Filmmaker Sues Producers Of Daniel Espinosa’s ‘Madame Luna’ For Theft Of Project & Fraud Ahead Of Rotterdam Premiere
deadline.comSwedish-Eritrean filmmaker Binyam Berhane has filed a $2 million lawsuit against the producers of Daniel Espinosa’s Italy-set immigration drama Madame Luna ahead of its world premiere at the Rotterdam Film Festival this weekend.
Berhane says the movie, inspired by a real-life Eritrean refugee who became a notorious human trafficker operating between Libya and Italy, is based on an original story and research he brought to lead producer David Herdies at his Stockholm-based company Momento Film in 2013.
Filed this week in L.A. County Superior Court, the theft-of-project lawsuit (read it here) also is directed at Luxembourg-based Hercules Film Fund and Los Angeles-based production company Rhea Films, which joined Momento Film in the production.
Deadline has contacted all three parties for comment but has yet to hear back. Berhane’s lawyer Scott Humphrey told Deadline that Momento had entered into option agreements with Berhane to make the Madame Luna project but never exercised the options, instead proceeding to make the feature film with other partners. “I have no idea if it was intentional or not on their part to not have properly secured Mr.
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