Conic has picked up Laura Carriera’s debut feature, On Falling, for UK and Ireland ahead of its UK premiere at BFI London Film Festival on Thursday 17 October.
Set against a landscape dominated by an algorithm-driven gig economy, in a world designed to keep us apart, On Falling explores the silent, vital struggle to find meaning and connection. It tells the story of Aurora, a Portuguese migrant working as a warehouse picker in Edinburgh, Scotland. Trapped between the confines of a vast distribution centre and the solitude of her own bedroom, Aurora seeks out every opportunity to resist the alienation and isolation that threaten her sense of self.
Laura Carreira is a Portuguese filmmaker based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Her first short film Red Hill won the New Visions Award at the 73rd Edinburgh International Film Festival and was nominated for the Best Short Film award at the 2019 BAFTA Scotland Awards.
Her short film The Shift premiered at the Venice International Film Festival in 2020 and was nominated for the European Film Awards and the London Critics' Circle Film Awards. In 2021 it won the New Talent Award at IndieLisboa.
In 2022, Laura was named one of the Rising Stars Scotland by Screen International.
On Falling had its world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival 2024 and its European premiere at San Sebastián Film Festival where Laura won the Silver Shell for Best Director.
On Falling was produced by Sixteen Films and BRO Cinema - with the support of the BFI, BBC Film, Screen Scotland, ICA and Goodfellas.
Conic acquired On Falling from the film’s producer, Jack Thomas-O'Brien of Sixteen Films.
Conic will release in UK and Ireland in early 2025.
Goodfellas are handling international sales. The film has also sold to Vedette (Benelux), MCF (ex- Yugoslavia), Cinobo (Greece), Teleview (Middle East), Vertigo (Spain) and Frenetic (Switzerland). They are in advanced negotiations in France and the US. Further territories are still to be announced.
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Image credits: Still from On Falling, courtesy of Sixteen Films.