By Anna Marie de la Fuente

France's Caractères Productions and Chile's Planta Prods. have joined Argentina's Hernán Rosselli's "Hard Boiled School", a multi-country production with lead producer Un Puma (Argentina) alongside co-producers from Austria (Nabis Filmgroup), Uruguay (Tarkiofilm), Brazil (Multiverso Produções) and Portugal (Oublaum Filmes).

Selected to participate in the San Sebastian Film Festival’s Europe-Latin America Co-Production Forum, “Hard Boiled School” (“La escuela pesada”) underscores the growing collaboration among international producers as they face a number of headwinds in their own countries, including higher production costs, changing government funding and smaller budgets.

The drama, which is currently in the financing stages, follows legendary Argentinian thief Pedro Palomar who is released from prison after serving a 10-year sentence for armed robbery. Once free, he is surprised to learn that he is now taking care of the daughter of a former partner.