EXCLUSIVE: Vertigo Releasing has acquired UK and Ireland rights to Taratoa Stappard’s Māori gothic horror and Toronto 2025 world premiere Mārama from US-based MPI Media Group.
UK-based New Zealand director Stappard’s debut feature pays tribute to his Maori ancestry. Ariāna Osborne plays a young Maori woman travelling to Victorian England in 1859. The film follows her search for revenge against the colonial atrocities committed by the Englishman who devastated her family, played by Toby Stephens.
Errol Shand and Emi Meyers also star.
A theatrical release is planned for autumn.
Sharlene George produces for New Zealand outfit The Sweetshop alongside Ricky Russell-Waipuka, Rouzie Hassanova and Paraone Gloyne.
The film shot entirely in New Zealand.
Mārama was developed with support from the New Zealand Film Commission, imagineNATIVE, The Black List, Toronto International Film Festival, the Zurich Film Festival and the Berlinale Co-Production Market.
Executive producers include Jill Macnab and Phil Bremner for Vendetta Films and Badie Ali, Hamza Ali and Greg Newman for MPI Media.
The film has screened at festivals including Fantastic Fest, Zurich and Sitges.
“Mārama is having an amazing festival run and has been successfully distributed in Aotearoa New Zealand, the US, Canada and France,” said Stappard, whose previous credits include short films Goalie and Emkhatsini: Between. “I’m delighted that Vertigo will now be releasing my Māori gothic horror into UK-Ireland cinemas.“
Rupert Preseton, Vertigo Releasing CEO, added: “Stappard has fused gothic horror with a powerful, deeply personal exploration of Māori history, anchored by a phenomenal performance from Ariāna Osborne.”
Upcoming releases for Vertigo include Ricard Cussó’s The Pout Pout Fish, Kent Jones’ Late Fame and Molly Manners’ Extra Geography.
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