French director Ugo Bienvenu’s animated feature, Arco, has been acquired by Neon for distribution after a successful launch at the Cannes film Festival. The anime-inspired movie, produced and voiced by Natalie Portman, centers on a young boy who becomes lost in time while using rainbows for time travel.

Neon has a history of distributing acclaimed animated films, including Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s Oscar-nominated 2021 animated documentary Flee and Pablo Berger’s Oscar-nominated 2023 feature Robot Dreams. The distributor’s track record also includes Oscar-winning live-action films such as Parasite, Anatomy of a Fall, and Anora.

The official synopsis for the 82-minute film poses the question: “What if rainbows were people from the future traveling in time? Twelve-year-old Arco lives in a far future.During his first flight in his rainbow suit, he loses control and falls in the past. Iris, a young girl his age from the year 2075, witnesses his fall and tries to send him back to his own era.”

bienvenu’s Animation Background

While Arco marks Ugo Bienvenu’s first full-length feature, he brings extensive experience in animation to the project. He is an alumnus of Estienne, Gobelins, CalArts, and the Paris School of Decorative Arts. Bienvenu’s previous work includes comic books, video direction, short films like 2013’s Maman, and the 2013 animated Marvel TV mini-series Ant-Man.

“What if rainbows were people from the future traveling in time? Twelve-year-old Arco lives in a far future.”

The voice cast for Arco features Alma Jodorowsky, Swann Arlaud, Vincent Macaigne, Louis Garrel, and Oxmo Puccino. Natalie portman is set to voice the English-language version. Portman also produced the movie alongside Sophie Mas through their New York-based MountainA company, and Felix de givry’s Parisian company Remembers. Arco is among the ten features selected to compete in the Official Selection Category at Annecy in June.

An interview with Ugo Bienvenu is available online.