Chinonye Chukwu’s Sundance Grand Jury Prize Winner ‘Clemency’ Acquired By NEON

NEON has taken U.S. rights to this year’s Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize winner Clemency from filmmaker Chinonye Chukwu and starring Oscar nominee Alfre Woodard.

Woodard plays female prison warden Bernadine Williams, who after years of carrying out death row executions, comes up against one inmate who forces her to confront the psychological and emotional demons her job has created. The ACE Pictures Entertainment production also stars Aldis Hodge (Hidden Figures), Richard Schiff (Man of Steel, “The West Wing”) and Wendell Pierce (“The Wire”, Selma). The film was also produced by Bronwyn Cornelius Productions and Julian Cautherley.

“Making Clemency has been a life-changing soul journey,” said Chukwu, who also wrote the feature, “and I am thrilled to partner with the team at NEON to share the film with audiences across the country.”

The deal was negotiated by NEON and Paradigm on behalf of the filmmakers.

At Sundance, NEON premiered Todd Douglas Miller’s Apollo 11, which will open first in IMAX theatres this Friday, as well as John Chester’s The Biggest Little Farm. NEON acquired out of the Sundance the rights to Ljubomir Stefanov and Tamara Kotevska’s documentary Honeyland, Alejandro Landes’ thriller Monos, Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala’s horror film The Lodge, Abe Forsythe’s Little Monsters, and Julius Onah’s Luce.

NEON recently landed an Oscar nomination for Border; its upcoming slate also includes: Tom Harper’s Wild Rose starring Jessie Buckley; and Bong Joon-Ho’s highly-anticipated drama Parasite.

Chukwu is repped by Paradigm and Grandview; Hodge is with Paradigm, the Priluck Company and Ziffren, Brittenham; Woodard is repped by ICM, Circle of Confusion and attorney Mark Gochman; Pierce is repped by Paradigm and Essential Talent Management; and Schiff is repped by Paradigm, Leverage and Nelson Davis LLP.

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