Actress Emma Thompson (Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical, Men In Black: International) will star in The Fisherwoman, a new action thriller from director Brian Kirk (21 Bridges, “Luther”). The film begins production this month from a script by Nicholas Jacboson-Larson and Dalton Leeb.
In the film, Thompson stars in the title role as a widowed fisherwoman who, while trapped in a Minnesota blizzard, interrupts the kidnapping of a teenager and soon finds she is the young victim’s only hope.
Greg Silverman and Jon Berg of Stampede Ventures, and Jonas Katzenstein and Maximilian Leo from augenschein Filmproduktion are producing, alongside renowned Romanian producer Oana Iacu (Academy Award-nominated Quo vadis, Aida?).
The production comes just as augenschein’s Katzenstein and Leo announced a new partnership on Thursday with Erfttal Film, selling a minority stake in the fellow Cologne-based company. The new deal allows augenschein to continue operating as a full-range film production company, but with the ability to develop, package and produce director-driven feature films with a stronger commercial potential for the global market.
The deal also combines resources from both companies to expand augenschein’s industry reach.
“This deal is a major next step in our company’s trajectory and enables us to keep growing and building on our strength as a truly global and filmmaker friendly company. It takes us to the next level, allowing us to be much more active and compete for projects with the very best production companies both in the U.S. and beyond. It’s the best of both worlds where we combine our resilience and strength to be even more bold and fearless backed by a wonderful partner, in an ever-changing market,” said augenschein Filmproduktion’s Jonas Katzenstein and Maximilian Leo. “We have a fantastic slate of high-profile films already shot and in development and Erfttal is the ideal partner to support us as our company continues its evolution,” they continued.
“The cooperation will help both companies to make the most of their strengths and produce a diverse range of captivating and inspiring films for viewers from Germany and around the world,” commented Erfttal Films’ owner Klaus Dohle.
augenschein has produced several major movies in 2023 including director David Lowery’s Hunter Schafer-penned Mother Mary starring Anne Hathaway, and Michaela Coel coming soon from A24, Jan-Ole Gerster’s new thriller Islands starring Sam Riley, Stacy Martin and Jack Farthing, and upcoming Eric Bana starrer, Berlin Nobody, from director Jordan Scott.
