Story chronicles an American journalist's vivid account of a year in Marlborough wine country

A team of New Zealand filmmakers, led by Director of Photography Ben Ruffell, has purchased the option to make a feature film based on the book First Big Crush: The Down and Dirty on Making Great Wine Down Under (Scribner), written by American journalist Eric Arnold.

The deal was handled by Lescher & Lescher Ltd. of New York and Emery Legal of Auckland, New Zealand.

Ruffell has filmed hundreds of projects in the last 15 yearsmany of them involving the local wine industry. He has also produced the internationally released feature-length projects 3 Degrees and Special Needs. This is his first acquisition intended for feature-length, international theatrical release.

First Big Crush, published in the US in 2007 and Australia/New Zealand in 2008, begins with Arnold arriving at the Allan Scott winery in Marlborough, New Zealand, not having the first clue about the people or the winemaking process. Over the course of the year there are moments outrageous and educational alike, from rowdy nights at the local pub and pig hunting to crushing, pressing, pruning, and bottling. Almost against his will, Eric becomes a wine expertand learns to love rural New Zealand.

"As a group, we feel uniquely positioned to take Eric's story and bring it to an international audience," said Ruffell. "We love the way he informs the reader about the winemaking process in a light-hearted and very comical way. As New Zealanders, we feel that the 'down and dirty' view of the industry here will make for compelling viewing for those who love wine."

After completion of the book, Arnold worked as an editor at Wine Spectator in New York, and is currently an editor at Forbes, also in New York.

"I'm thrilled that Ben's taken on this project," Arnold said. "From the moment he and his partners first expressed interest, it was clear that they shared the vision of telling a story that's fun and interesting, yet truly conveys the rugged, rural lifestyle of New Zealand winemaking. Which, I suppose, also means that they appreciate gross-out humor as much as I do, too."

The production team has begun the search for a screenwriter.