna and Thomas have the upstairs neighbors over for dinner and they make them a surprisingly permissive offer. The night becomes a moment of truth – which threatens to tear the couple apart.”
Stephan Giger, CEO of Ascot Elite Entertainment added: “This is an amusing social comedy with a top-class acting ensemble where many will recognize, or rather catch, themselves in the characters and patterns. It is also a great opportunity to position Ascot Elite Entertainment as an ambitious production company and we are very looking forward to finally start shooting the movie.”
The Spanish filmmaker’s Netflix drama Adú is the frontrunner for this year’s Premios Goya (Goya Awards), Spain’s top film honors.
Calvo’s film earned 14 nominations, including nods for best film and best director.
Calvo’s sophomore feature follows three interconnected stories all set in Africa. Two members of its ensemble cast Álvaro Cervantes and Adam Nourou, picked up Goya nominations for best supporting actor and best newcomer actor, respectively.
The Goyas 2021 best film nominees include Ane Is Missingfrom David Pérez Sañudo, Icíar Bollaín‘s La boda de Rosa, Pilar Palomero‘s The Girls, andThe People Upstairsaka Sentimental, from director Cesc Gay.
In addition to Calvo and Bollaín, the best director category this year includes Juanma Bajo Ulloa, nominated for his horror thriller Baby, and veteran filmmaker Isabel Coixet for It Snows in Benidorm.
Contenders for the best Ibero-American film include Chilean documentary The Mole Agent, Forgotten We’ll Befrom Columbian filmmaker Fernando Trueba, the Guatemalan horror film The Curse of la Llorona, and Fernando Frias‘ Mexican drama I’m No Longer Here.
Last year, Pedro Almodóvar’s semi-autobiographical drama Pain and Glorywas the big winner at the Goyas, winning seven honors, including for best picture, director, original screenplay, and best actor for Antonio Banderas.
The 2021 Goya Awards will be held in a live-streamed ceremony from the Teatro del Soho CaixaBank in Málaga on Saturday, March 6. Banderas will direct this year’s award ceremony and will present the 35th Goya Awards together with Spanish journalist María Casado.
Here’s the full list of nominations for the 35th Goya Awards:
Best Film Adú Ane Is Missing La boda de Rosa The Girls The People Upstairs
Best Director Salvador Calvo for Adú Juanma Bajo Ulloa for Bafrom Icíar Bollain for La boda de Rosa Isabel Coixet for It Snows in Benidorm
Best Novel Adaptation Pilar Palomero for The Girls David Pérez Sañudo for Ane is Missing Bernabé Rico for El inconvenient Núria Giménez Lorang for My Mexican Bretzel
Best Actress Amaia Aberasturi for Coven
Andrea Fandós for The Girls Patricia López Arnaiz for Ane is Missing Candela Peña for La boda de Rosa
Best Actor Mario Casas for Cross the Line Javier Cámara for The People Upstairs Ernesto Alterio for A Normal World David Verdaguer for One for All
Best Supporting Actress Juana Acosta for El inconvenient Verónica Echegui for My Heart Goes Boom! Natalia de Molina for The Girls Nathalie Poza for La boda de Rosa
Best Supporting Actor Sergi López for La boda de Rosa Juan Diego Botto for The Europeans Alberto San Juan for The People Upstairs Álvaro Cervantes for Adú
Best Actress Newcomer Jone Laspiur for Ane is Missing Paula Usero for La boda de Rosa Milena Smith for Cross the Line Griselda Siciliani for The People Upstairs
Best Actor Newcomer Adam Nourou for Adú Chema del Barco for The Plan Janick for Historias lamentables Fernando Valdivielso for Cross the Line
Best Original Screenplay Adu La boda de Rosa Historias lamentables The Girls
Best Adapted Screenplay The People Upstairs Ane is Missing The Europeans Unknown Origins
Best Animated Film Turu, the Wacky Hen
Best Documentary Anatomía de un dandy Drowning Letters The Year of the Discovery My Mexican Bretzel
Best European Film Corpus Christi from Poland The Father from the United Kingdom An Officer and A Spy from France Falling from the United Kingdom
Best Ibero-American Film El agente topo from Chile El olvido que seremos from Colombia La llorona from Guatemala Ya no estoy aquí from México
Best Cinematography Adú Coven Black Beach The Girls
Best Production Design Adú Coven Black Beach It Snows in Benidorm
Best Original Music Adú Coven Baby El verano que vivimos
Best Original Song Adú El verano que vivimos La boda de Rosa The Girls
Best Editing Adú Black Beach The Year of the Discovery The Girls
Best Sound Adú Coven Black Beach The Plan
Best Art Direction Adú Coven Black Beach The Girls
Best Costume Design Coven My Heart Goes Boom! The Girls The Europeans
Best Makeup and Hairdressing Adú Coven My Heart Goes Boom! Unknown Origins
Euro distributor and producer Ascot Elite Entertainment has secured the Swiss remake rights to the successful Spanish comedy, which is also known as The People Upstairs.