Tessa Thompson & Lily James Lead Neon's Upcoming Feminist Western LITTLE WOODS

NEON has acquired North American rights to Nia DaCosta's debut film Little Woods which premiered in April at Tribeca Film Festival. Written and directed by DaCosta, the resulting film is a reimagining of the traditional western film as told from the female perspective.

Little Woods is a modern Western that tells the story of two sisters, Ollie (Tessa Thompson) and Deb (Lily James), who are driven to work outside the law to better their lives. For years, Ollie has illicitly helped the struggling residents of her North Dakota oil boomtown access Canadian health care and medication. When the authorities catch on, she plans to abandon her crusade, only to be dragged in even deeper after a desperate plea for help from her sister. Little Woods is an intimate look at the plight of the working class in rural America.

The film features performances by Tessa Thompson (SORRY TO BOTHER YOU, CREED), Lily James (BABY DRIVER, DARKEST HOUR), Luke Kirby (THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL), James Badge Dale (13 HOURS) and Lance Reddick (JOHN WICK, JOHN WICK 2).

The film is written and directed by Nia DaCosta. Rachael Fung, Gabrielle Nadig and Tim Headington produced. Little Woods is executive produced by Lia Buman, Brian Kavanaugh-Jones, Fred Berger, Tom Dolby, Susanne Filkins, Abdi Nazemian, David S. Stone, David Boies III, John Boccardo, Derek Esplin and Tessa Thompson. The film was supported by the Sundance Institute, the San Francisco Film Society and the Time Warner Foundation.

DaCosta is represented CAA, Management 360, Del, Shaw, Moonves, Tanaka, Finkelstein & Lezcano and Casarotto Ramsay & Associates Limited.

The deal was negotiated by NEON and CAA Media Finance on behalf of the filmmakers.

ABOUT NEON:

Founded in 2016, NEON is an award winning independent film distribution studio. Its debut film was Nacho Vigalondo's Colossal, starring Anne Hathaway and Jason Sudeikis. NEON was an active player at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, acquiring Reinaldo Marcus Green's Monsters & Men, winner of the Sundance Dramatic Special Jury Award for Outstanding First Feature; Sam Levinson's Assassination Nation; and Tim Wardle's Three Identical Strangers, winner of the Sundance Special Jury Award for Storytelling. NEON had a record breaking year with the release of the runaway hit winner I, Tonya, directed by Craig Gillespie, starring Margot Robbie and 2018 Oscar Winner for Best Supporting, Actress Allison Janney. Eliza Hittman's Sundance Award Winner Beach Rats, Matt Spicer's Sundance and Spirit Award Winner Ingrid Goes West; Laura Poitras's RISK, Ana Lily Amirpour's Venice Award Winner The Bad Batch and Errol Morris', The B-Side. Other recent NEON releases include Aaron Katz's Gemini; and the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival Opening Night film by Janus Metz, Borg Vs McEnroe; and Coralie Fargeat's groundbreaking feature film debut Revenge.

After their successful collaboration on I, Tonya, in January 2018, 30WEST (Dan Friedkin's and Micah Green's strategic venture) partnered with NEON's Tom Quinn (Founder & CEO) and Tim League (Co-Founder) to become the majority investors in the company.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride

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