Jordan Firstman’s Club Kid arrives in Philippine cinemas nationwide on November 18, Filipino marketing agency Lunchbox confirmed to Rolling Stone Philippines. This comes after the agency teased a Philippine release late last week.
Firstman’s feature directorial debut received a seven-minute standing ovation at its Cannes premiere in May, kicking off a brief bidding war between Mubi, Focus Features, and Searchlight Pictures, among other distributors. Shortly after, A24 acquired worldwide distribution rights for Club Kid.
Now, Lunchbox brings the film to the Philippines as its solo debut in distribution. The agency previously handled marketing campaigns for local films, like Antoinette Jadaone’s box-office hit Sunshine and Petersen Vargas’ Some Nights I Feel Like Walking, for which Lunchbox earned the Grand Kidlat for Most Creative Marketing Stunt. They’ve also handled the local marketing campaigns for other A24 films such as Sofia Coppola’s Priscilla and Benny Safdie’s The Smashing Machine.
Club Kid follows Peter (Firstman), a gay 30-something-year-old party promoter who discovers he has a son when a 10-year-old child shows up on his doorstep. “True to Lunchbox’s core, we really try to champion stories that hit close to home,” says Lunchbox CEO Carl Chavez.
“It’s about the importance of families in whichever form it may be — stories I think we Filipinos relate to in general,” he says.
He adds that bringing the queer film to the Philippines is a “big gamble” for an independent boutique agency. “But I like taking risks,” he says. By distributing Club Kid locally, he also hopes to “crack the right distribution recipe.”
“The dream is [that] when we crack something out of it, we could apply that to Filipino films in general,” Chavez says.
Leading up to Club Kid’s release in November, Lunchbox plans to put up an immersive marketing campaign for the film. “Our objective is not just to distribute Club Kid, but to market it by breaking traditions. It will be a full experience for the audience.”
Frequently Asked Questions
In Club Kid, a hard-partying New York City club promoter named Peter sees his whirlwind lifestyle upended by the arrival of Arlo, a 10-year-old son he never knew he had.
Club Kid was written and directed by American actor and comedian Jordan Firstman, who also stars in the film as Peter. Firstman is best known for the role of Charlie in HBO’s I Love LA.
Club Kid also stars Reggie Absolom, Cara Delevingne, and Diego Calva, with British rapper Shygirl making a cameo.
The film received multiple offers from various distributors following its premiere at Cannes in May, including Mubi, Focus Features, Searchlight Pictures, A24, Black Bear Pictures, Warner Bros. Clockwork, and Netflix. The last two later dropped out, and A24 eventually acquired distribution rights.
At Cannes, Club Kid was nominated for the Prix Un Certain Regard, Caméra d’Or, and Queer Palm, but did not win any of the awards. Firstman is set to receive the Breakthrough Filmmaker Award at the Middleburg Film Festival in October.
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