Sony Pictures Classics has acquired the North American rights to Chloé Zhao’s “The Rider,” a press release has announced. The company will also distribute the cowboy drama in Latin America, Asia, Eastern Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. “The Rider” just made its world premiere at Cannes Film Festival in the Directors’ Fortnight.

The film marks Zhao’s follow-up to 2015’s “Songs My Brothers Taught Me.” It was while working on her debut feature that Zhao found inspiration for “The Rider.” She was visiting the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota for “Songs My Brothers Taught Me” when she “connected with a group of Lakota cowboys including Brady Jandreau and wrote ‘The Rider’ around Brady’s tragic and ultimately universal story,” the press release reveals. Indigenous characters — and communities — are rarely depicted onscreen. “The Rider” and “Songs My Brothers Taught Me” both offer much-needed portraits of life on a reservation.

Zhao told us that “The Rider” follows the “young cowboy’s (Jandreau) struggle to redefine himself after a near-fatal rodeo accident ends his riding career.” She explained, “I was drawn to a way of life in the heartlands of America that seems to be rapidly disappearing, and I feel very compassionate towards people who refuse to move on and who try to hold on to their way of life and their identity.” Zhao penned the script for the project and served as a producer.

“‘The Rider’ is a real find, a fresh, authentic American movie. Watching it with an audience is a transformative experience. Chloé Zhao is a new master of the medium. We are excited to be bringing ‘The Rider’ to the public,” said Sony Pictures Classics.

Zhao added, “The films Sony Pictures Classics has distributed throughout the years have been of great inspiration to me. I’m very excited to find such a great home for ‘The Rider.’”

“Songs My Brothers Taught Me” premiered at Sundance and went on to screen at Cannes. The film earned three Indie Spirit Award nominations, including Best First Feature.