Press Release: Dark Sky Films Acquires U.S. Distribution Rights To Larry Fessenden's Acclaimed Modern-Day Werewolf Movie 'Blackout'

The Deal Reunites Dark Sky Films And Glass Eye Pix, Two Iconic Companies That Have Produced Some Of The Most Memorable Horror Films Of Our Time.

Dark Sky Films has acquired all North American distribution rights to BLACKOUT, the acclaimed new film from independent horror master Larry Fessenden. The thriller, about a fine arts painter convinced he is a werewolf wreaking havoc on a small American town, will be released in the first quarter of 2024 in theaters and on digital platforms. Yellow Veil Pictures is representing worldwide rights at this year’s American Film Market in Santa Monica, where the announcement was made.

The distribution agreement was negotiated by Giles Edwards, Head of Development & Acquisitions for Dark Sky Films and Hugues Barbier, Justin Timms and Joe Yanick of Yellow Veil Pictures, the NYC and LA-based film sales and distribution company that focuses on boundary-pushing genre cinema. Negotiations on behalf of Glass Eye Pix were conducted by Jerry Dasti and Mel Pudig.

BLACKOUT marks the long-awaited reunion of Dark Sky Films and Larry Fessenden's Glass Eye Pix, two iconic horror companies that brought us contemporary classics such as Ti West's The House of The Devil and The Innkeepers, Jim Mickle’s Stake Land and Late Phases, directed by Adrian Garcia Bogliano.

Writer-director Larry Fessenden has created some of the most original and memorable independent horror films of the last 25 years, from Habit and Wendigo to The Last Winter, Skin and Bones, Beneath and Depraved. His latest, BLACKOUT, ranks among his most chilling and thought-provoking works with a cast that includes: Alex Hurt, Addison Timlin, Motell Gyn Foster, Joseph Castillo-Midyett, Ella Rae Peck, Rigo Garay, John Speredakos, Michael Buscemi, Jeremy Holm, Joe Swanberg, James Le Gros, Kevin Corrigan, Marshall Bell and Barbara Crampton. Producers on the project are Fessenden along wih James Felix McKenney, Chris Ingvordsen and co-producer Gaby Leyner.

BLACKOUT has received rave critical reviews during its festival run. “Blackout has a compelling, truly disarming earnestness,” said Nick Allen at Rogerebert.com. While Craig Ian Mann from OurCulture calls BLACKOUT  "one of the most intelligent and interesting werewolf movies of the 21st century.”  “…every aspect of Blackout — its pacing, its beautiful character work, its very specific structure — seems to gleefully abandon expectation and convention, and trusts that audiences will take this sad/funny trip crafted by a wholly original cinematic voice.” said Phil Nobile from Fangoria.

MPI's Giles Edwards said, "Larry Fessenden is a gifted filmmaker whose one-of-a-kind vision and style has always set his movies apart. We're thrilled to bring his remarkable BLACKOUT to the screen."

Greg Newman, Executive Vice President of Dark Sky Films added, “Larry Fessenden and Glass Eye Pix have had an indelible impact on the indie genre world. Our association with Larry goes back many years and we are thrilled to once again be working with him in releasing this most recent entry within his truly amazing body of work.”

Says Fessenden: “It’s a little bit like coming home, working with MPI/Dark Sky again, especially during this tumultuous time in show biz, when you don’t know who to trust. My goal is to get my movies out to an audience and I can count on the team at Dark Sky Films to make that happen as they have with all our previous collaborations, large and small. And a Shout Out to Yellow Veil for their work in putting this deal together. Now let’s roll up our sleeves and get busy.”

Official Film Synopsis:

Painter Charley (Alex Hurt, Minyan, TV's New Amsterdam) wakes up in an upstate motel where he appears to have been living for some time. After he packs and leaves he encounters various people in the small town where everybody knows your name. Charley is saying goodbye to the long-suffering love of his life, Sharon (Addison Timlin, Submission, TV's American Horror Stories), and settling his affairs with a strange urgency that culminates with a call to a friend, Earl (Motell Gyn Foster, Marriage Story, A Dog's Way Home), saying: “You better be ready, I’m coming.”

But Charley never makes it to his friend’s house: When the sun goes down he has convulsions while driving his car, goes off the road and ends up in a ditch. Charley, it seems, is a werewolf. He attacks his rescuers and moves through the outskirts of town at night wreaking havoc. But the next day he can’t remember the things he’s done. Now the tight-knit town must rally to find out what is tearing it apart: mistrust, fear, or a vicious monster.

About MPI and Dark Sky Films

The MPI Media Group is a leading producer, distributor and licensor of films. 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 subsidiary, Dark Sky Films is an independent film production and distribution label founded in 2008, working with emerging talent as well as established veterans to develop, package, produce and finance feature films and episodic television projects. Representing films from some of most talented directors working today, such as Ti West’s The House of the Devil and The Innkeepers, and Jim Mickle’s Stake Land, Dark Sky continues to identify original talent and projects to bring a vibrant slate of films to the world market, with original productions and releases such as Girl on the Third Floor, We Are Still Here, Deathgasm, Emelie, Catfight, Darlin’, Bliss and most recently 1BR, Coming Home In The Darkand Broadcast Signal Intrusion. | Follow us on twitter: @darkskyfilms @mpimediagroup

About Larry Fessenden and Glass Eye Pix

Glass Eye Pix (“one of the indie scene’s most productive and longest-running companies” — Filmmaker Magazine) is the fierce independent NYC-based production outfit headed by art-horror auteur Larry Fessenden (Depraved, The Last Winter, Wendigo, Habit, No Telling, Beneath, ABC's of Death 2, NBC's Fear Itself episode “Skin and  Bones”). Fessenden — winner of the Someone to Watch Spirit Award — has operated the company since 1985, with the mission of supporting individual voices in the arts. The subject of a 26-film retrospective at The Museum of Modern Art in April 2022, Glass Eye Pix has produced numerous critically acclaimed films in and out of the horror genre, including Crumb Catcher (2023, Chris Skotchdopole — Audience Award and Best Ensemble Award, Brooklyn Horror Film Fest), Foxhole (2022, Jack Fessenden — winner best ultra indie, Woodstock Film Fest), The Ranger (2018, Jenn Wexler), Like Me (2017, Robert Mockler), Most Beautiful Island (2017, Ana Asensio — winner best feature SXSW, 2017), Stray Bullets (2017, Jack Fessenden), The House of the Devil and The Innkeepers by Ti West, I Sell the Dead by Glenn McQuaid, the vampire saga Stake Land (Jim Mickle — winner of the Audience Award at the 2010 Toronto Film Festival's Midnight Madness), The Comedy (2012, Rick Alverson), Wendy and Lucy (2009, Kelly Reichardt) and Liberty Kid (2008, Ilya Chaiken). Glass Eye Pix produces books, comics and the critically acclaimed audio podcast Tales From Beyond the Pale, co-created with Glenn McQuaid. Fessenden is the author along with Graham Reznick of the acclaimed Bafta-winning Sony Playstation video game Until Dawn. As an actor, Fessenden has appeared in over 100 films, including Killers of the Flower Moon (Martin Scorsese), The Dead Don't Die (Jim Jarmusch), River of Grass (Kelly Reichardt), In a Valley of Violence (Ti West) and Brooklyn 45 (Ted Geoghegan).

About Yellow Veil Pictures

Formed in 2018, Yellow Veil Pictures is a New York City and Los Angeles-based film sales and distribution company focusing on boundary-pushing genre cinema. Yellow Veil  has released titles including the Cannes Fortnight and Midnight Madness selections Riddle of Fire, Adil & Bilall’s Rebel, Gaspar Noé’s Lux Æterna, Frida Kempff’s Sundance hit Knocking, and the Venice and TIFF selection The Long Walk from director Mattie Do. The company's sales slate includes such films as Tilman Singer’s debut feature Luz, The Adams Family’s Hellbender, George A. Romero’s The Amusement Park and Philip Gelatt & Morgan Galen King’s The Spine of Night. Yellow Veil Pictures seeks to highlight emerging and established filmmakers who exist on the cusp of commercial and arthouse cinema.