New York-based distributor Greenwich Entertainment has picked up the U.S. distribution rights to Swan Song, the documentary directed by Chelsea McMullan and written by McMullan and Sean O’Neill.

The film, which had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) last September, is set to be released in U.S. theatres in the fall. The acquisition was negotiated by Greenwich’s Andy Bohn and international sales agent Dogwoof’s Ana Vicente on behalf of the filmmakers.

The documentary takes viewers behind the scenes of one of the world’s leading ballet companies as it prepares for a groundbreaking production of Swan Lake, as directed by ballet icon Karen Kain on the eve of her retirement.

The verité-driven feature closely follows Kain and a group of young dancers from the National Ballet of Canada, blending the dramatic creation process of Swan Lake with intimate scenes from the dancers’ personal lives.

The documentary was produced by O’Neill and Christina Carvalho, with executive producers including Neve Campbell, Jennifer Baichwal, Nicholas de Pencier, Oli Harbottle and Anna Godas.

The feature was originally commissioned as a four-part series for CBC, but grew in scope as the filmmakers dug deeper into the subject matter.

“CBC originally commissioned a four-part series version of Swan Song because we wanted the space to develop the characters and storylines, and to spotlight the dancing and choreography,” Jennifer Dettman, CBC’s executive director of unscripted content, told Playback ahead of the TIFF debut. “The production team and distributor decided to produce a feature film from the material in order to complete financing, providing the distributor with a feature film version for international sales purposes.”

With files from Amber Dowling

Image courtesy of TIFF