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Totem Films Boards European Road Movie ‘Sagres’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Paris-based sales company Totem Films has boarded Lovisa Siren’s new film “Sagres,” a dynamic European road movie.

“Sagres,” which has just gone into production, follows two sisters and a teenage daughter who travel from Stockholm, Sweden, to the picturesque cliffs of Sagres, Portugal — located in the southwestern most part of Europe, known as “The End of the World.”

Maya, the younger sister, is a free-spirited, half-failing musician who has left her son in Portugal with her mother, while older sibling Nilo is a control freak in a sexless marriage. When the sisters’ mother phones up to say she’s sick, the pair — joined by Nilo’s rambunctious teenage daughter Laura — embarks on a road trip through Europe to reunite in Sagres, culminating in a tragicomic reunion no one expected.

“Sagres” marks Siren’s feature debut. Her 2014 film “Pussy Have the Power” picked up the Best Short Award at the Goteberg Film Festival. Her other films include the shorts “Baby” and “Audition.” The latter was nominated for the Short Film Grand Jury Prize at Sundance in 2016.

“Sagres,” which featured in this year’s Berlinale Talents program, is produced by Siri Hjorton Wagner ([sic] film) and co-produced with Julia Gebauer (Way Creative), Elli Toivoniemi (Tuffi Films) and Beata Saboova (Umedia). Meanwhile, Lisabi Fridell (“And Then We Danced”) serves as DOP on the project. TriArt, which released “Parasite” and “I Am Greta” in Sweden, is the film’s Swedish distributor.

Totem Films was formed in October 2018 by Agathe Valentin, Bérénice Vincent and Laure Parleani. Earlier this year, the company also expanded into co-productions. Totem’s Cannes 2020 selection “Gagarine,” by directors Fanny Liatard and Jérémy Trouilh, was sold into a raft of international territories following the June market, while the Andrea Riseborough-starring “Luxor,” which premiered at Sundance in January, has also sold into major markets such as the U.K. and France.

Other films on the Totem slate include “Stambul Garden,” “Ceniza Negra” and “The Most Fearless.”

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