Exclusive: LA-based Dark Star Pictures has acquired North American rights to the Cyprus-set horror motherwitch Ahead of its screening at the Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival in Catalonia next week.
The acquisition was brokered by Arnaud Chevalier under the banner of his Paris-based sales boutique B-Rated International Sales.
Further deals have seen the film sold to Poland (Velvet Spoon) and also acquired by Shadows for France and Spain.
Set on the island of Cyprus in 1882, the film is a blend of horror and folklore and revolves around Eleni, an outcast painter whose three children die in a freak accident.
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Abandoned by the locals, who believe she is cursed, Eleni turns to ancient rituals to revive her dead offspring, but instead summons malevolent folklore creatures known as Kalikantzari.
motherwitch is the third feature from US-based Greek-Cypriot director and cinematographer Minos Papas. shuttering (2009) and behind the mirror (2015).
Produced by Nicosia-based Caretta Films, the film was shot in a remote deserted 15th-century village in Cyprus.
It is a co-production with the Deputy Ministry of Culture of Cyprus and was supported by the Republic of Cyprus with the “Invest in Cyprus” financial incentive as well as the Film Agency of North Macedonia.
The film recently received a gala screening in Nicosia ahead of its theatrical release on the island in late October.
motherwitch It had its world premiere at the International Film Festival Rotterdam earlier this year and has since screened at over 20 festivals. It is displayed in the Nouveau Vision section of Sitges.