It took a few days but after a quiet start the business side of things finally spluttered into life at the 33rd Toronto International Film Festival as Fox Searchlight swooped on US rights for Darren Aronofsky's The Wrestler.
Mickey Rourke's role as a burnt-out pro fighter who gets back into the ring drew an enthusiastic response at its North American premiere on Sunday, hot on the heels of the film's Golden Lion triumph in Venice.
After a marathon sequence of negotiations and rival bids that carried on throughout the night, Searchlight emerged victorious after paying in the region of $4m for Aronofsky's much heralded return to form following that miserable reaction to The Fountain in Venice two years ago.
Several other titles are in the mix and might secure US distribution deals soon. Buyers like the LeBron James high school basketball documentary More Than a Game and another non-fiction entry called Every Little Step about the history of the Broadway show A Chorus Line. Future Films and Film4's IRA drama 50 Dead men Walking is also generating strong buzz.
Meanwhile Steven Soderbergh's two-part Che Guevara biopic – cunningly titled Che – is believed to have found a home in the US. Magnolia Pictures is in final talks with the sales agent to release the film Stateside but had not confirmed this at time of writing. Che premiered in Cannes.
