Italy-Based Lights On Snags Colombia’s ‘In All My Journeys I Am Returning’ Ahead of Its Locarno Bow (EXCLUSIVE)
Italian sales agency Lights On has acquired international sales rights to Colombian director Manuel Ponce de León’s debut feature, “In All My Journeys I Am Returning”, before its world premiere at the Locarno Film Festival. The deal gives the film an international sales partner as it enters Locarno’s Filmmakers of the Present competition, potentially strengthening its prospects for festival exposure and distribution.
Set in early 19th-century Colombia, the drama follows a young Swedish couple travelling up the Magdalena River to find a legendary gold mine amid a landscape marked by war. The film explores exile, memory and belonging, drawing on the poetry of León de Greiff and Ponce de León’s interest in philosophy; it was shot in sepia tones along the Magdalena River, with colonial-era Honda serving as a production base.
In short
- Lights On will sell Ponce de León’s Locarno-bound debut internationally.
- The drama follows a couple seeking gold in 19th-century Colombia.
- Rivers, poetry and memory shape the film’s themes.
Explained simply
A sales agency is a company that represents films internationally, helping them find distributors and audiences in different countries. Lights On, based in Italy, has acquired the worldwide sales rights for Manuel Ponce de León's debut feature "In All My Journeys I Am Returning" as it prepares for its premiere at the prestigious Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland.
The film is a historical drama set in early 19th-century Colombia, following a young Swedish couple travelling up the Magdalena River in search of a legendary gold mine. It explores themes of exile, memory and belonging, filmed in sepia tones along the actual river, with production based in the colonial city of Honda.
Having a sales agency backing a film before a major festival premiere strengthens its prospects for worldwide distribution. For a debut feature, securing this kind of professional representation at an important festival is a significant step towards reaching international cinemas and audiences.
Entertainment Europe Film World