Christine Nyland & Terence Krey’s new film Distress Signals gets an exclusive teaser from Bloody Disgusting ahead of its international debut at the Popcorn Frights Film Festival in South Florida. When Nyland walks the woods in search of any way out, she must face both nature’s harshness and an invisible presence that may be stalking her. After the critically praised independent film An Unquiet Grave, this new film by the team will premiere for the first time on August 18 at Popcorn Frights in the festival’s digital screening area. This survival thriller follows Caroline (Nyland) as she makes her way through the woods on her own.
She falls down a steep rock face and dislocates her shoulder, causing her to lose track of the companions she was with. With just the supplies she has on her back and anything more she can grab, she tries to make her way across the wilderness. The trailer starts off as a bit of a dull rat’s nest. Sending a distress signal in the hope that someone in her gang or anybody else would come to Caroline’s aid after she falls and injures herself However, no one responds, leaving Caroline to fend for herself in the woods.
There are occasional signs that something is off, such as static on her reception and weird noises coming from the woods during night, but otherwise, it’s all about survival. The situation becomes more concerning as Caroline sends out a message saying that she’s been in the woods for one week past the midway point. Her contemplation on life and death is juxtaposed with images of her running through the woods, playing with her campfire, and gazing at the night sky.
The final image of the trailer shows that she’s not alone and may be the target of a hunter. Jonathon Strauss and Stephanie Hains, both of whom have worked with Nyland on previous projects, will also appear in the film. Adding to the ensemble are actors Krey and Christian Nilsson, as well as Donna Maria Wood. The film was written & directed by both Krey and Nyland. For a while, Nyland has been a multi-hyphenate presence in independent films, but it was only with Krey’s An Unquiet Grave that she was recognised for the first time. San Diego’s FANtastic Horror Picture Festival presented the film with nominations for four awards: best feature film; best actor; best actress; and best supernatural horror (best supernatural horror). She has also appeared in Graves and Worthless, a web series with Tara Reid, in which she co-starred. Summoners, which she co-wrote with Krey and will be directing alone, is her next project. On August 18, Distress Signals will debut at Popcorn Frights.