2022 Sundance Film Festival Predictions: Cooper Raiff’s Cha Cha Real Smooth

Pandemic year could have been a disaster for Cooper Raiff as his debut was to premiere during SXSW but then got kiboshed due to the Wuhan stuff. Well, his debut Shithouse would go onto win the Grand Jury Prize with the jury still in their peejays, and it would play especially well when IFC Films released the film in October ’20. Critics took notice, but so did the industry and it parlayed into a second outing titled Cha Cha Real Smooth which went into production this summer. Raiff once again plays multi roles – moving in front and behind the camera with Dakota Johnson in the co-lead and Leslie Mann and Raúl Castillo playing supporting players. Raiff could make a legitimate attempt to get into Sundance or make an in-person return to SXSW.

Gist: A young man (Raiff) who works as a Bar Mitzvah party host strikes up a friendship with a mother (Johnson) and her autistic daughter.

Production Co./Producers: Cooper Raiff, TeaTime Pictures’ Ro Donnelly.

Prediction: NEXT.

U.S. Distributor: Rights Available. Endeavor Content/ICM Partners (domestic, international).