Samuel Goldwyn Films has added to its growing list of Australian acquisitions, negotiating a deal for the worldwide rights to Antaine Furlong’s Ascendant.
Under the agreement, there will be a planned theatrical release of the film as Rising Wolf in the US on July 16.
Ascendant will be released in Australia and New Zealand this Thursday via Maslow Entertainment.
Set in Shanghai, the story follows Aria Wolf (Charlotte Best), a young woman who wakes, trapped, kidnapped in an elevator of a super high rise building at the mercy of her tormentors. Cocooned in the belly of the beast, Aria is forced to adapt her thinking, her beliefs, and her endurance.
The cast includes Jonny Pasvolsky (The Front Runner), Alex Menglet (Wentworth), Susan Prior (The Rover), Lily Stewart, Justin Cotta,Tahlia Sturzaker (I am Mother), and Karelina Clarke.
Ascendant was written by Kieron Holland and Furlong, who produced alongside Kristy Vernon, James Vernon, and Drew Bailey, with Liz Furlong and Bec Kemp serving as executive producers.
Furlong said the deal represented a “big boost” for Australian-made movies finding a larger audience overseas.
“As we prepare for a very wide theatrical release across Australian and New Zealand cinemas on April 8, to be partnering with someone like Samuel Goldwyn in such key markets as the US, UK, Europe and Asia is a huge vote of confidence in the movie,” he said.
“It clearly demonstrates that Australian talent can write and produce world-building stories and deliver VFX on a massive scale.”
The acquisition comes less than a month after Samuel Goldwyn Films snapped up the North American rights to Leah Purcell’s The Drover’s Wife The Legend of Molly Johnson.
Other Australian films acquired by the company include Rams, High Ground, Judy & Punch, Top End Wedding, Measure for Measure. H is for Happiness, Dirt Music, Koko: A Red Dog Story and Sweet Country.