‘Still/Born’ body shocker secures deal ahead of Cannes debut

Brandon Christensen’s Still/Born landed international sales representation from Jinga Films and North American rights handled by ICM Partners before its market debut at the Cannes Film Festival.

The Canadian psychological horror film follows Mary, a new mother who lost one of her twins in childbirth. Struggling to cope and feeling disconnected from reality, she begins to suspect something sinister wants to take her surviving child, believing this supernatural entity will stop at nothing to take it from her.

Still/Born stars Christie Burke (Black Fly, Crowsnest), Jesse Moss (Tucker and Dale vs Evil, The Uninvited), Sheila McCarthy (The Day After Tomorrow, Die Hard 2) and Sean Rogerson (Grave Encounters, Extraterrestrial).

The horror flick is Christensen’s directorial debut and was co-written by Colin Minihan (Grave Encounters franchise, Extraterrestrial, It Stains the Sands Red).

Minihan, Kurtis David Harder, and Chris Ball of Digital Interference Productions produced the film in Canada, while Miles Forster and Chris Wilkinson from Hadron Films served as executive producers.

Sales Deal and Market Debut

Jinga Films handled international sales representation while ICM Partners managed North American rights. Those North American rights were later sold to Vertical Entertainment. AMC’s Shudder service acquired the SVoD rights, completing the distribution path that began with the Cannes market discussions.

Release Timeline

The film had its world premiere on April 29, 2017 at the Overlook Film Festival at the Timberline Lodge. It won the Scariest Film Award there. A limited theatrical and video-on-demand release followed in the United States on February 9, 2018 through Vertical Entertainment.

Current Streaming Availability

Still/Born streams on AMC+ via the Amazon Channel. Viewers can rent or buy it on Prime Video, Apple TV, and Fandango at Home. The title is also available to stream for free on Hoopla in select regions.

Reception and Legacy

Rotten Tomatoes aggregates 22 reviews with a consensus that notes the film’s psychological approach and Christie Burke’s lead performance. The picture had a limited theatrical run in 2018 and has remained a catalog title since.

Director's Subsequent Work

Christensen’s follow-up feature Z had its world premiere at the Overlook Film Festival in 2019, continuing the director’s relationship with the genre festival that launched Still/Born.

Distribution Outcome

The initial sales deal with Jinga Films and ICM Partners led to concrete acquisitions: Vertical Entertainment took North American rights for theatrical and VOD release, while Shudder secured streaming rights. Those deals moved the project from market negotiations to completed distribution.

The production team’s combination of experienced horror producers and first-time feature director yielded a contained psychological story that found its audience through festival screenings and subsequent platform releases. The film’s ongoing presence on major streamers keeps it accessible to new viewers years after its initial festival circuit run.