Editor

MIROVISION and DAVIS Films agreed on English remake deal for THE SPELL, from the original film directed by AHN Byung-ki.

Producer Samuel Hadida, Davis Films, today announced that he has acquired the remake rights to the South Korean film Bunshinsaba (original English title Ouija Board). The new English-language remake of the film will be titled The Spell. Cassie Yoo of .40 Caliber Films and E. Thompson facilitated the deal between Samuel Hadida’s Davis Films and Jason Chae of Mirovision in South Korea.

Metropolitan retains the distribution rights for France for the original picture from Mirovision.

The story follows a teenage girl who moves with her family to a small village from a big city. She soon finds small town life is not so easy when she is bullied by her classmates. As the bullies become more brutal she decides to put a curse on the girls tormenting her, but she is shocked to discover her curse actually works, bringing about horrors far beyond her imagination.

Known as South Korea's king of horror, Byeong-ki Ahn laid the foundation for the genre with his hit debut film Nightmare (2000), about a fraternity serial killer. His second project Phone (2002), centers on a reporter who changes her cell phone number only to find the new number connects her to the dead. Phone set a record as the first horror film to generate over US$15,000,000 at the South Korean box office. Phone has since become an international hit. Bunshinsaba is his third horror picture. The film was released in South Korea in 2004 by Buena Vista International. A-Post Pictures & Toilet Pictures produced and Mirovision represents international rights.

Hadida is currently in production on the video game adaptation of Silent Hill for his Davis Films, now shooting in Toronto under director Christophe Gans.

Hadida is also preparing the release of Tony Scott’s Domino, which he also produced. Additionally, Hadida is planning international co-productions later in the year for a feature based on the hugely successful Japanese video game Onimusha.

Thompson is producing the Korean horror remake Phone with Maverick Films and Focus Features’ Rogue division. Cassie Yoo facilitated the remake purchase deal for this production. Thompson is also in post production on the Japanese co-production Sakura- Blue Eyed Samurai.

Yoo and Thompson under the .40 Caliber Films banner also produced the horror film Sam’s Lake with Mirovision and Maverick Films which is in the last stretch of post production.

Mirovision, headed by Jason Chae, is a South Korean leading international distribution, acquisition and production powerhouse. Along with successful release of Butterfly Effect and SAW, Chae recently co-produced arctic thriller Antarctic Journal and produced Kurosawa Kiyoshi’s new thriller LOFT.