Earlier this year at Fantastic Fest, a lean-mean 86-minute stone-age horror/survival thriller called “The Origin” made its mark on the Austin-based genre film festival. Now retitled “Out Of Darkness,” the film, from Scottish writer/director Andrew Cumming (“Payback” “Beneath”) is coming out early next year.
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The basic idea is spartan and simple. 45,000 years ago, six people search for a new home in a brutally inhospitable landscape. And when night falls, they are stalked by a terrifying enemy. It’s a simple but evocative premise and, by all accounts, totally works (it has a 94% score on Rotten Tomatoes currently)
The thriller stars Safia Oakley-Green, Kit Young, Chuku Modu, Iola Evans, Arno Lüning, and Luna Mwezi. Directed by Cumming and written by Ruth Greenberg (“The Spark“), it is both their feature-length debut.
Here’s the official synopsis:
A small boat reaches the shores of a raw and desolate landscape. A group of six have struggled across the narrow sea to find a new home. They are starving, desperate, and living 45,000 years ago. First they must find shelter, and they strike out across the tundra wastes towards the distant mountains that promise the abundant caves they need to survive. But when night falls, anticipation turns to fear and doubt as they realize they are not alone. Terrifying sounds suggest something monstrous at large in this landscape, something that could kill or steal them away. As relationships in the group fracture, the determination of one young woman reveals the terrible actions taken to survive.
Bleecker Street nabbed U.S. distribution for the film earlier this year and“Out Of Darkness” is now set for release on February 9, 2024. Watch the first trailer below.
OUT OF DARKNESS (previously titled: The Origin) is a stone age horror / survival thriller, which had its North American debut at Fantastic Fest in September. It will hit theaters nationwide on February 9th. . Produced by Oliver Kassman (Saint Maude).