‘Zi’ From Kogonada, Starring Haley Lu Richardson, Acquired by Grasshopper

EXCLUSIVE: Grasshopper Film has taken the North American distribution rights to Kogonada‘s new movie zi, which world premiered earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival. A fall theatrical release is in the works.

The sci-fi/supernatural pic stars Michelle Mao, Haley Lu Richardson and Jin Ha. Set in Hong Kong, a young woman haunted by visions of her future self meets a stranger who changes the course of her night — and possibly her life.

The acquisition was negotiated between Grasshopper Film founder and president Ryan Krivoshey and Kogonada, who wrote and directed.

BAFTA nominee Kogonada said, “Grasshopper Film distributing zi is a full circle moment for me. Not long after Grasshopper was launched in 2015, I reached out to Ryan, who I didn’t know, to express my gratitude for their existence. They came out of the gate with films from Hong Sang-soo, Bi Gan, Asghar Farhadi, films that were often unavailable in the U.S. because they didn’t fit into easy categories. Yet these were the kind of films that mattered deeply to me. So I wanted to let him know how grateful I was. This was before I ever made a feature film. And now here we are. I couldn’t be more delighted and honored.”

Krivoshey added: “At Grasshopper, we have always strived to champion filmmakers whose work challenges form and convention, that reimagines the possibilities of what moving images can do. Kogonada’s support in our earliest days was deeply inspiring, which makes the opportunity to collaborate on the release of zi especially meaningful. Zi is at once intimate and mysterious, embodying the curiosity, generosity, and singular vision that have come to define Kogonada’s work. We are thrilled to partner with him and the entire filmmaking team to bring this remarkable film to audiences across North America.”

Zi was produced by Chung An, Christopher Radcliff, Benjamin Loeb, Kogonada, Richardson, Mao and Ha.