Playtime, a Paris-based sales, production and equity investment company, has picked up “Chopin, a Sonata in Paris,” an ambitious biopic of famed composer and pianist Frédéric Chopin hailing from Poland’s leading production banner Akson Studio (“Katyń,” “Warsaw 44”).
Budgeted at $17.5 million, the movie reteams producer-director Michał Kwieciński with the rising Polish actor of “Filip,” Eryk Kulm starring as Chopin. Lambert Wilson (“The Matrix Resurrections”) stars as King Louis Philippe.
“Chopin, a Sonata in Paris” boasts a polished, baroque aesthetic bolstered by a key crew including Michał Sobociński, the cinematographer of the AppleTV+ series “The New Look” producer designer Katarzyna Sobańska, whose credits include the Oscar-nominated film “Cold War.”
Penned by Bartosz Janiszewski (“Wataha”), the 19th century-set movie charts Chopin’s journey as a bold, young pianist who left his native Poland at the age of 21 and traveled to Paris where he wielded music’s power like no other. “He is the lifeblood of the city, the romantic soul of its decadent nights. But when his health collapses and sickness grips him, he understands his days are numbered. Time becomes his adversary, and composition his singular passion. The ticking clock propels him to reshape the very essence of music,” reads the synopsis.
“Chopin is not only historically one of the worlds’ greatest pianist and composer, but an amazing character, in many ways bigger than fiction,” says Nicolas Brigaud-Robert, Co-CEO of Playtime.
“Michal Kwiecinski’s film takes us both deep inside the musical geniuses’ mind but also in the whirlpool of the Parisian life of the 1830s. The film is visually stunning and absolutely gripping in its narrative,” Brigaud-Robert continued. “When we saw the first images on this epic, it was love at first sight for us at Playtime,” he said.
Kwieciński said, “From the very start, we have had our eye on the international market. That is why it was so important for us to find a sales agent, a business partner with extensive experience in dealing with film distributors, streaming platforms, and broadcasters from around the world.” Given Playtime’s track record at Cannes, Venice and Berlin, Kwieciński is hoping the film, which is now in post, “will gain entry into the world’s top film festivals.”
The filmmaker also enthused about having a French company like Playtime as a sales agent for the film, “as the country played such an important role in Chopin’s life, it was where we shot a lot of the film, and 80% of the dialogue is in French.”
“Chopin, a Sonata in Paris” will be released in Poland in 2025 by Galapagos Films whose recent releases include “Marcello Mio,” “Rosalie” and “The Dead Don’t Hurt.”
English (US) ·