Yellow Veil Pictures and Vinegar Syndrome Acquire TIFF Midnight Madness Closing Night Selection ‘RIDDLE OF FIRE’ from Director Weston Razooli
Film World Premiered in Cannes Directors’ Fortnight
Yellow Veil Pictures and Vinegar Syndrome announced today that they have co-acquired North American rights for RIDDLE OF FIRE, the feature debut of award-winning writer and director Weston Razooli. Written and directed by Weston Razooli, RIDDLE OF FIRE which was also an official selection at this year’s Cannes Directors’ Fortnight (Quinzaine des cinéastes), stars Lio Tipton, Charles Halford, Charlie Stover, Skyler Peters, Phoebe Ferro, and Lorelei Olivia Mote. The film is produced by David Atrakchi, Sohrab Mirmont, Razooli and Tipton. Executive producers are Marlow Griffin Lyddon, Brendon Griffin Lyddon, David Wiener, Kate Wiener, Jay Van Hoy, Sophie Meister, and Donna Gruneich. Mister Smith Entertainment are handling worldwide sales.
Shot on 16mm, RIDDLE OF FIRE is an epic adventure following three mischievous children as they embark on an odyssey when their mother asks them to run an errand.
This is a first for the teaming of these two distributors, with Vinegar Syndrome bringing their legacy of releasing premiere cult films into a new arena with RIDDLE OF FIRE. Yellow Veil and Vinegar Syndrome are planning a theatrical release in early 2024, to include a 35mm print tour to several cities. The distributors will collaborate on all rights of the release including a limited edition BluRay, merchandise, board games, and other promotional material.
Weston Razooli said, “I’m super happy for RIDDLE OF FIRE to become part of the Yellow Veil and Vinegar Syndrome treasure chests. I look forward to creating a trove of artwork, posters, videos, books, and magic items alongside them!”
Yellow Veil Pictures’ Justin Timms said, “RIDDLE OF FIRE is a whimsical fairytale that I’m sure is going to leave the Midnight Madness audience in awe. The film also marks the first title in the Yellow Veil slate that I can watch with my kids and I couldn’t be more excited about bringing this film to theaters next year.”
Vinegar Syndrome’s Justin LaLiberty said, “We were won over by RIDDLE OF FIRE’s deft marriage of coming-of-age fantasia and genre conventions, which is as singular as it is comforting; managing to pull from a variety of inspirations while creating something wholly unique, that has the ability to speak to cinephiles of varying ages. It announces Weston Razooli as a unique new voice, one that we feel will be very welcomed by the Vinegar Syndrome fanbase, and can’t wait to unleash his elegant, charming, gorgeously shot (on 16mm film) and very funny fantasy to captive audiences.”
Little White Lies critic, Hanna Strong, hailed the film as ”…a breath of fresh air in the age of unending adaptations and IP.” Further praising Razooli’s fierce originality by adding, “Weston Razooli’s feature debut celebrates the imagination and possibility that exists in childhood, when something as simple as running an errand for a parent is elevated to mythical quest status. Although ostensibly set in the modern world, Riddle of Fire utilizes Kodak 16mm to create a dreamlike, hyper-saturated and vintage aesthetic, which works in combination with a folksy original score to create a sense of a world out of time.”
The deal was negotiated by Hugues Barbier, Justin Timms and Joe Yanick on behalf of Yellow Veil Pictures and Justin LaLiberty on behalf of Vinegar Syndrome with Shane Kelly, Mister Smith’s Vice President, International Sales & Distribution, on behalf of Mister Smith Entertainment and the filmmakers.
