Even as summer heats up, things are chillier than ever for DECAL Distribution this July. They’ve just released the trailer for their upcoming sci-fi thriller The Occupant, set in a remote, wintery wilderness, which hits theaters next month.
Directed by Hugo Keijzer from a script he co-wrote with Philip M. Howe, Roelof-Jan Minneboo, and Xiao Tang, The Occupant stars Ella Balinska, Rob Delaney, Vanessa Ifediora, and Stuart Graham. The film’s synopsis is as follows:
Desperate to fund an experimental treatment for her sister Beth's terminal cancer, Abby takes a high-risk but well-paid job at a uranium mine in Northern Georgia. When she discovers a mysterious, potentially valuable mineral element that could cover the cost, fate intervenes—her sister has only days left. Racing home, Abby's helicopter crashes in remote mountains after encountering mysterious aerial phenomena. Stranded, she finds hope through John, an American pilot radioing from nearby.
As their connection deepens, Abby uncovers a disturbing truth: John is an entity that knows too much, offering her passage to a realm where suffering doesn't exist. Between the brutal reality of impending loss and the seduction of a perfect illusion, Abby faces an impossible choice—accept her sister's mortality or surrender to a beautiful lie.
“With The Occupant, I set out to construct a narrative that addresses a difficult and deeply personal theme, wrapped within the genre conventions of a sci-fi thriller,” Keijzer said in a statement. “At its core, this is the story of a young person’s journey toward accepting the inevitable death of her sister, whom she loves more than anything in her life.
This could have made for a compelling kitchen sink drama, but because of the specific nature of Abby’s character and my desire to make this story accessible to a wider audience, her journey takes us on a physical rollercoaster ride through uninhabitable terrain, to the brink of death, and down a dark place where she’s offered the most difficult choice of her life.”
The Occupant is produced by Raymond van der Kaaj, Isabel Freer, Jay Taylor, and Kewsi Dickson, with executive producers Balinska, Anders Erdén, Blair Ward, Lauren Case, Anton Palmer, John Craighead, Andy Mayson, Mike Runagall, and Will Clarke.
The Occupant premieres in theaters on August 8. Check out the new trailer below:
