London based sales outfit AV Pictures has signed up Scott Mann (The Tournament) to direct their $20m action thriller Balefire.

Based on the best-selling novel of the same name, it is being adapted for the screen by Gladiators V Werewolves writer and director Rob Green.

The story is set in a sleepy Californian town that is rocked by a series of murders. The investigating detective realises the murders are the work of a single adversary who aims to distract the police and make the town vulnerable to a bigger and more horrific attack.

AV’s Cannes slate also includes Gladiators V Werewolves, Freight and Lesbian Vampire Killers.