Swedish filmmaker Johannes Nyholm’s “Koko-Di Koko-Da,” which is competing at the Sundance Film Festival, has been acquired by U.K. distribution company Picturehouse.
Represented in international markets by Paris-based banner Stray Dogs, “Koko-Di Koko-Da” had its U.S. premiere at Sundance on Saturday in the World Dramatic Competition selection and played to a packed audience.
“Koko-di Koko-da” follows a couple who goes on a trip to find their way back to each other a few years after the tragic death of their only child. But the couple ends up reliving a traumatic night over and over again while camping. The story, told through their mutual dreams, is about relationships, grief and love as a healing force.
The Swedish helmer previously told Variety that the film’s story unfolded during the “wee hours of the morning when dreams are at their most relentlessly untamed” and was set during “this nightmarish landscape between wakefulness and sleep.”
The film marks Nyholm’s follow up to “The Giant” which won the jury prize at San Sebastian and three Guldbagge Awards.
Picturehouse will be releasing “Koko-Di Koko-Da” theatrically in June. “This is unlike anything I’ve seen in a long while. Truly original filmmaking, a pitch perfect exercise in quality horror and a true big screen experience,” said Picturehouse’s managing director Clare Binns.
After Sundance, “Koko-Di Koko-Da” will go to play in competition at the Rotterdam and Göteborg film festivals.
“This is a filmmaker with a vision that is redefining the genre, and Picturehouse immediately fell in love with the film,” said Stray Dogs founder Nathan Fischer, adding that he was looking forward to be “partnering with them to bring something so unique and strong to U.K. movie goers.”