“Aurora,” a horror thriller directed by Yam Laranas (“The Road,” “Sigaw”) has been acquired by Netflix. It is one of the first films from The Philippines to be picked up by the global streaming giant and will play out from April 25.
With a screenplay by Laranas and Gin de Mesa, the film sees a passenger ship, the Aurora, mysteriously collide into the rocky sea threatening an entire island. A young woman and her sister try to survive by finding the missing dead for a bounty – until the dead themselves come looking for shelter.
It had its theatrical premiere at the prestigious Metro Manila festival in December and this year is nominated for the FAMAS award for best visual effects.
The film features Anne Curtis, an Australian-born woman who became a child star in the Philippines. Curtis is now one of the country’s biggest celebrities and a social media phenomenon. The film also stars Phoebe Villamor and Mercedes Cabral. Production, local distribution and international sales are handled by the venerable Viva Films company.
Another Curtis-starring film, action movie “BuyBust,” by Erik Matti, last year became the first Filipino feature to be acquired by Netflix. In December last year, Curtis was named as a talent to watch jointly by Variety and the International Film Festival and Awards Macao.