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Repressed trauma has a way of tormenting people throughout their lives, to such an extent that one might find the distinction between reality and imagination start to fade away. Steven J. Mihaljevich’s psychological horror feature, Violett, is a haunting, poetic spectacle of dread and despair that showcases the harrowing depths of trauma and its tragic effects on people who find themselves caught up in it. With surreally evocative horror visuals peppered throughout, the movie acts more like an experience to be lived through rather than something that has to be dissected with facts and logic. The makers wanted to treat the narrative as a blank canvas that can portray the enchanting, terrifying beauty lying in the recesses of an afflicted mind—and they have managed to create a beautiful work of art while doing so.

Spoilers Ahead

Why Does Sonya Remain Paranoid For Her Daughter?

In the outskirts of an Australian suburb,...

Exclusive: Rebecca Eskreis has signed on to direct ClearMind, a thriller about the dark side of Virtual Reality therapy and the slippery slope of using simulated life to avenge the real.

The film scheduled to enter production in Northern California next spring is the second from Eskreis, whose feature directorial debut, What Breaks the Ice, was recently released in theaters, on demand and on digital platforms via Cinedigm. 30 Miles from Nowhere’s Seana Kofoed penned the screenplay and will produce with River Place Production’s Kristin Tegtmeier Higgins (The Boy’s Gone). Miriam Hoffman is handling casting.

Eskreis is represented by Sara Alexander of Alexander Creatives and Stuart Rosenthal at Goodman, Genow, Schenkman.

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Exclusive: Freestyle Digital Media has acquired North American VOD rights to The Xrossing, an Australian coming-of-age thriller from director Steven J. Mihaljevich. The digital film distribution division of Byron Allen’s Allen Media Group/Entertainment Studios...

Theatrical distribution has been given a vote of confidence by Western Australia’s Halo Films, which continues to provide a path towards cinematic screenings for productions within the state.

Launched last September, the boutique distributor is designed to support Wa filmmakers by releasing films and documentaries that don’t have an existing distribution deal or theatrical release in place.

Managing director Ian Hale also operates the Back Lot Perth – a purpose-built private screening room that became home to Halo’s inaugural release, Steven J. Mihaljevich’s The Xrossing, last year and will screen Julius Telmer’s Greenfield next month.

The venue has also doubled as a post-production studio that has helped put the finishing touches on both films via relationships with Wa’s Soundbyte studio and Sandbox Productions.

Having spent nearly three decades in the industry, during which he has worked at Paramount Pictures, Transmission Films, Universal, and Dreamworks, Hale...

Kelton Pell in ‘The Xrossing.’

Murder mystery The Xrossing, the debut feature from director Steven J. Mihaljevich and co-writer/producer Carl Mairoana, will be the first release from Western Australian-based distributor Halo Films.

Ian Hale launched the company to support Wa filmmakers by releasing feature films and documentaries that don’t have an existing distribution deal or theatrical release in place.

Starring Kelton Pell, Luke J Morgan, Jacob O’Neill, Georgia Eyers and Mihaljevich, The Xrossing recently had its world premiere at the Toronto Independent Film Festival, winning best film in the micro-budget category for films budgeted below $250,000.

The plot revolves around the murder of a young girl in Swan View in Perth’s Eastern suburbs and the ensuing cycle of revenge, violence and ignorance.

A former high school drama teacher, Mihaljevich, who lives in Swan View, came up with the basic premise of three young boys who are harassing a...

The Misguided tries to be many things at once: a romance, a story about drug-dealing and the dangers that await those who choose to navigate the seedy underbelly of Perth, Australia, as well as the tale of two brothers who fall for the same girl. Unfortunately, the film doesn’t really know how to juggle all these storylines at once, which results in a suitably involving, yet muddled viewing experience. Writer-director-producer-editor Shannon Alexander is ambitious in his intentions; maybe a little too ambitious. The premise of The Misguided is full of potential. Caleb Galati plays Levi, our unemployed main character crashing at his drug-dealing and all-around lunatic half-brother Wendel’s (Steven J. Mihaljevich), house while desperately trying to find a job. Everything changes when Wendel’s ex-girlfriend, Sanja...

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...