Broad Green Pictures announced today production of Buena Vista SOCIAL CLUB - ADIOS, sixteen years after the Academy Award® nominated Buena Vista SOCIAL CLUB first debuted, catapulting Cuba's vibrant music and culture onto the global stage alongside the band's release of their landmark Grammy®-winning album. Academy Award® nominee LUCY Walker (THE TSUNAMI AND THE CHERRY BLOSSOM, WASTE LAND) will direct the sequel with Christine Cowin and Zak Kilberg producing.
Broad Green Pictures is financing the project and will lead production alongside Blink TV and Convergent Media (formerly Social Construct Media). Broad Green has worldwide rights to the film and will distribute in the United States, with Mister Smith Entertainment handling international sales. International sales conversations will begin at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival. The partnership between the two companies was announced earlier this year with Broad Green acquiring a 45% stake in Mister Smith. This project marks the first of many to be announced in their collaboration.
With the band on their final and hugely ambitious world tour, the five original band members take us on an intimate journey, revealing their personal and professional highs and lows since 1999, while remembering the infamous and beloved band members no longer with us. The tour will culminate in a series of spectacular homecoming concerts in Havana.
Set against the unique and unprecedented political, social and cultural backdrop of this rapidly evolving time in Cuban history, this film will cement the enduring legacy of the band, the musicians and the music at the end of an era.
Principal photography is slated to begin in July 2015 with theatrical release targeted in 2016. Broad Green's Victor Moyers and Asher Goldstein will oversee production for the studio.
Director LUCY Walker stated, "The original Buena Vista SOCIAL CLUB movie introduced the world to a group of fantastically charming and talented musicians who have inspired the world with their stories, hearts and music. Those are big shoes to fill and I am honored to follow in the footsteps of such a beloved, popular movie about such beloved, popular artists, and it's especially fascinating during this important moment in Cuban history."
"BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB was such a culturally moving film that evoked such a passionate response from audiences and critics worldwide. We are honored to be part of continuing this beautiful story alongside a filmmaker we admire." said Daniel Hammond, Broad Green's Chief Creative Officer.
In a joint statement from Blink TV and Convergent Media, the companies said, "We could not be more pleased with the assembled team including LUCY Walker and Broad Green. This process so far has been an absolutely positive creative collaboration between all of us, including the band, World Circuit and Montuno. We know this documentary about the Buena Vista SOCIAL CLUB final tour will align perfectly with the band's incredible legacy."
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