Sundance Film ‘Hot Water’ Joins the Rich Spirit Family
Rich Spirit Acquires North American Rights to ‘Hot Water’
Los Angeles, CA – Rich Spirit has secured North American rights to Hot Water, the feature debut of Ramzi Bashour, which premiered earlier this year in the U.S. Dramatic Competition at the Sundance Film Festival.
The film, a mother-son road dramedy, is set for a theatrical release later this year. Additionally, it will be featured at First Look, an annual festival organized by the Museum of the Moving Image, dedicated to showcasing adventurous new cinema, in April in New York City.
Hot Water stars Lubna Azabal (Incendies, Paradise Now), Daniel Zolghadri (Lurker, Funny Pages), and Dale Dickey (A Love Song, Hell or High Water). The plot centers on Layal, played by Azabal, a Lebanese mother and Arabic professor whose teenage son Daniel, portrayed by Zolghadri, is expelled from high school. In a bid to reconnect, Layal embarks on a journey from Indiana to California with her son to reunite him with his estranged father. Their journey introduces them to a series of unique characters and experiences, highlighting the complexities of their relationship.
Bashour expressed his enthusiasm, stating, “I’m excited to join the slate at Rich Spirit and work with such a spirited team as we bring Hot Water into cinemas. Their steadfast belief in this very personal film and commitment to getting it on marquees means so much to me. I’m grateful we first got to share our movie at Sundance and now look forward to having audiences all across North America experience it on the big screen.”
The film is produced by Jesse Hope, Max Walker-Silverman, and Josh Peters, with executive producers including Robina Riccitiello, Jawad Ahsan, and Arsala Ahsan, among others.
The acquisition deal was negotiated by Cinetic Media on behalf of the filmmakers and Rich Spirit.
Rich Spirit’s first acquisition and co-release was The Apprentice, directed by Ali Abassi and featuring Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong as Donald Trump and his mentor Roy Cohn during Trump’s rise in the 1980s New York City real estate scene. This film garnered BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Academy Award nominations following its premiere at Cannes in 2024.
