Toronto distributor D Films has acquired exclusive, long-term Canadian rights in all media to The Deep, it was announced Thursday by D Films president Jim Sherry and BAC Films international sales agent Mathieu Robinet.

The Deep, directed, produced and co-written by Baltasar Kormakur, is Iceland’s official Oscar submission for best foreign-language film.

The film, based on a true story about the sole survivor of a 1984 shipwreck, had its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival last September.

The deal was negotiated by D Films’ Michael Robson and BAC Films’ Robinet.

The Deep is slated for release in winter 2013. D Films will distribute the film in Canada, and Focus World, the alternative-distribution initiative owned and operated by Focus Features, will distribute the film in the U.S.