Epicmedia, Volos, Huang Junxiang Reunite for Genre Films ‘Molder,’ ‘Hold My Gaze’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Bradley Liew of Epicmedia Productions (Philippines), Stefano Centini of Volos Films (Taiwan/Italy) and Singapore’s Huang Junxiang have reunited to launch two genre projects at the Busan International Film Festival‘s Asian Contents and Film Market. The trio previously teamed on Sundance Midnight hit, “In My Mother’s Skin” by Kenneth Dagatan, which was recently ranked number six on Variety’s Best Horror Movies of 2023. The film was acquired by Amazon Studios and will stream on Prime Video from Oct.

12. The producers are backing Dagatan’s “Molder,” a body-horror supernatural thriller set in a sleepy Italian town where an elderly Filipino immigrant struggling with signs of early onset dementia, grapples with the sudden disappearance of his wife and the mysterious young man who claims to have placed a curse upon them. The film aims to blend both Filipino folklore based supernatural horror with the experiences of the Filipino diaspora in Italy.

It will be shot in the Philippines and Italy with Filipino and Italian actors. The film is currently in advanced development and early financing stages. It is due to commence production at the end of 2024 or early 2025.

The fifth feature film of director Carlo Catu (“Aria”), “Hold My Gaze” is designed as a high-tension mystery thriller set in Taiwan. Through lies, deceit and murder, three damaged souls seek to mend through the love of another. But no one is able to hold the gaze of their lover, under the shadow of the ever-present third.

Catu’s work seeks to explore the trauma surrounding the Philippine family, the normalization of LGBTQ+ centric-stories and the balancing both artistic and commercially viable works. The film will be shot mainly in Taiwan, in both Mandarin and Filipino language with Filipino and Taiwanese leads. The project recently won the TAICCA Award at the the Malaysia’s MIFFEST Project Market and will be presented at the 2023 TCCF (Taiwan Creative Content Fest) Script to Screen Pitching this November in Taipei.