An Irish-produced movie charting the rise of Donald Trump is set to premiere at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival later this month.
"The Apprentice", co-produced by Irish company Tailored Films, will have its world premiere in official competition for the coveted Palme d’Or at the festival, which kicks off on May 14.
Starring Sebastian Stan as Donald Trump and "Succession" star Jeremy Strong as Roy Cohn, The Apprentice charts the rise of a young Donald Trump, exploring how the young businessman rose to prominence after making a deal with the devil with influential right-wing lawyer Roy Cohn.
The film marks the first time that a Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland-funded film has been in official competition at the Cannes Film Festival since 2017.
The Apprentice is directed by Ali Abbasi and written by Gabriel Sherman. The film is produced by Dan Bekerman for Scythia Films (Canada), Jacob Jarek for Profile Pictures (Denmark), Ruth Treacy and Julianne Forde for Tailored Films (Ireland).
Tailored films came on board as producers after meeting with Canadian producer Bekerman at 'Co-Create'; a speed networking event organized by Telefilm and Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland at Cannes 2023.
Bekerman mentioned that he was working on a project that might potentially have a need for a third co-production partner and Tailored Films came on board as soon as he mentioned Ali Abbasi.
Treacy said it was an easy decision to come on board as co-producers of The Apprentice.
"I’m a really big fan of Ali Abbasi’s work and the pitch of essentially the 'origin' story of Trump sounded fascinating and I knew that Ali would bring such a unique approach to the story," Treacy said.
"We see these co-production opportunities as a way to highlight on a global platform the world-class filmmaking talent that is available in Ireland.
"These international co-production opportunities are a way for the Irish film industry to look outwards to engage with international stories, and not solely inwards. We’re thrilled to have the film premiere at the Cannes Film Festival this year and we very much see this as a stepping stone for Tailored Films."
Her fellow Tailored Films producer Julianne Forde said Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland has been incredibly supportive of the project.
"Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland were hugely supportive of the project and its contribution to Ireland’s thriving cinematic landscape," Forde said.
"As well as sending on-screen and off-screen talent to collaborate on the shoot, we're also overseeing all the music, sound design, VFX, and other elements in post-production in Dublin."
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