IFC Midnight Lands Sundance & SXSW Thriller ‘Relic’

Mike Fleming Jr
·2 min read

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EXCLUSIVE: IFC Midnight has acquired North American rights to Relic, the thriller that world premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was slated to be part of the Midnighters section of the recently canceled SXSW. The directorial debut of Natalie Erika James stars Emily Mortimer, Bella Heathcote and Australian theater legend Robyn Nevin.

Pic is produced by Anna McLeish, Sarah Shaw, Nine Stories Productions’ Jake Gyllenhaal and Riva Marker, with AGBO Films’ Anthony Russo, Joe Russo, Todd Makurath and Mike Larocca executive producing. Scripted by James and Christian White, the film will be released by IFC Midnight this fall.

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Nevin plays Edna, an elderly and widowed matriarch who goes missing. Her daughter Kay (Mortimer) and granddaughter Sam (Heathcote) travel to their remote family home to find her. Soon after her return, they start to discover a sinister presence haunting the house and taking control of Edna.

Arianna Bocco, EVP Acquisitions and Productions at IFC Films, said “Relic could not be a better fit for IFC Midnight. We are thrilled to be working with Natalie on her directorial debut as well as the fantastic cast and production team behind the film.”

Tyro filmmaker James said she was “thrilled to be partnering up with IFC Midnight to get Relic out into the world. Relic explores the horrors and tragedy of ageing from a personal place, and I hope it speaks to audiences as it did at its recent Sundance premiere.”

The AGBO team called it “an honor to work with first-time feature length director Natalie Erika James and the incredible cast of Relic. Though the film uses horror and thriller elements, there is a deeply rooted story of empathy and compassion that is layered in between and a real sense of beauty that is revealed. We are incredibly proud to be partnering with IFC Films to share this story with audiences nationwide and couldn’t think of a better home for the film.”

Deal was brokered by IFC Films’ Bocco and Business & Legal Affairs head Betsy Rodgers with Reider & Feig for AGBO and Endeavor Content.

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