Richard Karpala and Gabriel Bienczycki’s lo-fi witchy horror Falling Stars will play at Fantastic Fest later this month following its world premiere at Locarno International Film Festival – and we’ve got a brand new beautiful exclusive poster for you today.
Described by Locarno’s artistic director Giona A. Nazzaro as “Monte Hellman doing The Blair Witch Project” the lo-fi, meditative, and emotionally powerful witch film also has “a touch of Shirley Jackson“, evident in the following mysterious plot synopsis:
It’s the night of the first harvest in the American West which means harmless traditional rituals are performed to placate witches in the sky. For three brothers this year’s event will be different. When they discover their friend has killed and buried a witch, they venture out into the desert to witness it for themselves. Whilst encountering the scene they accidentally desecrate the body setting in motion a sequence of perilous events. The only way they can put a stop to the curse set upon their family is to burn the corpse before sunrise.
Sounds spooky! Starring Shaun Duke Jr. (Imani), Andrew Gabriel (Space Waves), Greg Poppa (Servant) and Rene Leech, Falling Stars, the horror drama has been praised by Locarno audiences for its personal approach to the coming-of-age genre. Karpala and Bienczycki told FANGORIA exclusively:
“It is a dream come true to be summoned to South Lamar to present our first feature film! It took long hours over many years to reach this moment. We’re so humbled we get to present Falling Stars to our extended family of horror fans. We’re also especially grateful to Annick Mahnert and everyone at Fantastic Fest who summon to their circle the rebel spirits of indie filmmaking! The cinema must never die”
In the meantime, check out our exclusive reveal of Falling Stars‘ downright dazzling new poster, as well as a trailer and stills below!
