EXCLUSIVE: London-based Dogwoof has locked a series of international deals for Jason Kohn’s diamond industry documentary Nothing lasts forever and Snow Hnin Ei Hlaing’s debut feature MidwivesThe 2022 IDFA Forum’s first day.
Kohn directed and produced the movie.Love is not a zero), Nothing lasts foreverVPRO (Netherlands), SVT, Sweden, NRK (Norway), DR(Denmark), Movistar/Telefonica Spain and Andorra), VRT Belgium and Madman Australia and New Zealand.
Further deals include NOS Lusomundo (Portugal and PALOP), HOT8 and Yesdocu (Israel), RTBF (Belgium – French speaking), PTS (Taiwan), PCCW (Hong Kong and Macau), and RUV (Iceland). Showtime owns North American rights.
Amanda Branson Gill and Jared Ian Goldman are producers on the doc. Jason Kohn is a co-producer. Vinnie Malhotra is Showtime’s executive producer. Kimberley Hasett, Jonathan Gribetz and Heloisa Pasos are co-producers.
Snow Hnin Ei Hlaing’s MidwivesNHK (Japan), CBC Canada, France TV (France), VRT(Belgium), Al Jazeera MENA), Madman (Australia and New Zealand), PCCW [Hong Kong, Macau], LRT (Lituania) Previously, sales were made to BBC (United Kingdom), SVT(Sweden), VG TV [Norway], DR (Denmark), LRT (Lituania), and RUV (“Iceland”) with POV rights for North America.
The doc is a collaboration between POV Documentary Films, EyeSteelFilm, Ama Film and Snow Films. Edited and produced by Mila Ah-Thwin, Snow Hnin Ei Hlaing and Ulla Lehmann, it was also produced by Bob Moore.
These two buzzy docs enjoyed long festival runs. Nothing lasts foreverOpening at Berlin Film Festival in Berlin earlier this year. The film was followed by a North American Premiere during SXSW. Midwives premiered in the World Cinema Documentary Competition at Sundance 2022, where it took home the Excellence In Verité Filmmaking World Cinema Documentary Special Jury Award.
Made in the last ten years Nothing lasts foreverFollow Jason Kohn, director, as he infiltrates a secretive diamond industry to discover a black market for synthetic diamonds. This trade could threaten every legitimate diamond’s value.
The synopsis continues: More than monetary values are at stake, the universal symbol of love and commitment – the engagement ring – hangs in the balance. This event features some of the most powerful and colorful industry insiders, including Dusan Simic and Aja Raden, Martin Rappaport and Stephen Lussier. Nothing lasts foreverThe viewer is taken deep into a criminal investigation, forcing us to reexamine the value of creating value.
Snow Hnin Ei Hlaing’s debut follows two midwives, one Buddhist and one Muslim, as they defy strict ethnic divisions to work side by side in a makeshift clinic in western Myanmar, providing medical services to the Rohingya of Rakhine State. In an environment of violence and chaos, we see their struggles and hopes over five years.
The synopsis is: MidwivesThis is a peaceful, calm gaze into a country that has been ravaged by war and religious divisions. Snow Hnin Ei Hlaing’s impartial lens lets the actions of the courageous women speak volumes, highlighting their strength and unity. MidwivesThis is a true look inside a country long mythologized and exoticized.