Cli-Fi: The Breadwinner Patiently Arrives

The debut trailer of Cartoon Saloon’s newest animated exploration has come at last.

An international collaboration directed by the gifted Nora Twomey, who I’ll interview later this year, and co-produced by Angelina Jolie, whom you may have heard of, The Breadwinner examines the terror and terraformation of Afghanistan through a gender-fluid prism quite rare for animation. I can’t wait to talk to Twomey about it.

Until then, gaze, please pun intended, at the teaser’s moving wonder, and read below for the toon’s latest data.

NEW YORK (May 16, 2017) – GKIDS, the acclaimed producer and distributor of animation for both adult and family audiences, has announced the first teaser trailer for Cartoon Saloon’s new feature THE BREADWINNER from director Nora Twomey. GKIDS had its first Oscar® nomination with the Irish animation studio’s “The Secret of Kells” co-directed by Nora Twomey. Cartoon’s Saloon’s “Song of the Sea” was also a Best Animated Feature nominee for GKIDS. GKIDS CEO/Founder Eric Beckman and President David Jesteadt are executive producing THE BREADWINNER along with Angelina Jolie.

Since it was founded in 2008, GKIDS has had a major impact on the US animation landscape by discovering and distributing a slate of prestigious, critically acclaimed, independent feature animation from around the world and garnering an unprecedented nine Oscar® nominations for Best Animated Feature. THE BREADWINNER marks the first time the studio is serving in a producing and financing capacity, in addition to distribution. GKIDS has slated a fall 2017 theatrical release in North America.

THE BREADWINNER is produced by Aircraft Pictures’ Anthony Leo and Andrew Rosen, Cartoon Saloon’s Tomm Moore and Paul Young, and Melusine Productions’ Stephan Roelants. It is executive produced by Jolie Pas Production’s Angelina Jolie, Jehane Noujaim, Karim Amer, Mimi Polk Gitlin, Jon Levin, Regina K. Scully, Frank Falcone and Mary Bredin; Cartoon Saloon’s Gerry Shirren and GKIDS’ Eric Beckman and David Jesteadt. WestEnd Films is handling international sales.

Of her involvement with the film, Jolie said, “I am proud to be a part of this beautiful film with this timely and very important subject matter. Millions of girls around the world have to grow up before their time, working to provide for their families at a very young age and in difficult circumstances. They have the strength to do what no one should ask little girls to do. I hope this film is able to bring this discussion to a broader audience. As much as it is an important and very meaningful film, it also stands on its own as a great piece of art. Director Nora Twomey and her team have done something very special. They have breathed life into the characters and paid respect to the subject matter and to a country where women often struggle.”

Based on the award-winning, best-selling young adult novel by Deborah Ellis, THE BREADWINNER is directed by Cartoon Saloon’s Nora Twomey, co-director of The Secret of Kells alongside Tomm Moore.

The film is about Parvana, a young girl living under the Taliban regime, who cuts her hair and disguises herself as a boy in order to provide for her family after her father is imprisoned. A powerful and riveting story of self-empowerment and imagination in the face of oppression, THE BREADWINNER boasts the breathtaking hand-drawn animation that has made Cartoon Saloon one of the world’s most well-loved and respected animation studios.

An official Ireland-Canada-Luxembourg co-production, THE BREADWINNER is being produced with the participation of Telefilm Canada & The Film Fund, the Irish Film Board, Film Fund Luxembourg, The Harold Greenberg Fund, Shaw Rocket Fund, the Ontario Media Development Corporation and the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland along with Gaia Entertainment and the Artemis Rising Foundation.

Published by Groundwood Books, THE BREADWINNER novel has been in print for over 15 years and is recommended reading in numerous middle schools throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe. Author Deborah Ellis recently completed “My Name is Parvana,” the fourth book in the series which has cumulative sales exceeding 2.5 million copies across 25 languages. To date, Ellis has donated more than $1 million from her book royalties to the charity Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan. The book was recently endorsed by Nobel Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai, who told the New York Times, “’The Breadwinner’ reminds us how courageous and strong women are around the world.”