Cannes 2012: Roger Donaldson Will Direct Pierce Brosnan, Dominic Cooper in 'November Man'

CANNES -- Pierce Brosnan's longtime passion project November Man is moving ahead, with Roger Donaldson on board to direct the espionage action-thriller and Dominic Cooper set to star opposite Brosnan.

our editor recommends

Cannes 2012: Taylor Lautner Sets His Sights on Parkour Thriller 'Tracers'

Cannes 2012: 'Dictator' Star Sacha Baron Cohen Invades Historic Hotel

Word of the project comes on the eve of the Marche du Film in Cannes, where Lisa Wilson and Myles Nestel's The Solution Entertanment Group will shop the film to foreign buyers as part of a new multi-picture financing and distribution deal struck with Brosnan's production company Irish DreamTime.

PHOTOS: Cannes Film Festival: Veterans Ready to Return to the Croisette

November Man reteams Brosnan and Donaldson, who worked together on Dante's Peak. It also reunites him with Cooper, his Mamma Mia! co-star.

"November Man has been a labor of love for both me and my company," Brosnan said. "I'm looking forward to working with The Solution and reuniting with both Roger and Dominic as we prepare to make a great film."

November Man is based on Bill Granger's novel There are No Spies, part of a series of bestselling espionage novels. Solution and DreamTime hope to launch a film franchise with the movie, which is being produced by Beau St. Clair, Brosnan's partner at DreamTime, and Sriram Das of Das Films. The duo jointly developed the adapted script, which was written by Michael Finch and Karl Gajdusek.

"Myles and Lisa are great partners for us as filmmakers and share our vision for these films," St. Clair said. "Their extensive creative and financial experience enables our projects to maximize their full potential. We all believe that the Bill Granger novels and the character of Devereaux feel like the perfect vehicle for Pierce."

November Man tells the tale of an ex-CIA operative (Brosnan) who is brought back on a very personal mission and finds himself pitted against his former pupil (Cooper) in a deadly game involving high-level CIA officials and the Russian president-elect.

Donaldson, whose directed British hesit movie The Bank Job, is scheduled to start shooting in October in Berlin.

The multi-picture deal between The Solution and DreamTime was announced by St. Clair, Wilson and Nestel. The Solution is arranging financing for November Man, in addition to representing international rights. CAA, which represents Brosnan, Cooper and Donaldson, brokered the deal on behalf of DreamTime and will sell the film domestically.

DreamTime's previous credits include The Matador and The Thomas Crown Affair.

The Solution's sales slate at Cannes also includes Grand Piano and Writers.