TrustNordisk and Neon are thrilled to annouce that Sundance Film Festival has selected the horror drama HANDLING THE UNDEAD by Thea Hvistendahl. The film marks the director's feature debut and will celebrate its world premiere at the festival in the World Competition section.
Copenhagen, 6 December 2023 – HANDLING THE UNDEAD, directed by Thea Hvistendahl, has been officially selected for the prestigious Sundance Film Festival, where it will have its world premiere. The film is produced by Kristin Emblem and Guri Neby for Einer Film and is an adaptation of the Swedish novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist. Lindqvist gained recognition for his bestselling horror novel LET THE RIGHT ONE IN (2004), adapted into a succesfull film hit in 2008 and for the Cannes winner BORDER (2018), directed by renowned director Ali Abbasi.
Director Thea Hvistendahl comment on the selection
"I'm incredibly proud and grateful to be showing our film to the world for the first time at Sundance, one of the world's most important and exciting festivals. I've had with me insanely talented people in front of and behind the camera who have really given everything, so to receive this honorable recognition feels very good. Of course, it's also both exciting and nerve-wracking to see how it will be received, but most of all I'm really looking forward to the film finally meeting an audience. The goal has been to create a beautiful and exciting cinematic experience, a movie that is both sad and full of love, about pain and acceptance and moving on after you've lost someone you love,".
Directorial debut and stellar cast
Co-written by Thea Hvistendahl in collaboration with John Ajvide, HANDLING THE UNDEAD marks Hvistendahl's debut in feature films. Accompanied by an exceptional cast, Thea Hvistendahl is joined by Cannes Best Actress winner Renate Reinsve and Anders Danielsen Lie, both known for the Academy award-nominated film THE WORST PERSON IN THE WORLD (2021). The ensemble also includes Bjørn Sundquist, Bente Børsum, and other talented performers.
Synopsis
On an abnormally hot summer day in Oslo, a strange electric field surrounds the city as a collective migraine spreads across town. TVs, lightbulbs, and electronics go haywire, the chaos reaching a debilitating crescendo when suddenly, it’s over. But the strange event has awoken the newly deceased from death. HANDLING THE UNDEAD weaves together three families through their loss: Mahler (72) and his daughter, Anna, mourn the too early passing of his grandson; Tora (86) says her final goodbye to her wife at the funeral home; and a family of four face a life without a wife and mother.
HANDLING THE UNDEAD is a character driven horror/drama that deals with fundamental emotions around grief and mortality and the battle of accepting what we cannot control.
Directed by Thea Hvistendahl, HANDLING THE UNDEAD is written by John Ajvide Lindqvist and Thea Hvistendahl and produced by Kristin Emblem and Guri Neby for Einer Film in co-production with Zentropa Sweden. The film is supported by the Norwegian Film Institute, Swedish Film Institute, Film i Väst, Nordisk Film & TV Fond and Oslo Film Fond. Neon handles North America and UK distribution and Nordisk Film handles Nordic release. International sales by TrustNordisk.
HANDLING THE UNDEAD will release locally on 9 February 2024.
Watch the trailer here!