“Out of Darkness” will be released exclusively in theaters nationwide on February 9, 2024. The film, which had its world premiere at the BFI London Film Festival and its North American premiere at Fantastic Fest, was nominated for five British Independent Film Awards this past year, with a win for breakthrough performance for Safia Oakley-Green.
“Out of Darkness” is a survival horror film following a group of six who have struggled across the narrow sea to find a new home. They are starving, desperate, and living 45,000 years ago. First they must find shelter, and they strike out across the tundra wastes towards the distant mountains that promise the abundant caves they need to survive.
But when night falls, anticipation turns to fear and doubt as they realize they are not alone. As relationships in the group fracture, the determination of one young woman reveals the terrible actions taken to survive.
Adding to the film’s authenticity, “Out of Darkness” is shot on location in the Scottish Highlands with the use of a bespoke language called “Tola,” which was developed specifically for the project by a linguist and an archaeologist.
Today the nonprofit Sundance Institute announced the filmmakers selected to receive the 2024 Merata Mita Fellowship and the inaugural Graton Fellowship for Artists from California-Based Tribes. The Merata Mita Fellowship is an annual fellowship named in honor of the late Māori filmmaker Merata Mita (1942–2010) to support Indigenous women-identified artists endeavoring to direct their first feature film. This year’s Merata Mita Fellowship will go to Libby Hakaraia (Ngati Kapu, Ngati Raukawa au ki te tonga). The recently announced Graton Fellowship, created to support Indigenous artists from California-based tribes, both federally and non federally recognized, will go to Tazbah Rose Chavez (Dinè, Nüümü, San Carlos Apache). Both fellows were recognized at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival Native Forum Celebration Presented by NBCUniversal Launch and Nia Tero at The Park in Park City, Utah.
