‘Fancy Dance’: Apple Original Films Acquires Global Rights To Erica Tremblay’s Feature Debut Starring Oscar Nominee Lily Gladstone

Apple Original Films said Tuesday that it has landed global rights to Fancy Dance, the indie drama that stars Oscar-nominated Killers of the Flower Moon actress Lily Gladstone alongside Isabel Deroy-Olson, Ryan Begay, Shea Whigham, Crystle Lightning and Audrey Wasilewski. The 2023 Sundance selection marks the feature directorial debut of Erica Tremblay, who also co-wrote the script with Miciana Alise.

A 2023 Sundance Film Festival selection, Fancy Dance is set to make its debut in theaters and on Apple TV+ later this year.

Tremblay’s film offers a nuanced account of the human costs of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women epidemic and the possibilities of healing for those left behind.

“Our film Fancy Dance has found the perfect home with Apple, and I am thrilled to share this beautiful story of two Seneca-Cayuga women with a global audience,” Tremblay said. “As a Native American filmmaker, seeing my community included in the rich tapestry of cinema is a dream come true.”

The plot: Since her sister’s disappearance, Jax (Gladstone) has cared for her niece Roki (Deroy-Olson) by scraping by on the Seneca-Cayuga Reservation in Oklahoma. Every spare minute goes into finding her sister while also helping Roki prepare for an upcoming powwow. At the risk of losing custody to Jax’s father, Frank (Whigham), the pair hit the road and scour the backcountry to track down Roki’s mother. What begins as a search gradually turns into a far deeper investigation into the complexities and contradictions of Indigenous women moving through a colonized world and at the mercy of a failed justice system.

Fancy Dance, a Confluential Films and Significant Productions/AUM Group production, is produced by Deidre Backs, Tremblay, Heather Rae, Nina Yang Bongiovi and Tommy Oliver. Gladstone, Bird Runningwater, Charlotte Koh and Forest Whitaker serve as executive producers.

The deal was brokered by WME Independent on behalf of the filmmakers.

Tremblay is represented by WME, Ragna Nervik Management and Frankfurt, Kurnit Klein. Gladstone is repped by Independent Artist Group, McKuin Frankel Whitehead and Authentic Talent and Literary Management, the latter of which also reps Deroy-Olson with Red Management. 

Fancy Dance will join Apple’s Killers of the Flower Moon, recently nominated for 10 Oscars including Best Picture, which is playing in theaters and streams globally on Apple TV+.