03 Jun DEADLINE: Freestyle Acquires Coming-Of-Age Pics ‘We Burn Like This’ And ‘Love You Anyway’ – Film Briefs
EXCLUSIVE: Freestyle Digital Media has acquired North American rights to a pair of coming-of-age dramas: writer-director Alana Waksman’s debut feature We Burn Like This, and writer-director Anna Matz’s first feature, Love You Anyway. The digital film distribution division of Byron Allen’s Allen Media Group plans to release both titles across internet and satellite platforms on June 28.
Inspired by true events, the former film from Armian Pictures shows the inherited effects of historical trauma and the strength of survival and healing. When 22-year-old Rae (Madeleine Coghlan), a descendant of Holocaust survivors, is targeted by Neo-Nazis in Billings, Montana, her ancestors’ trauma becomes real. As antisemitism continues to rise in the community, we follow Rae on her journey to forgive herself, her mother and the broken world. We Burn Like This also stars Reservation Dogs‘ Devery Jacobs, as well as Kendra Mylnechuk, Angelo Rizzo, Casidee Riley and Megan Folsom. Waksman, Marshall Granger and Jeri Rafter produced alongside Emmy and Peabody Award winner Neda Armian (Rachel Getting Married), with Eleanor Nett exec producing.
Love You Anyway chronicles the life of a young girl from birth to womanhood as she experiences life’s best and worst moments alongside her childhood best friend, Lucas (Charlie Gillespie). As Mackenzie’s (Reign Edwards) struggle with depression worsens over the years, she’s forced to find the will to fight alongside the people who love her most. The film was financed by Wayfarer and produced by Emilio Mazariegos. Its cast also includes Gillian White and Akira Akbar.
Freestyle Digital Media negotiated the deal to acquire We Burn Like This with Ryan Bury of Motion Picture Exchange—negotiating the deal for Love You Anyway with Mazariegos. Watch the trailers for both films below.