Exclusive- US distributor Janus Films has acquired the rights to The Other Side of Hope, winner of a Silver Bear-Best Director in Berlin. Janus was also the US distributor of Kaurismäki’s previous film Le Havre.

A total of 81 territories have acquired the film from The Match Factory since its world premiere at the Berlinale.

The tale of an unlikely friendship between a Syrian refugee and a Helsinki restaurant owner is currently playing in Finnish cinemas via B-Plan and has sold more than 43,000 tickets so far. Last week the film was released in France (Diaphana) and in Sweden (Folkets Bio) and received rave reviews in both countries.

The next territories to open include Belgium (22.03), Germany/Switzerland (30.03), the Netherlands and Spain in April and the UK in May. Camera Film in Denmark and Arthaus in Norway will release it in August.

The film produced by Sputnik in co-production with Bufo in Finland and Germany’s Pandora Film won the Lux Film Fest’s Grand Prix in Luxembourg and Best Actor (Sherwan Haji) at the Audi Dublin International Film Festival.