MK2 Films Acquires Classic Films by Auteurs Michael Haneke, Ang Lee, Xavier Dolan (EXCLUSIVE)

MK2 Films has acquired films by Michael Haneke, Ang Lee and Xavier Dolan as part of its strategy to reposition auteur classics as global theatrical events.

Among the headline deals, MK2 has secured worldwide rights, except for Germany, Italy, France, the U.S., the U.K., Spain and Australia, to Haneke’s 2007 English-language remake of “Funny Games,” starring Naomi Watts and Tim Roth. The acquisition, concluded with Chris Coen Films Ltd., adds to a Haneke slate that already includes “Code Unknown” and “The Piano Teacher.”

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MK2 has also acquired worldwide rights to newly restored versions of Lee’s “Pushing Hands,” “The Wedding Banquet” and “Eat Drink Man Woman,” in a deal with the Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute, where the films were originally restored by CMPC.

MK2 has also taken worldwide rights to Dolan’s “I Killed My Mother” and “Heartbeats” from Nancy Grant, after previously holding French rights to “Heartbeats.” They join “Laurence Anyways” and “Tom at the Farm,” as well as French rights to “Mommy” and “It’s Only the End of the World.”

On the U.S. indie front, MK2 is reactivating Gregg Araki’s “Mysterious Skin,” a Sundance breakout, through a director-approved new 4K restoration, which premiered at Sundance Classics this year. Additional 4K-restored titles include Lisa Cholodenko’s “High Art” and Martha Coolidge’s “Not a Pretty Picture.”

In parallel, MK2 is rolling out a new 4K restoration of Ari Folman’s milestone animated documentary “Waltz With Bashir,” which has recently joined the company’s collection.

“These acquisitions are part of a long-term editorial strategy,” said Frédérique Rouault, head of collections at MK2. “We are building coherent, curated bodies of work, strengthening relationships with filmmakers and rights holders, and giving distributors access to collections supported by new marketing assets and the tools to turn them into events.”

These additions follow the recent acquisition of worldwide rights to Céline Sciamma’s early films “Naissance des Pieuvres,” “Tomboy” and “Girlhood,” completing a collection that already includes “Portrait of a Lady on Fire” and “Petite Maman.”

The company is also deepening its partnership with Martin Scorsese’s The Film Foundation. Depending on titles, MK2 represents worldwide rights, excluding North America, to a selection of features restored through the Foundation’s World Cinema Project. Ten new films have recently joined the deal, including Sergei Parajanov’s “Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors,” Idrissa Ouédraogo’s “Yam Daabo” and Dariush Mehrjui’s “The Postman,” all restored in 4K.

For MK2 CEO Nathanaël Karmitz, the shift is structural: “Films are not dormant assets. They are living works — films to be restored, recontextualised and brought back into circulation for audiences, festivals, distributors and cultural partners worldwide. As exhibitors ourselves, we understand the challenges our clients face and the importance of creating events that give films a renewed public life. The renewed interest of younger audiences in classic cinema is a global trend — and it is strongest when these films are properly framed, restored and presented as collective experiences.”