Shudder, AMC Networks’ premium streaming service for horror, thrillers, and the supernatural, announced today it has acquired the rights to Charades and WTF Films thriller Infested, previously titled Vermin, ahead of its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival.
From multi-international-awards shorts, writer-director Sébastien Vanicek’s Infested marks his first feature film, which he co-wrote with Florent Bernard.
In Infested, Kaleb is about to turn 30 and has never been lonelier. He’s fighting with his sister over inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a bazaar and returns it to his flat. It only takes a moment for it to escape and reproduce, turning the whole place into a dreadful web trap. At the same time, the police lock down the building where the residents are ambushed. The only option for Kaleb and his mates is to find a way out to survive.
“INFESTED terrifies on a multitude of levels. The film is full of horror, suspense, and some serious bite,” said VP of Global Acquisitions and Co-Productions Emily Gotto. “Sébastien is an incredibly talented director, and we are thrilled to bring his feature film debut to the Shudder audience.”
“The idea was always to make a movie that’s worth your ticket, a spectacle worth showing up for. To make a film to blow your mind, your ears, and to hit you in the gut,” said INFESTED director Sébastien Vanicek. “It’s also a very personal film which depicts French suburbs I know, far from the eeriness of the auteur films or the caricature of the comedies. It’s a genre film that shakes you to your core, moves you, makes you shiver, because it seems to me that through emotions you end up concerned and involved.”
Théo Christine (Gran Turismo), Finnegan Oldfield (Reinventing Marvin), Jérôme Niel (Les Tutos), Sofia Lesaffre (Les Misérables), and Lisa Nyarko star in the film, which was shot in France, and produced by Harry Tordjman (Last Dance) for My Box Films.
Charades and WTFilms negotiated the deal on behalf of the filmmakers and Emily Gotto on behalf of Shudder.
Infested will bear its fangs at the Venice Film Festival, followed by its arrival on Shudder in 2024.
