Georgia has become the latest country to submit its entry for this year’s International Oscar Race, selecting Beginning, Dea Kulumbegashvili’s debut feature that was a hit at the recent San Sebastian Film Festival.
The film swept the top awards at the Spanish fest, winning best film, director, actress and screenplay. Jury president Luca Guadagnino said it was “a revelation”. It also screened at Toronto and New York and was a Cannes label selection.
The story takes place in a sleepy provincial town in Georgia, in a Jehovah’s Witness community that is attacked by an extremist group. In the midst of this conflict, the familiar world of Yana, the wife of the community leader, slowly crumbles. Yana’s inner discontent grows as she struggles to make sense of her desires.
The Georgian National Film Center is seeking its second Oscar nomination with the movie, having been previously nominated with A Chef In Love in 1996.
Kulumbegashvili co-wrote the film with Rati Oneli, and it stars Oneli and Ia sukhitashvili. The film is produced by Ilan Amouyal, David Zerat, Rati Oneli, and Paul Rozenberg; co-produced by Steven Darty & Adrien Dassault; and executive produced by filmmaker Carlos Reygadas & Gaetan Rousseau.
Sales on the title are being handled by Wild Bunch International. CAA Media Finance is co-repping in North America.