Two major distribution deals have been announced for Eoin Macken’s Here Are the Young Men with the news that Well Go USA has acquired North American distribution rights and Signature Entertainment and Wildcard Distribution have acquired the UK and Irish rights to the film.
The film is a coming-of-age drama, based on the debut novel of Irish author Rob Doyle, which was published in 2014. Set in the summer of 2003, it sees aimless teenager Matthew (Dean-Charles Chapman) yearn after his childhood sweetheart, Jen (Anya Taylor-Joy), an independent girl on her own trajectory. Matthew is soon pulled into a world of nihilistic, toxic masculinity by a charismatic friend (Finn Cole), while another precocious friend (Ferdia Walsh-Peelo) starts to succumb to paranoia.
Here Are the Young Men is produced by Richard Bolger (Cardboard Gangsters) for Irish production company Hail Mary Pictures and Noah Haeussner for Union Entertainment Group. Edwina Casey co-produces, with Paul W.S. Anderson, Andrew Davies Gans, Conor Barry, and Michael Raimondi as executive producers. It was produced with the support of Screen Ireland, Funny Leopard, Bending Light, Glanzrock Productions and EGG Studios.
Here Are the Young Men premiered at this year’s virtual Galway Film Fleadh, where it won the Bingham Ray New Talent Award for co-producer Edwina Casey. Subsequently, it has played in official competition at the Giffoni Film Festival and Raindance in the UK.
Well Go USA plans to release the film theatrically in North America next year, with Signature Entertainment releasing the film day-and-date in the UK in the second quarter of 2021. Wildcard Distribution plans to release theatrically in Ireland at the same time.