Picture Tree Boards Midlife Comedy 'Raging Moms' Ahead of AFM

Berlin-based Picture Tree International has taken international sales rights to "Raging Moms" ("Komplizinnen"), an ensemble comedy about four women breaking free in midlife, and will screen it as a market premiere for buyers at the upcoming American Film Market. Leonine Studios will release the film in German theaters on Jan. 21.

The film comes from Wiedemann & Berg Film, the production company behind "Weekend Rebels," "Welcome to Germany," "Never Look Away" and the Oscar-winning "The Lives of Others."

Sonja Heiss writes and directs. Her previous feature, "When Will It Be Again Like It Never Was Before," earned her a German Film Award nomination for Best Director.

What is the film about?

Menopause, empty nests and romantic misadventures upend the lives of four women who have had enough of being reasonable. As they abandon familiar roles and make increasingly reckless choices, their paths collide in what the producers describe as a comedy about friendship and the messy business of starting over.

The cast is led by:

• Laura Tonke ("Amrum," "The People vs. Fritz Bauer")
• Heike Makatsch ("The Book Thief," "Love Actually")
• Katharina Marie Schubert ("The Teachers' Lounge")
• Anne Ratte-Polle ("Dark," "Undine")

Tom Schilling ("Never Look Away," "Generation War"), Christoph Maria Herbst ("Contra," "How About Adolf") and Trystan Pütter ("Babylon Berlin," "Toni Erdmann") also star.

Johanna Bergel, Quirin Berg and Max Wiedemann produce. Funding comes from the German Federal Film Fund (DFFF), the German Federal Film Board (FFA), Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg and FFF Bayern.

What else does Picture Tree bring to AFM?

PTI's American Film Market lineup extends well beyond the headline title, mixing restorations with new genre fare and previews for select buyers.

• A newly remastered 4K version of "The Experiment," from "Downfall" director Oliver Hirschbiegel
• Constantin Film's "The Perfect Holiday," Bora Dagtekin's sequel to "The Perfect Secret," the German remake of "Perfect Strangers"
• Previews for selected buyers of "Matarifes – Hunger for Change," a Uruguayan period thriller directed by Rafael and Bernardo Antonaccio ("In the Quarry")
• The Swedish tech satire "Push the Button," directed by Anton Källrot and featuring Noah Taylor

Also on the slate are the historical biopic "Rafaela," starring Loreto Mauleón, and "The Stolen Child," an English-language medieval fantasy epic written and directed by Sebastian McKinnon.

What does the pickup change for buyers?

The deal gives international distributors a commercially proven ensemble comedy with an established German cast, a Jan. 21 theatrical release already locked at home, and a sales agent with a track record of handling German cinema abroad. For PTI, it strengthens an AFM slate that now spans restoration titles, sequels and new international genre films.