IFC Midnight Partners With MPI Media Group To Co-Release Toronto Midnight Madness Winner Stake Land. IFC Midnight announced today that the company is partnering with MPI Media Group and its subsidiary Dark Sky Films to co-release director Jim Mickle’s (MULBERRY STREET) STAKE LAND. The critically-acclaimed apocalyptic thriller was produced by Larry Fessenden, Peter Phok, Adam Folk, Brent Kunkle and Derek Curl STAKE LAND stars Connor Paolo (“Gossip Girl”), Danielle Harris (HATCHET II), Kelly McGillis (THE ACCUSED), Nick Damici, and Michael Cerveris (FRINGE). Damici and Mickle co-wrote the screenplay, which was the winner of the Midnight Madness Audience Award at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival.
The America of STAKE LAND is a lost nation. When an epidemic of vampirism strikes, humans find themselves on the run from vicious, feral beasts. Cities are tombs and survivors cling together in rural pockets, fearful of nightfall. When his family is slaughtered, young Martin (Paolo) is taken under the wing of a grizzled, wayward hunter (Damici) whose new prey are the undead.
Simply known as Mister, the vampire stalker takes Martin on a journey through the locked-down towns of America’s heartland, searching for a better place while taking down any bloodsuckers that cross their path. Along the way they recruit fellow travelers, including a nun (McGillis) who is caught in a crisis of faith when her followers turn into ravenous beasts. This ragtag family unit cautiously moves north, avoiding major thoroughfares that have been seized by The Brethren, a fundamentalist militia headed by Jebedia Loven (Cerveris) that interprets the plague as the Lord’s work.
Jonathan Sehring, President of Sundance Selects/IFC Films, said: “We are thrilled to again be working with the great Larry Fessenden, as well as with our friends at MPI. With vampires at the forefront of popular culture and a cast comprised of both horror film legends and up-and-comers, Jim Mickle has made a breathtaking film that will truly excite the IFC Midnight audience.”
Greg Newman, Executive VP of MPI Media Group, said: “IFC Midnight is remarkably consistent in bringing the world’s best genre films to the American market. We are very pleased to have our original production, Stake Land, be the newest addition to their extraordinary release slate.”
The deal for STAKELAND was negotiated by Arianna Bocco, Senior Vice President of Acquisitions & Productions for Sundance Selects/IFC Films with Greg Newman of MPI/Dark Sky. Stake Land was produced in associated with Off Hollywood Pictures and Bella Donna Productions.
IFC Midnight is a sister division to Sundance Selects and IFC Films, and is owned and operated by Rainbow Media.
About IFC MIDNIGHT
Established in 2010 and based in New York City, IFC Midnight is a leading U.S. distributor of genre entertainment including horror, science-fiction, thrillers, erotic art house, action and more. Its unique distribution model makes independent genre films available to a national audience by releasing them in theaters as well as on cable’s Video On Demand (VOD) platform, reaching nearly 50 million homes. Some of the company’s successes have included Tom Six’s controversial horror film The Human Centipede (First Sequence) and Johnnie To’s Hong Kong revenge thriller Vengeance. Upcoming IFC Midnight releases include James Gunn’s Super starring Rainn Wilson, Ellen Page and Kevin Bacon; Mexican filmmaker Jorge Michel Grau’s feature directorial debut We Are What We Are; Miguel Angel Vivas’ powerful and shocking home invasion flick Kidnapped and Tom Six’s highly anticipated frightfest The Human Centipede 2 (Full Sequence). IFC Midnight is a sister division to Sundance Selects and IFC Films, and is owned and operated by Rainbow Media.
About MPI Media Group
The MPI Media Group is a leading producer, distributor and licensor of films, home entertainment, historical footage and more. Founded in 1976, Chicago-based MPI Media Group remains one of the largest independent entertainment companies producing and distributing a compelling slate of the world’s most respected cinema, documentaries, performances and television programs. MPI’s wholly owned subsidiaries include MPI Home Entertainment, Dark Sky Films, and the WPA Film Library.
About Dark Sky Films
Dark Sky Films is dedicated to the discovery, preservation and production of new and classic horror, sci-fi and cult films from around the world. Based in Chicago, Dark Sky Films is a wholly owned subsidiary of The MPI Media Group – one of the largest independent entertainment companies producing and distributing a compelling slate of the world’s most respected cinema, documentaries, performances and television programs.
