Distribution veterans Derek Curl, David Gregory and Lewis Tice’s new distributor aims to release “uncompromising cinema on a worldwide scale” and will handle four films this year, starting with Adam Rehmeier’s torture porn.

Rodleen Getsic stars in The Bunny Game as an abducted prostitute who is subjected to a gruelling ordeal at the hands of her captor. Getsic and Rehmeir co-wrote the screenplay.

The horror film was released recently in the UK and will arrive uncut in the US through Autonomy in July.

The Bunny Game is the last word on the torture-porn sub-genre,” Autonomy president Curl said. “I was shocked by its audacity and the raw honesty that it depicted, making me question our collective enjoyment of extreme violence in cinema.

“At Autonomy Pictures we are not afraid to release such a film, which will undoubtedly inspire heated reaction, because it will allow audiences to make up their own minds.”

The deal was finalised at SXSW on Thursday (Mar 8) with Curl taking point on negotiations for Autonomy with Julian Richards of Jinga Films on behalf of the filmmakers. Jinga handled sales at SXSW a couple of years ago on the notorious horror title A Serbian Film.

“It’s great to see the launch of the new genre label Autonomy Pictures” Richards said. “And I think that the acquisition of Adam Rehmeier’s uber-controversial The Bunny Game is a bold statement of intent”.