Sony Pictures Classics announced today that they will release Oscar-nominated Whit Stillman’s latest film Violet Wister’s Damsels in Distress worldwide. Martin Shafer and Liz Glotzer produced alongside Stillman, who also wrote the screenplay.
The film stars Greta Gerwig (Greenberg, upcoming Arthur), Adam Brody (The Romantics, upcoming Scream 4) and Analeigh Tipton (upcoming Crazy Stupid Love, “America’s Next Top Model”).
Violet Wister’s Damsels in Distress is a comedy that follows a trio of beautiful girls who set out to revolutionize life at a grungy East Coast university the dynamic leader Violet Wister (Gerwig), principled Rose (Megalyn Echikunwoke) and sexy Heather (Carrie MacLemore). They welcome transfer student Lily (Tipton) into their group which seeks to help severely depressed students with a program of good scent and musical dance numbers. The girls become romantically entangled with a series of men –including slick Charlie (Brody), dreamboat Xavier (Hugo Becker) and the mad frat pack of Frank (Ryan Metcalf) and Thor (Billy Magnussen)who threaten the girls friendship and sanity.
“We’ve long admired Whit’s films and ‘Violet Wister’s Damsels in Distress’ marries his unique sensibility with the kind of acerbic comedy audiences love. That Martin and Liz are producing the film alongside Whit makes this the perfect partnership for Sony Pictures Classics,” states Sony Pictures Classics.
Producer Martin Shafer adds, “After having worked with Sony Pictures Classics on several films in the past and with Whit on his last two pictures, I am thrilled for us all to be united on ‘Violet Wister’s Damsels in Distress.'”
SPC, whose enthusiasm for the project came at the script stage, previously collaborated with Martin Shafer under his Castle Rock Entertainment banner on John Sayles’ Lonestar, Christopher Guest’s Waiting for Guffman, Richard Linklater’s Suburbia and Kenneth Branagh’s A Midwinter’s Tale and Sleuth.
The film was privately financed and entirely filmed in New York State. Physical production was supervised by Co-Producer Charlie Dibe and Line Producer Jacob Jaffke.
Stillman’s previous credits include Metropolitan, which earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Original Screenplay, as well as Castle Rock’s The Last Days of Disco and Barcelona.
