‘Feel-Good’ Raunch-Fest ‘Spermageddon’ Scooped Up by Square One Entertainment: ‘The Funniest Animation We Have Ever Seen’ (EXCLUSIVE)
The “Spermageddon” is coming.
Leading indie sales agent Charades has closed a deal with Square One Entertainment for rights to the CG-animated film for Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Co-directed by Rasmus A. Sivertsen and “Dead Snow” helmer Tommy Wirkola, it’s premiering at Annecy this week.
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“When my colleague Michael Müllner and I acquired ‘Spermageddon,’ on paper, we expected a weighty documentary on the declining male fertility rates globally,” admitted Al Munteanu of Square One Entertainment.
“Sperm counts around the world have halved over the past 50 years, the biggest causes of deterioration being pollution, smoking, and age. Some experts call this phenomenon ‘spermageddon’: an armageddon of male fertility. Too late did we realize that this film was, in fact, not Tommy Wirkola’s documentary, but the funniest animation movie we have ever seen.”
“Now, as we cannot stop laughing, we need to rejig our marketing plan.”
“Spermageddon” had previously sold to Youplanet Pictures (Spain), MCF Megacom (Adriatics & Bulgaria), Film Europe (Czech Republic & Slovakia), Prorom Distribution (Hungary & Romania), Exponenta (CIS), Acme Film (Baltics), Creative Century Entertainment (Taiwan), Shinesaeng Ad.Venture (Thailand), Shaw Organization (Singapore) and SF Studio (Nordics & Iceland). Its Nordic release is set for January 10, 2025.
The raunchy proposition, featuring musical numbers and a whole lot of chatty sperm cells, focuses on a young couple experiencing their first time. They want to take things slow – unlike Jens’ sperm cells, which are determined to finally make their mark.
According to the team, the “crude and heartwarming” comedy was inspired by the legacy of animated productions for older audiences, such as “South Park” and “Sausage Party.”
Tommy Wirkola, new to animation but not to controversy – having already introduced the audience to Nazi zombies in cult “Dead Snow” – called the film’s Annecy premiere “both a tremendous honor and a monumental achievement.”
“It’s the perfect start for our film, which we believe has a vast audience waiting for it. We know that many people are craving feel-good films right now – the world needs it – and ‘Spermageddon’ delivers just that.”
Wirkola saw “Spermageddon” as a “feel-good movie about experiencing things for the first time.” Be it first love, first sexual encounter or – ahem – the first meeting with a singing E. coli bacterium.
“It has everything the world needs right now and probably a few things more,” he added.
In a conversation with Variety, Wirkola and Sivertsen – known for the decidedly more family-friendly “Captain Sabertooth” or “Louis & Luca” trilogy – admitted they wanted to “demystify sex” and the awkwardness of having sex for the first time.
“We never talked about whether we can make it more shocking. We talked about whether we can make it sweeter and more relatable,” said Sivertsen.
His co-director chimed: “It feels like so many things at once. It’s pushing the limits, and it has a very big heart. If I were a teenager again, I would love to sneak into the screening and laugh my ass off. We wanted to make something that can’t be put in just one box.”
“Spermageddon” is produced by Kjetil Omberg and Jørgen Storm Rosenberg of 74 Entertainment, in collaboration with Qvisten Animation, and co-produced by Stian Tveiten. It was written by Vegar Hoel, Jesper Sundnes and Wirkola himself.
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