Director Vivieno Caldinelli’s feature Scared Shitless (pictured) will make its world bow at the 2024 Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal.

The comedy horror was announced among the second wave of titles for the festival’s 28th edition.

Scared Shitless, written by Brandon Cohen and produced by Lewis Spring of Happy Cat Productions will debut in the Septentrion Shadows Section. Executive producers include Cohen and Steve Kostanski.

The film follows the story of a father and son plumbing duo who must rid a building of a toilet-dwelling creature before it unleashes itself to the rest of the world. The cast includes Steven Ogg, Daniel Doheny, Chelsea Clark, Mark McKinney, with a cameo by Julian Richings.

Fantasia also announced the Canadian Trailblazer award recipient, which this year is filmmaker Vincenzo Natali, known for works such as Cube and Splice, among others.

Echo Media announces two coproductions at Annecy

Montreal-based prodco Echo media has announced two animated feature film copro projects, Heart of Darkness and The City of Maria, at the 2024 Annecy International Animation Film Festival’s film market, MIFA.

Heart of Darkness is a collaboration between Echo Media, Brazil’s Karmatic Imagens and France-based Special Touch Studios from France, while The City of Maria sees Echo partner with Ukraine’s Avtoritet Studio and Split Studio from Brazil.

Heart of Darkness, directed by Rogério Nunes, is an adaptation of Joseph Conrad’s novella of the same name, this time set in a near-future Rio de Janeiro. The project is expected to be completed and released next year.

The City of Maria, directed by Ukrainian filmmaker Oleh Malamuzh, addresses the topic of war through the eyes of two children left without parents after the bombing of the city of Mariupol.

Canada’s Walk of Fame, Seeing Red Media ink strategic partnership

Canada’s Walk of Fame and Indigenous-owned media company Seeing Red Media have announced a strategic partnership to amplify stories of emerging creators across Canada.

The two entities will collaborate on several programs, including Canada’s Walk of Fame Future Storytellers Program, presented by founding partner NBCUniversal and Seeing Red.

The program aims to support diverse student filmmakers from underrepresented communities, promoting inclusive storytelling and cultural exchange.

Paramount+ partners with Reelworld for Reelworld Summit

Paramount+ in Canada has come on board as a partner for the 2024 Reelworld Summit.

The two-day summit will take place on Oct. 22 and 23 in Toronto during the Reelworld Film Festival and feature keynote speeches, industry panels, pitch opportunities, awards presentations and networking opportunities.

Reelworld will also host two luncheons in partnership with Paramount+ in Canada to celebrate award recipients who will be in attendance, one to support this year’s Award of Excellence and the other to honour the Visionary Award.

The summit was launched last year as an extension of the festival.

The 2024 Reelworld Film Festival will run as a hybrid event from Oct. 21 to Nov. 3.

Jenny Lee-Gilmore wins WIDC Advantage Award

Vancouver-based filmmaker Jenny Lee-Gilmore has won the 2024 Women in the Director’s Chair (WIDC) Advantage Award for her debut feature film Dormant.

The Advantage Award is a peer juried development award for a WIDC alumna preparing to direct their first feature film (low or ultra-low budget).

The prize includes a one-year mentorship for Lee-Gilmore, a spot at an upcoming WIDC Career Advancement Module and WIDC’s Industry partner nomination for the 2024 Telefilm Canada Talent to Watch program.

Dormant is a supernatural thriller about a university student whose nightmares and fatigue leave her exposed to a supernatural presence entangled in a sinister campus secret. The film is produced by Eloise Cameron-Smith.

Earlier this month, WIDC also announced writer-directors Virginia Abramovich and Kate Green are the 2024 recipients of the WIDC BANFF Fellowship Award.

Image courtesy of Fantasia