Trailer Release For Samuel Van Grinsven’s Haunting Canterbury-set Ghost Story, Went Up The Hill

Starring Vicky Krieps (Phantom Thread, Corsage) & Dacre Montgomery (Stranger Things)

A haunting and emotionally charged film set against the raw beauty of the Craigieburn Valley in New Zealand’s South Island - WENT UP THE HILL will have its New Zealand Premiere at Whānau Mārama, the New Zealand International Film Festival (NZIFF) ahead of a nationwide theatrical release in New Zealand this September. 

Directed by Canterbury-born Samuel Van Grinsven (Sequin in a Blue Room), the story follows Jack (Dacre Montgomery), who travels to remote New Zealand for the funeral of his estranged mother. There he meets her widow, Jill (Vicky Krieps), and over the course of several unsettling nights, both are possessed by Elizabeth’s ghost, who uses their bodies to communicate with the other from beyond the grave.

Starring acclaimed international actors Vicky Krieps (Corsage, Phantom Thread), Dacre Montgomery (Stranger Things, Elvis), and iconic New Zealand performer Sarah Peirse (Heavenly Creatures, Sweet Tooth), the film is a supernatural thriller rooted in grief.

Shot at Lake Pearson luxury lodge Flockhilll on the Great Alpine Highway, the film is deeply influenced by the landscape’s emotional and physical isolation. It’s an intimate story about control and letting go, set in a place where nature mirrors the characters’ inner lives.
 
“WENT UP THE HILL is an intimate, modern ghost story that dances in the tension between genres to explore the extremities of grief in our pursuit of letting go,” says Samuel Van Grinsven. “It was inspired by nostalgic memories of my childhood in New Zealand’s remote South Island.”

“The film has the very unique idea of a ghost story between three characters, played by only two actors, Krieps and Montgomery.” Van Grinsven commented, “both actors are quite fearless in the way they approach character and in what they choose to make as artists.”

Produced by Vicky Pope (Pike River, Savage), and legendary Australian elevated genre producers  Samantha Jennings and Kristina Ceyton of Causeway Films (The Babadook, Talk to Me, Bring Her Back), the film blends intense performances with a bold, restrained visual language. Says Pope “This film is such a great example of how profoundly NZ filmmakers are influenced by our landscape. There’s a strong lineage of “cinema of unease” in NZ film; films like The Piano, Vigil or In My Father’s Den, that have an almost gothic sensibility and beauty to them.”

The exciting trans-Tasman collaboration saw some of the best creative heads from each country come together, including New Zealand screen production veterans; Costume Designer Kirsty Cameron (The Power of the Dog, Whale Rider, Pike River), Hair & Makeup Designer Stefan Knight (Sweet Tooth, Heart Eyes, M3GAN), Art Director Ben Milsom (Avatar: The Way of Water, King Kong) and composer Hanan Townshend (Knight of Cups) along with Australian heads of department including; Director of Photography Tyson Perkins (Mystery Road: Origin), Production Designer Sherree Philips (Babyteeth, Dopegirls), Emmy award-nominated Editor Dany Cooper ASE (Carmen, The Legend of Molly Johnson, Breath), and Academy Award winning Sound Designer Robert Mackenzie (Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga, Hacksaw Ridge).

A festival and critics’ favourite, the film premiered to critical acclaim at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival and has since been selected for a string of prestigious festivals, including Adelaide and Sydney with sold out screenings, alongside Thessaloniki, Torino, Glasgow, Dublin and Luxembourg City, where it won the coveted Audience Award.

WENT UP THE HILL is an official New Zealand/Australia co-production, financed with principal production investment from the New Zealand Film Commission and Screen Australia with support from Screen CanterburyNZ. 

WENT UP THE HILL will have its New Zealand Premiere at NZIFF ahead of a nationwide theatrical release this September.

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