Following its World Premiere at the inaugural SXSW London, Signature Entertainment has debuted the UK trailer for The Occupant, a forthcoming sci-fi survival thriller from Dutch filmmaker Hugo Keijzer. The film is slated for release on digital platforms from 1 September.
Directed by Keijzer and co-written with Philip Michael Howe, Roelof Jan Minneboo (Corn Island), and Xiao Tang, The Occupant follows Abby (Ella Balinska – Charlie’s Angels, “Resident Evil”), a young woman driven to extreme lengths in the hope of saving her sister’s life. With her sister Beth (Vanessa Ifediora – “Bloodlands”) terminally ill, Abby accepts a dangerous but lucrative position at a remote uranium mine in Northern Georgia.
The story takes a sharp turn when Abby stumbles upon a mysterious, possibly valuable mineral. But after a helicopter crash strands her deep in the mountains, her bid to return home becomes a harrowing fight for survival. Hope flickers in the form of a nearby American pilot making radio contact but, as the two forge a bond across the airwaves, Abby is confronted with a chilling revelation that leaves her facing an unthinkable decision.
The film also stars Rob Delaney (Catastrophe), Stuart Graham (Hunger), and Armin Karima (“Sex Education”).
Speaking about the personal motivations behind the film, Keijzer said:
“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. 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 project has been years in the making, developed through international genre festivals and industry support.
“The Occupant is the culmination of more than seven years of work. We developed the story through pitches at festivals (Sitges, Bifan), created a short film prologue (which garnered millions of online fans), and received valuable input from the Netherlands Film Fund to strike the right balance between drama and genre,” Keijzer explained.
Reflecting on the film’s emotional heart, he added:
“The final minutes of this film are the best testament to what I set out to do: visualize the private journey someone must go through to come to accept the most difficult thing in life. I dedicate this film to all the people I’ve lost and who have taught me so much about life through their deaths.”
In anticipation of The Occupant releasing on digital platforms this 1 September, we’ll leave you with a taste of what to expect with the film’s trailer.
