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If the jump scares and horror set pieces of Paranormal Activity or The Conjuring franchises were exchanged for an authentic reckoning of the tangled emotions the departed may leave behind, you have something close to Light From Light. There’s a palpable tension to this story of paranormal investigating, but rather than injecting the expected terror, the film’s power lies in never seeing ghost hunting depicted so grounded and character-driven before. Following its Sundance premiere, Grasshopper Film has released the first trailer ahead of a theatrical release next month.

I said in my review, “This is the kind of film where the minutiae of insurance policies are discussed before any haunting may begin. Those going into Paul Harrill’s second feature looking for frights will be rewarded with something more substantial: an experience rich with atmosphere and humanity, and drama ultimately more enlightening than the cheap thrills that pervade...

"People think ghosts are scary... I think it would be wonderful if they were real." Sure, that would be nice. Grasshopper Film has debuted an official trailer for an indie drama title Light From Light, which initially premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. It also went on to play at the Sarasota, Montclair, Oak Cliff, and San Diego Film Festivals throughout the year. This is the film that is being described as the "unscary" ghost story film, about a man who recently lost his wife who feels like her presence is still around in his house. He hires a single mother and local part-time paranormal investigator to determine whether there really is a ghost or not. It's one of the few dramatic supernatural films that have ever been made, and it's very good, a tender look at the emotional struggles of still-alive human beings. Starring Marin Ireland and Jim Gaffigan,...

Paranormal investigations have long enjoyed their fair share of spins onscreen, from horror franchises like the wildly popular “Paranormal Activity” series to small screen reality TV takes like “Ghost Hunters” and “Paranormal State,” but recent iterations of the horror subgenre haven’t always utilized such stories as dramatic deep dives into the existence of the living. Paul Harrill’s Sundance premiere “Light From Light” offers a deep-thinking corrective and a push away from jump-scare-heavy entries, using timeless horror concepts like “ghosts!” and “haunted houses!” and “paranormal inspections!” to explore other facets of the human condition. In short, the most fascinating beings in the film aren’t necessarily the dead ones.

Per the film’s official synopsis: “Gifted with sometimes-prophetic dreams and a lifelong interest in the paranormal, Sheila (Marin Ireland) is asked to investigate a potential haunting at a Tennessee farmhouse. It’s there she meets Richard (Jim Gaffigan), a...

Cleopatra Entertainment has shared the trailer and poster art for Amanda Kramer’s thriller Ladyworld which stars Maya Hawke (“Stranger Things”), Annalise Basso (Captain Fantastic), Ryan Simpkins (Brigsby Bear), Ariela Barer(Marvel’s “Runaways”), Odessa Adlon, Tatsumi Romano, Zora Casebere and Atheena Frizzell. The film will have a theatrical release on August 2 which will be followed by a VOD and DVD release on August 27. Ladyworld follows a group of girls that get […]...

When an event of apocalyptic proportions traps a slumber party, paranoia and Lord of the Flies-esque divisiveness worm their way into the psyches of a group of teenage girls in Amanda Kramer's Ladyworld, and following the psychological thriller's world premiere at Fantastic Fest last year, the movie's new trailer has been revealed by Cleopatra Entertainment.

You can view the new trailer and poster for Ladyworld below, read Heather Wixson's Fantastic Fest interview with Kramer, and keep an eye out for Ladyworld when Cleopatra Entertainment releases it theatrically in the Us on August 2nd, followed by an August 27th VOD and DVD release.

Previously: Los Angeles, California - Cleopatra Entertainment has acquired the North American rights to the Amanda Kramer-directed thriller Ladyworld. The film stars Ariela Barer, Annalise Basso (Captain Fantastic), Ryan Simpkins, Odessa Adlon, Maya Hawke (Stranger Things Season 3), Tatsumi Romano, Zoe Casabere and Atheena Frizzell. Written...

A slumber party takes an apocalyptic turn in Amanda Kramer's Ladyworld, and following the psychological thriller's world premiere at Fantastic Fest last year, the Lord of the Flies-inspired movie has been acquired by Cleopatra Entertainment, with a Us theatrical release planned for August 2nd, followed by an August 27th VOD and DVD release.

Below, we have the official press release with more details on Ladyworld, and in case you missed it, read Heather Wixson's Fantastic Fest interview with Kramer.

Press Release: Los Angeles, California - Cleopatra Entertainment has acquired the North American rights to the Amanda Kramer-directed thriller Ladyworld. The film stars Ariela Barer, Annalise Basso (Captain Fantastic), Ryan Simpkins, Odessa Adlon, Maya Hawke (Stranger Things Season 3), Tatsumi Romano, Zoe Casabere and Atheena Frizzell. Written by Amanda Kramer and Benjamin Shearn, and produced by Love & Death Productions’ Leal Naim and Thomas R. Burke alongside Amanda Kramer,...

Exclusive: Cleopatra Entertainment announced today that they have acquired the North American rights to Amanda Kramer’s thriller Ladyworld which stars Maya Hawke (Stranger Things), Annalise Basso (Captain Fantastic), Ryan Simpkins (Brigsby Bear), Ariela Barer (Marvel’s Runaways), Odessa Adlon, Tatsumi Romano, Zora Casebere and Atheena Frizzell. The film will have a theatrical release on August 2 which will be followed by a VOD and DVD release on August 27.

A modernized all-female story inspired by Lord of the Flies, the film made its world premiere at Fantastic Fest last year. Ladyworld follows a group of girls that get stuck in a house during a slumber party due to an apocalyptic event, stress and fear cause them to degenerate into savagery. Kramer wrote the film along with Benjamin Shearn. The film is produced by Love & Death Productions’ Leal Naim and Thomas R. Burke alongside Kramer.

The film also screened at BFI and at Tiff.

“Light from Light” is about a paranormal investigator who comes to the aid of a grieving widower possibly receiving messages from his late wife. Supernatural horror and bloodshed inevitably ensue — or would, in just about any other movie with that premise. In this movie, however, there are no jump scares, in fact no scares whatsoever, and the quiet “buildup” leads to an equally quiet resolution.

Neither thriller nor sentimental whimsy, Paul Harrill’s second feature is a quietly matter-of-fact drama that utilizes a “haunting” story hook for non-religious yet affirming ends. Its micro-budget modesty of look and tone abet an ultimately quite moving impact, even if they may also limit commercial exposure.

Though probably not yet 35, Sheila (Marin Ireland) already has the wariness of someone who’s been disappointed enough in life to expect the remainder will be disappointing, too. She’s a single mom to a nice teenager, Owen...

If the jump scares and horror set pieces of Paranormal Activity or The Conjuring franchises were exchanged for an authentic reckoning of the tangled emotions the departed may leave behind, you have something close to Light From Light. There’s a palpable tension to this story of paranormal investigating, but rather than injecting the expected terror, the film’s power lies in never seeing ghost hunting depicted so grounded and character-driven before. This is the kind of film where the minutiae of insurance policies are discussed before any haunting may begin. Those going into Paul Harrill’s second feature looking for frights will be rewarded with something more substantial: an experience rich with atmosphere and humanity, and drama ultimately more enlightening than the cheap thrills that pervade the dime-a-dozen ghost stories we’ve seen before.

Shelia (Marin Ireland) is a single mom living in rural Tennessee, working at a car...

It’s hard to believe it’s almost time for a new year of the Sundance Film Festival, but we’re now less than two months away, and this writer is extremely excited to head to Park City once again, especially after digging into Sundance’s initial lineup announcement today. Not only does their Midnight slate look insanely great, but there are a ton of films running in Sundance’s other programming tracks that I am beyond excited to see in January.

Some of the highlights from today’s lineup announcement include Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile which chronicles the life of Ted Bundy (played by Zac Efron) through the experiences of his girlfriend; Paradise Hills, which stars Emma Roberts, Milla Jovovich, and Awkwafina; Relive from producer Jason Blum; Dan Gilroy’s Buzzsaw; and the Alien-themed documentary Memory. I’ve gone ahead and broken down all the titles...

This Saturday, co-writer/director Amanda Kramer’s daring and unforgettable feature film debut, Ladyworld, is set to enjoy its world premiere at Fantastic Fest 2018. Starring Ariela Barer, Annalise Basso, Ryan Simpkins, Maya Hawke, Odessa Adlon, Tatsumi Romano, Zora Casebere, and Atheena Frizzell, Ladyworld follows a group of teenagers who get trapped inside a house after a catastrophic earthquake, unable to escape or reach the outside world, and we watch as their relationships and power hierarchies dissolve the longer they’re isolated together.

Ahead of its Fantastic Fest bow this weekend, Daily Dead caught up with Kramer to talk about her unconventional exploration of the dynamics between young women in Ladyworld, and she also chatted about putting together her brilliant ensemble of up-and-coming talent, the challenges of shooting this film in just 12 days, and how her prior experiences working in both the literary and theater worlds helped prepare her to make her first feature film.

At a packed Paramount Theater this evening, the SXSW Film Festival, now at the halfway mark, handed out their big film awards. The fest’s two big competition jury prizes went to director Ana Asensio’s “Most Beautiful Island” (Best Narrative Feature) and directors Jairus McLeary and Gethin Aldous’s “The Work” (Best Narrative Feature).

Read More: Terrence Malick Makes a Rare Appearance at SXSW 2017 and Digs Deep On His Process

Asensio, a Spanish actress and filmmaker living in New York, shot her film in super 16mm. It tells the story of undocumented female immigrants struggling to start a life in New York. It is a feature film debut for Asensio, who also stars and wrote the screenplay. “Island” is being billed as a dramatic thriller and was produced by the New York horror master Larry Fessenden’s Glass Eye Pix.

The Doc Prize winner, “The Work,” is an intense...

There’s no place like home for the holidays.

Join Krisha as she returns home for Thanksgiving in the new trailer from A24’s upcoming family drama Krisha.

Krisha is director Trey Edward Schults’ “ferociously impressive feature debut” (Variety) about a woman’s return to the family she abandoned years before, set entirely over the course of one turbulent Thanksgiving. Winner of both the Grand Jury and Audience Awards at the 2015 South-by-Southwest Film Festival, it is an official selection of Critics’ Week at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival.

Eric Kohn (Indiewire) writes in his SXSW review, “Krisha snaps into focus whenever Shults’ camera remains trained on his extraordinary lead, whose fierce commitment easily recalls a similar portrait of middle-aged alcoholism in “A Woman Under the Influence.” The final shot once again turns the story over to the contours of Krisha’s face and the shades of emotional ambiguity conveyed by it.

Dallas actress Augustine Frizzell shows up in two films at this year's SXSW, playing roles in both Kat Candler's Hellion and Toby Halbrooks' short Dig. Meanwhile, the short film she directed, I Was a Teenage Girl, premieres at the film festival as part of the Texas Shorts competition. Frizzell's short stars her daughter Atheena Frizzell and Claire Stuart Meiner as two teens having an intense discussion after one of them suffers a breakup.

Frizzell recently answered a few of my questions about her film via email.

Slackerwood: How did you conceive of the idea for your short?

Augustine Frizzell: I wanted to explore some of the issues that girls of this age face that feel (and are) much more mature than what they dealt with maybe a year earlier. We shot three shorts based around this concept, but only the third was finished in time. Each of...