Menemsha Films has picked up North American rights to Lost Transport, a female-led drama from director Saskia Diesing that is set in the final days of turmoil at the end of World War II.
Menemsha acquired the film from Global Screen ahead of the virtual European Film Market, which kicks off today.
Hanna van Vilet (Quicksand), Eugénie Anselin (Bad Banks) and Anna Bachmann (Lost Ones) star alongside Bram Suijker and Konstantin Frolov in the drama, inspired by true events, which centers on a trio of women: the distrustful German girl Winnie (Bachmann), the courageous Dutch Jewish woman Simone (van Vilet) and the fearless Russian sniper Vera (Anselin). Thrown together at the end of World War II, after a group of German soldiers abandons a deportation train to the fate of advancing Russian troops, the women have to overcome their distrust and resentment of one another and work together to survive. Van Vilet was picked as the Netherlands’ 2022 Shooting Star — one of 10 up-and-coming actors from Europe — and will be honored at a ceremony at this year’s Berlin Film Festival on Monday, Feb. 14.
“The film Lost Transport is a true discovery,” said Menemsha Films head Neil Friedman. “Filmmaker Saskia Diesing has written and directed a subtle, impactful film that viewers will surely cherish.”
Earlier this week, Menemsha picked up U.S. rights to The Conference, a German drama about the Nazi meeting where the Final Solution was planned, from Global Screen. The sales outfit is a division of Telepool, the rights and distribution group owned by Will and Jada Pinkett Smith’s Westbrook Inc.
