We Speak Movies

|TRAILER| Polaris: an icy, futuristic thriller with an all-female cast

Published

3 years ago

October 18, 2023

Featuring polar bears and a headstrong heroine, the new post-apocalyptic thriller Polaris is out in cinemas on 3 November and VOD on 7 November 2023. Set in 2144, the film follows 10-year-old Sumi’s fight for survival in a frozen, inhospitable world.

The film is carried by the outstanding young actress Viva Lee, who plays Sumi – through her eyes, we see a different perspective on this dystopian world. Sumi narrowly escapes capture from the brutal Morads and sets out alone across the vast subarctic landscape. When she stumbles across the mysterious Frozen Girl, an unlikely friendship is forged and together they race ahead towards the guiding light of the Polaris star.

Despite a a challenging subartic shoot for cast and crew, Polaris retains its strong vision throughout. Executive producer Patrick Ewald explains: “When I met the Polaris filmmaking team at the Frontières market, I was immediately drawn to the story and environmental messaging of this project. It’s amazing to see what KC has accomplished and brought on screen.”

“I can’t wait for audiences to see Viva Lee Sumi’s award-winning performance in this incredible film.”
Executive producer Patrick Ewald

“I want to encourage an emotionally immersive audience experience that is more empathy-based, intuitive and universal.”
Writer and director KC Carthew

Polaris is Carthew’s second feature film, following her multiple-award winning debut feature, The Sun at Midnight (2017) starring Kawennáhere Devery Jacobs from Reservation Dogs. Recognised for spectacular world-building in her visual storytelling, Carthew excels in bringing forth award-winning performances, cultivating innovation and pushing both technical and narrative elements to new heights in her work.

Polaris has already won awards at film festivals around the world, including multiple Best Performance awards for Viva Lee (Sydney Science Fiction Film Festival, Fantasmagoria, LEO), the Audience Choice Award at the Sydney Science Fiction Film Festival, the Jury Award at the Reel 2 Reel International Film Festival For Youth and a Visionary Award for KC Carthew (Seattle Make Believe).

Polaris

Synopsis: Set in the frozen world of a post-apocalyptic 2144, a young girl raised by a polar bear must fight to survive after she is captured and escapes from a brutal warriors.

Directed by: KC Carthew (The Sun at Midnight, Fish Out of Water)

Produced by: Max Fraser (Bond of Strangers: The Operation Husky Story, Martinis of the Wilderness), Paul Cadieux (Advocate, Gaza), Alyson Richards (Children Ruin Everything, Before I Change My Mind), Kirsten Carthew (The Sun at Midnight)

Written by: KC Carthew (The Sun at Midnight, Fish Out of Water)

Starring: Viva Lee (An Unexpected Christmas, Deadly Class), Khamisa Wilsher (The Flash, Charmed), Muriel Dutil (Ressac, Curling)

Run Time: 89 minutes

Language: English

Territory: US Only

Theatrical Release Date: November 3, 2023

VOD Release Date: November 7, 2023

The film, a co-production with Epic Pictures, is written and directed by KC Carthew, and is executive produced by Patrick Ewald (Epic Pictures CEO and owner); Paul Cadieux (winner of the 2003 Genie Award for Best Motion Picture for The Triplets of Belleville); Alyson Richards (an Ontario-based producer and writer, known for The Retreat, Don’t Talk to Irene and Guidance); Kirsten Carthew (Elijah and the Rock Creature, The Sun at Midnight) and independent Yukon filmmaker Max Fraser.

Also starring in the film are Muriel Dutil (Ressac, Niagara) as Dee, and Khamisa Wilsher (a Canadian actress, model and singer-songwriter) as Frozen Girl.

ABOUT EPIC PICTURES

Founded in 2007, Epic Pictures is an independent content studio with the mission of delivering the best-in-class genre entertainment “for fans, by fans.” Epic Pictures produces, finances, and distributes approximately twenty-thirty independent genre films a year. In 2013, the company established Epic Pictures Releasing which is its US focused distribution division. In 2017, Epic Pictures acquired the world’s most popular horror website, Dread Central, and launched its unique horror label, Dread, followed by its AVOD channel, DreadTV. In 2019, Epic Pictures started the horror gaming site, DreadXP, with a focus on editorial, reviews, podcasts, and original streaming content. In 2020, DreadXP began a video game production and publishing division in collaboration with some of the most innovative developers in the independent gaming space.

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We Speak Movies

Cairo International Film Festival to Open 47th Edition with Peter Farrelly’s I Play Rocky

Published

5 days ago

October 28, 2026

We Speak Media

Two men on stage at the 46th Cairo International Film Festival, one holding up a rolled scroll tied with a red ribbon and the other holding up a trophy, in front of a backdrop reading 'NOVEMBER 2025'.

Fifty years after Rocky and CIFF began their journeys in 1976, the opening film tells the true story behind one of cinema’s most enduring legends

The Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF), headed by acclaimed Egyptian actor Hussein Fahmy, has announced that I Play Rocky, directed by two-time Academy Award winner Peter Farrelly, will open its 47th edition, running from November 11 to 20, 2026. The American film will screen in the Official Selection, Out of Competition.

The choice of opening film carries particular significance. In 1976, two stories that would leave their mark on cinema began on opposite sides of the world. On the streets of Philadelphia, the fictional boxer Rocky Balboa was chasing a seemingly impossible dream, while in Cairo, a new international film festival was taking its first steps. Fifty years later, their stories converge on CIFF’s opening night with a film about the real-life struggle that brought one of cinema’s most iconic characters to the screen.

I Play Rocky tells the story behind the making of the 1976 classic Rocky, following a young Sylvester Stallone as he struggles to establish himself in Hollywood. After writing a screenplay about an unknown boxer determined to defy the odds, Stallone attracts the interest of producers who want to buy his script and cast an established star in the lead role. But Stallone refuses to give up the part he created, turning his own struggle to realize his dream into a real-life parallel to Rocky’s story.

The film revisits one of Hollywood’s most remarkable success stories, tracing how a risky creative gamble became a worldwide cinematic phenomenon. The original Rocky was both a critical and commercial success, winning three Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director for John G. Avildsen, and launching a franchise whose influence would span generations.

Anthony Ippolito stars as Sylvester Stallone, having previously portrayed Al Pacino in the limited series The Offer, which explored the making of The Godfather. The ensemble cast also includes Matt Dillon, AnnaSophia Robb, P. J. Byrne, Toby Kebbell, Tracey Letts, Jay Duplass, and Kiki Seto.

Written by Peter Gamble, I Play Rocky is directed by Peter Farrelly, whose credits include Green Book (2018), for which he won two Academy Awards: Best Picture, as one of its producers, and Best Original Screenplay, as a co-writer. Farrelly’s career spans directing, screenwriting, and producing. The film is produced by Toby Emmerich, Christian Baha, Peter Farrelly, and Paul Currie, with distribution by Amazon MGM and United Motion Pictures.

I Play Rocky had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2026, where it finished as first runner-up for the People’s Choice Award. It went on to win the Audience Award in the Galas & Special Presentations section at the Vancouver International Film Festival and the Audience Choice Award for Best Feature Film at Canada’s Cinéfest Sudbury International Film Festival.

The film was also selected for a surprise screening at the BFI London Film Festival and featured at the Rome, Zurich, and Chicago film festivals, as well as AFI FEST, where it screened in the Red Carpet Premieres section. Its international festival run has been marked by an enthusiastic audience response to a story about the passion, perseverance, and creative risks behind filmmaking.

By selecting I Play Rocky as its opening film, CIFF continues its commitment to showcasing cinema that combines artistic merit with audience appeal, while turning the spotlight on the filmmaking process itself and the personal and creative challenges behind bringing stories to the screen.

Half a century after Rocky first reached audiences and the Cairo International Film Festival was founded, the opening night of CIFF’s 47th edition brings these two histories together: one celebrating the determination of a young actor who fought to bring his character to life, the other marking a cinematic journey that began in Cairo in 1976 and continues to connect audiences with films from around the world.

About Cairo International Film Festival

Founded in 1976, the Cairo International Film Festival is one of the oldest and most established film festivals in the Arab world and Africa, and a major international platform for cinema and the film industry. Held under the auspices of the Egyptian Ministry of Culture, CIFF is accredited by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations (FIAPF).

Over five decades, the festival has established itself as a meeting place for filmmakers and industry professionals from around the world, a platform for discovering emerging talent, fostering cultural dialogue, and supporting the development of Arab and international cinema.