AMC Theatres will be the exclusive cinematic home to Kiss the Future, the award-winning documentary about the siege of Sarajevo and how its people and artistic community drew inspiration from the music of U2.
Under a deal between AMC and Fifth Season, select AMC locations will debut the film on February 23 for what is described as a full theatrical run. Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton, Christiane Amanpour, and former Pres. Bill Clinton are among those who appear in the film directed by Nenad Cicin-Sain and produced by Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, and Sarah Anthony. Kiss the Future will become available to stream later this year exclusively on Paramount+.
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“Kiss the Future, directed by Nenad Cicin-Sain, story by Bill Carter and Cicin-Sain, screenplay by Carter, based on his memoir: Fools Rush In, is the story of defiance amid the 1990s siege of Sarajevo during the Bosnian War,” notes a release about the documentary. “The film focuses on a vibrant underground community who used music and art to effect change and garner global attention by ultimately inspiring an American aid worker to reach out to the world’s biggest band U2 to help raise awareness of the devastating conflict. Kiss the Future follows the band’s promise to perform a post-war concert that saw U2 play to over 45,000 local fans in a liberated city, a show that lives on as a joyous collective memory for the people of Sarajevo.”
Berlin Review: U2 Doc ‘Kiss The Future,’ From Matt Damon & Ben Affleck, Shows How Bono And Band Inspired Sarajevo Under Siege
Cicin-Sain said in a statement, “Even in the darkest times, the people of Sarajevo were able to find purpose through playing music, making art and helping others. They did not just survive, they thrived.”
Said Damon, “The powerful message of peace is as relevant and important today as it was in September 1997 when Bill Carter and Sarajevan community leaders brought U2 to post-war Sarajevo. Artists Equity is proud to bring Nenad’s wonderful, life-affirming film to theater audiences across the United States.”
On Wednesday, February 21 at 7 p.m. local time, select AMC Theatres across the country will host an exclusive early screening. “Kiss the Future: A Dolby Special Event” will include an introduction from producers Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, plus a pre-recorded post-film discussion with Cicin-Sain, Ambassador Vesna Andree Zaimovic (a senior researcher on the film), and Bill Carter in conversation with U2’s The Edge and Adam Clayton, reflecting on “their personal experiences as part of the extraordinary Sarajevan creative community whose commitment to art and life and the City of Sarajevo was, and continues to be, an inspiration to so many.” (Tickets for that special event are now on sale at amctheatres.com and AMC’s mobile app).
“AMC Theatres has a long-standing commitment to bring powerful and personal stories to the big screen with our AMC Artisan Films program,” said Elizabeth Frank, EVP Worldwide Programming & Chief Content Officer for AMC Theatres.
Kiss the Future premiered last February at the Berlin Film Festival and held its North American premiere at the Tribeca Festival in June, where it screened as the opening night film. In August, it screened in competition at the Sarajevo Film Festival, winning Best Documentary Feature.
Fifth Season is handling global distribution on the film, in addition to making the domestic theatrical distribution deal with AMC. Kiss the Future was financed and produced by Fifth Season and is a Fifth Season, Artists Equity, and an In Cahoots Production. WME co-represented the domestic rights with Fifth Season.
AMC Theatres, headquartered in Leawood, KS, is the largest theatrical exhibitor in the U.S. Among the company’s innovations are pioneering the modern-day multiplex and online ticketing.
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