Radnor and Olsen

Next to The Surrogate, one of the most acclaimed films of this year’s Sundance Film Festival has got to be Liberal Arts, written, directed, and starring How I Met Your Mother‘s Josh Radnor. It’s been an absolute crowd pleaser thus far, with an impressive cast to boot, and now Radnor’s film has been sold at the Festival for release later this year.

Deadline reports that IFC has acquired the film, which stars Radnor as “a divorcee who returns to his alma mater and falls for a sophomore (Elizabeth Olsen).” The film co-stars Richard Jenkins, Allison Janney and Zac Efron.

Liberal Arts has reportedly garnered multiple standing ovations throughout the numerous screenings it’s had at the festival. While this isn’t Radnor’s first film, as HappyThankYouMorePleasewas his debut as writer/director/star, people are saying his second film is much better in every possible way. SlashFilm’s Germain Lussier gave the film a 9 out of 10, calling it “fantastic” and “one of the best films showing at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival”, while Entertainment Weekly says that it showcases Elizabeth Olsen’s talent as an actress in every possible way.

The film is scheduled to hit by the end of the year, and it seems that it’s definitely one to keep an eye out for. But, is it as Oscar-worthy as The Surrogate? We’ll have to see.