MK2 Films frames this as a curatorial gift to cinephiles, offering a 'dialogue' between iconic features and unseen short works to broaden audience horizons.
Insiders whisper this is a strategic power move to lock in the 'lesser-seen' IP of A-list directors before competitors can snatch up these archival rights, especially Corbet's pre-Oscar era work.
Acquisitions include Corbet's 2008 'Protect You + Me' (Sundance Honorable Mention 2009), Sciamma's 44-minute 'Tutti Frutti' (2026 Villa Medici Jury Prize), and Mendonça Filho's 9-minute 'South of Tehran' featuring Jafar Panahi.
MK2 is playing 4D chess in the art-house market, securing the creative DNA of three major directors in one fell swoop.
Listen up, film buffs, because the drama in the distribution world just hit a new peak. While everyone was watching the red carpets, Paris-based MK2 Films was quietly flexing its muscle at the Lumière Film Festival in Lyon. They have officially secured the international sales rights to a trio of short films from Brady Corbet, Céline Sciamma, and Kleber Mendonça Filho.
This isn't just a minor catalog update; it is a strategic expansion into the 'lesser-seen' works of established heavyweights, signaling that MK2 is done letting these cinematic gems gather dust in personal archives. Let’s talk about Brady Corbet, because this is the receipt everyone needs to see. The acquisition includes his 2008 short 'Protect You + Me,' a piece shot by legendary cinematographer Darius Khondji.
Before Corbet was sweeping the Oscars with 'The Brutalist' and winning the Silver Lion at Venice, he was making these early works that define his aesthetic. MK2 is leveraging this history, connecting Corbet’s past as an actor in 'Funny Games' and 'Mysterious Skin' to his current directorial prowess. They are essentially selling the entire arc of a modern auteur, and they are doing it with the kind of archival precision that makes competitors sweat.
Then there is Céline Sciamma, the director who turned 'Portrait of a Lady on Fire' into a cultural phenomenon. MK2 is adding her 44-minute short 'Tutti Frutti' to the mix, a deeply personal project commissioned by the Centre Pompidou and produced by Lilies Films. Premiering in Paris in June during her retrospective, this film explores the solitude of filmmaking and won the Jury Prize at the 2026 Villa Medici Film Festival.
This joins her 2023 short 'This Is How a Child Becomes a Poet' in the MK2 portfolio, solidifying their grip on her entire body of work, from 'Petite Maman' to new 4K cuts of 'Tomboy' and 'Girlhood.' Rounding out this power trio is Kleber Mendonça Filho, whose nine-minute 'South of Tehran' features Iranian director Jafar Panahi recalling his first encounters with cinema. Shot during the 2025 New York Film Festival as part of the inaugural NYFF Encounters initiative, this short is a collaboration born from conversations between two masters.
With MK2 already handling sales for Panahi’s Palme d’Or winner 'It Was Just an Accident' and Mendonça Filho’s 'The Secret Agent,' this move cements their status as the go-to distributor for global art-house prestige. Frédérique Rouault, head of collections at MK2, claims these shorts offer a 'different perspective' on creative vision, but let’s be real: this is about owning the narrative of the world's most influential directors, one short film at a time.
