US distributor Brainstorm Media has acquired the North American rights to Northern Irish thriller Nightride.
Helmed by IFTA Rising star and BAFTA nominated director Stephen Fingleton (The Survivalist), Nightride is described by Variety as “a dark-humoured, action-packed thriller” that stars Moe Dunford (Texas Chainsaw Massacre), Joana Ribeiro (The Man Who Killed Don Quixote) and Oscar nominee Stephen Rea (The Crying Game).
Brainstorm Media handling a US release in select cinemas followed by VOD in Spring 2022, with the deal being handled by UTA Independent Film Group.
“We are thrilled to be working again with Pulsar on another stellar film,” Brainstorm’s head of distribution, Michelle Shwarzstein told Variety. “‘Nightride’ is an expertly crafted, edge-of-your-seat thriller that we can’t wait to show audiences in North America.”
Set over the course of a single night in Belfast, Nightride follows a small-time dealer, Budge, as he tries to pull one last deal with cash borrowed from a dangerous loan shark. When the handover goes terribly wrong, Budge finds himself in a race against the clock to get a hold of his missing product and find a new buyer before the loan shark tracks him down.
Written by Irish writer Ben Conway (Hunter’s Fall), the film is produced by Paul Kennedy for Village Films, Jon Silk for Silk Mass, and Céline Dornier for Logical Pictures. The film received funding support from Northern Ireland Screen and shot entirely in Belfast during lockdown.
“I’ve worked with Ben Conway before on a short, he’s a superb writer , so I was very excited to work with him on his first feature,” actor Moe Dunford previously told IFTN. “I’ve wanted to work with Stephen for some time, and he brought his unique vision to this. Between them, and an incredible hardworking crew, I think we’ve done something special that I’m excited for audiences to see.”
Paris-based sales agent Pulsar Content, who previously acquired the worldwide sales to the thriller, have already sold the film in a number of major international territories. These include the UK, France, Portugal, Middle East, South Korea, ex-Yugoslavia, CIS, and Singapore.
Nightride marks Fingleton’s second feature film following his highly acclaimed debut The Survivalist in 2015. The high-concept, post-apocalyptic thriller won prizes at major festivals such as Tribeca and Sitges Catalonian International Film Festival.