South African film ’Glasshouse’ has been selected for the 25th Fantasia International Film Festival in Montreal, Canada, which is billed as North America’s top genre film festival.
“Glasshouse” is set after an airborne dementia known as “the Shred” has left humanity roaming like lost and dangerous animals, unable to remember who they are.
Confined to their airtight glasshouse, a family does what they must to survive – until two sisters are seduced by a stranger who upsets the family’s rituals, unearthing a past they’ve tried to bury.
The Showmax movie stars British actress Jessica Alexander and newcomer Anja Taljaard as the sisters, Bee and Evie, opposite Hilton Pelser as The Stranger.
The spooky yet sexy post-pandemic love triangle is the feature film directorial debut of Kelsey Egan, who co-wrote the script with associate producer Emma Lungiswa de Wet.
Kelsey and Emma are award-winning writers: Kelsey is best known for helping adapt the Deon Meyer bestseller “Trackers” for M-Net, Cinemax and ZDF, while Emma was a staff writer on the YouTube animated phenomenon “Munki and Trunk”, which now has over six million subscribers to its Jungle Beat channel.
“I’ve been working towards directing features since I made my first short back in 2008, so to end up directing my first film in 2020 of all years feels like some form of dramatic irony.
“To shoot this intimate, post-apocalyptic fable during the pandemic was a surreal experience,” said Kelsey.
Justus de Jager shot “Glasshouse” at The Pearson Conservatory, a Victorian glasshouse marooned in the Eastern Cape since 1881.
“Glasshouse is a claustrophobic, thought-provoking story of family survival and buried secrets.
“We’re delighted the film is having its world premiere at Fantasia, the latest in a string of coups for South African films this year, like ’Moffie’s’ BAFTA nomination, Five Tiger’s selection for Sundance, Gaia winning the ZEISS Cinematography Award at SXSW, and ’This Is Not A Burial, It’s A Resurrection’ being ranked fourth on Metacritic’s list of the best-reviewed films of 2021 so far,” said Candice Fangueiro, head of content at Showmax.
The 25th Fantasia International Film Festival runs from August 5-25, 2021.
This October, “Glasshouse” will release as a Cinema Premiere on BoxOffice by DStv and will be available to rent on PVRs only in South Africa, as well as in countries on the African continent where BoxOffice is available.
“Glasshouse” will be available to stream on Showmax from February 2022.