Wolfe Video Takes North America For Sebastián Lelio’s ‘The Wave’

Wolfe Video has acquired North American rights to The Wave (La Ola), a musical from Oscar-winning Chilean filmmaker Sebastián Lelio inspired by the feminist civil disobedience movement that swept Chile in the spring of 2018.

The film marks Lelio’s first feature shot in his native Chile since A Fantastic Woman, which won the Academy Award for Best International Feature in 2017. His subsequent credits include Gloria Bell and The Wonder. Wolfe Video plans a theatrical release in North America in 2026.

Set on a university campus, The Wave stars Daniela López in her feature debut as a committed music student who unexpectedly becomes a central figure in a growing feminist uprising. As protests erupt, the movement is expressed through song and dance, and López’s character’s testimony of harassment and abuse becomes a catalyst that reverberates far beyond the campus, challenging a deeply polarized society.

The Spanish-language musical also stars Lola Bravo, Avril Aurora, and Paulina Cortés. Music is composed by Matthew Herbert (Disobedience), with choreography by Emmy winner Ryan Heffington (Euphoria). The film’s original songs were created collaboratively by 17 female Chilean musicians, including Ana Tijoux, Camila Moreno, and Javiera Parra.

Lelio co-wrote the screenplay with Manuela Infante, Josefina Fernández, and Paloma Salas. The film was produced by Juan de Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín, Sebastián Lelio, and Rocío Jadue for Fabula Productions, with Christian Vesper and Seb Shorr executive producing for Fremantle, alongside Robert Kessel and David Linde for Participant and Mariane Hartard for Fabula. The project was co-financed by Participant and Fremantle.

“I am deeply grateful to Wolfe Video for their enthusiasm and energy towards The Wave,” said Lelio. “The film’s premiere in the United States is a source of immense joy for us and a tremendous opportunity for its spirit — that blend of the contingent politics with playfulness and splendor that the genre demands — to resonate in a country with a long and vibrant tradition of musical cinema. “We are living in a time of intense polarization worldwide, and The Wave invites us to open our minds to the possibility that humor, song, dancing, and overflowing emotion can help us better comprehend the dilemmas we face today through a celebration that explores challenging and complex issues. Thank you, Wolfe Video.”

Fabula Productions’ Rocío Jadue added: “The Wave is a film with ambitious staging and a large ensemble cast led mostly by emerging actors, portraying how new paradigms and rights have been built from Latin American universities out into society. It is a visually and emotionally engaging journey that invites reflection in the audience.”

The acquisition was negotiated by Evan Schwartz, head of content at Wolfe Video, on behalf of the distributor, with FilmNation Entertainment representing the filmmakers.

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