“Cow” has secured North American distribution following its premiere at Cannes Film Festival. IFC films snagged rights to Andrea Arnold’s documentary, Deadline reports.
Shot over seven years, “Cows” marks Arnold’s first non-fiction feature and follows the daily life of Luma, a cow on an English farm.
“This film is an endeavor to consider cows. To move us closer to them. To see both their beauty and the challenge of their lives. Not in a romantic way but in a real way,” Arnold said. “It’s a film about one dairy cow’s reality and acknowledging her great service to us. When I look at Luma, our cow, I see the whole world in her.”
IFC Films president Arianna Bocco added, “We are beyond thrilled to reunite with Andrea again after the incredible debut of ‘Fish Tank’ over a decade ago. ‘Cow’ is a poignant extension of her remarkable career and we are looking forward to sharing this emotional and deeply universal story with audiences across North America.”
“I considered all the animals, of course, and I thought about a chicken because chickens usually live for about 90 days and they’ve got amazing personalities. But for some reason, I just kept coming back to the cow. Dairy cows work so hard and they have such a busy life, I thought that would be interesting to look at,” Arnold told The New York Times. “I always said early on that if the cows are aware of the camera, just let it be honest. We can’t pretend we’re not there and our presence is going to have an impact on the way [Luma] behaves. Sometimes, she did get sort of angry with us and head-butt the camera, but I really felt over time that she felt seen. I don’t know if I’m right, but it feels very profound, because the whole point was to see her.”
Arnold’s last feature, 2016 coming-of-age drama “American Honey,” won British Independent Film Awards for Best British Independent British Film and Best Director, among other honors. It followed 2011’s “Wuthering Heights,” 2009’s “Fish Tank,” and 2006’s “Red Road.” Arnold won an Oscar for Best Short Film, Live Action in 2005 for “Wasp.” “Big Little Lies,” “Transparent,” and “I Love Dick” are among her TV directing credits.
Check out a clip of “Cow” below.
