The ‘Master’ plan: Sumit’s Rotterdam winner seeks global audience at Cannes

Walking through the Riviera stalls inside the Marché du Film truly gives the feeling of being in a global village. Country representatives, sales agents, and studios are all hustling to move their projects to the next stage. In one corner, an eclectic lineup of neon-lit, gore-heavy, thriller-driven Pan-Asian offerings — catches the eye. The slate is led by Julie Pacino’s “I Live Here Now” and the Raindance-selected “The Invisible Half”. The lineup also includes Tetsuya Mariko’s “Dear Stranger”, featuring a powerful pairing of Hidetoshi Nishijima (“Drive My Car”) and Gwei Lun-Mei (“Black Coal, Thin Ice”). Two Indonesian horror entries — Kimo Stamboel’s “Janur Ireng” and its sequel, “Danur: The Last Chapter” by Awi Suryadi — are also part of the lineup.

The stall proudly displays a poster featuring Nasir Uddin Khan in an uncharacteristically fitting wig, donning an intensely determined look. Bangladesh’s “Master” is on display, proudly occupying space beside some other incredible-looking pieces at the K6 Riviera Stall.

Rezwan Shahriar Sumit’s “Master” previously made history as the inaugural Bangladeshi production to secure a major prize at a premier European film festival. This is where Sophie Shi, Head of Studios at EST N8, came across the film. EST has acquired the worldwide rights to the film.

EST N8 is actually a joint venture between EST Studios (founded by Jaeson Ma and Eric Tu, who have roots in 88rising and Vice) and N8, a Bangkok-based production house. By combining forces, they’ve created a “super-agent” that has both the Hollywood infrastructure to sell films worldwide and the local boots-on-the-ground network to find the best talent in Thailand, Indonesia, Korea, and now, with the addition of “Master”, Bangladesh joins the fray.

The company plans to take the film to the European Film Market, the Hong Kong Film Mart, ACFM, and the American Film Market, among other notable rendezvous.

According to Sophie, “Master” is part of a new wave of Bangladeshi cinema — one that can be marketed to the world. “After the festival ended, I reached out to Sumit and got a screening link for the film. ‘Master’ is, by all means, a local story. However, the portrayal of the film, particularly when it comes to the metamorphosis of a man, is universal.”

The narrative follows Jahir — a respected rural high school teacher. In a giant leap of faith, he becomes district chairman. While his platform focuses on advancing education and gender equality, his integrity slowly erodes as he climbs the ladder of local political influence.

Nasir Uddin Khan helms the lead role, effectively anchoring the film on his back. The stellar cast of Azmeri Haque Badhan, Zakia Bari Mamo, Fazlur Rahman Babu, and Sharif Siraj also joins the fray alongside him.

“‘Master’ is essentially an arthouse film with commercial appeal,” says Rezwan Shahriar Sumit over the phone. The director was preparing to head to the Sydney Film Festival, which begins on June 3. “We plan to have the Bangladeshi release of the film in August. If all goes well, we’ll have found some stellar international distributors as well.”

This year, amid the relentless machinery of the global film market, “Master” certainly feels different. In Cannes, it is circulating, negotiating, and travelling onward. From Busan to Sydney, from the Riviera to potential worldwide distribution pipelines, the journey of the film reflects a broader transformation quietly taking place within Bangladeshi independent cinema.

And somewhere inside the maze of the Palais, among buyers, critics, and dreamers, Dhaka continues to echo a little louder.

The author is the Entertainment Editor at The Daily Star