Set to screen at Fantastic Fest this month, writer/director Eskil Vogt‘s supernatural drama The Innocents has been picked up by IFC Midnight, with plans to release the film in 2022.
From the press release, “One of Scandinavia’s most acclaimed screenwriters for his collaborations with Joachim Trier, Eskil Vogt made his directorial debut with the 2014 Sundance and Berlin prizewinner Blind. His second feature as writer/director, The Innocents stars Rakel Lenora Fløttum, Alva Brynsmo Ramstad, Mina Yasmin Bremseth Asheim, and Sam Ashraf alongside Morten Svartveit and Ellen Dorrit Petersen.
“A dark and twisted morality fable that unfolds under the bright Nordic sun, The Innocents follows a group of young children who become friends during the summer holidays, drawn together by the discovery of mysterious shared abilities. Out of sight of the adults, the children bond quickly, exploring their newfound powers and testing their limits in the forests and playgrounds surrounding their brutalist apartment complex. As the children’s loyalties shift and small cruelties escalate, their innocent play takes a dark turn towards the malevolent, and strange things begin to happen.”
Arianna Bocco, President of IFC Films, said, “Eskil Vogt is one of the most exciting filmmakers working in Scandinavia today. He has developed a distinct voice through his many high-profile writing credits over the years, and it’s with much excitement that we are now able to partner with him on his second directorial feature. Although the film explores horror on a more supernatural level, there is a deeply rooted story of the complexities of morality layered in between, which makes this the perfect fit for IFC Midnight.”
Director Eskil Vogt added, “I’ve been a long time admirer of how IFC Films have championed independent and genre bending cinema in an ever changing marketplace. They have such a great and innovative team and I couldn’t be happier to work with them in unleashing The Innocents in the U.S.”
The film was produced by Maria Ekerhovd for Mer Films, in co-production with Zentropa Sweden, Film i Vast, Snowglobe, Bufo, Logical, Zefyr, and Don’t Look Now.