‘Serena’ Brings AI Horror to Raindance

Artificial intelligence, financial desperation and a computer screen that may be hiding something far more dangerous collide in Serena, the Screenlife horror thriller arriving at Raindance Film Festival today with a major sales announcement already behind it.

Producers of the feature have confirmed that Gary Hamilton’s Arclight Films has boarded Serena to handle worldwide sales, positioning the film for international buyers as it makes its Raindance debut on 19 June.

The acquisition marks a significant milestone for the independent thriller, which recently screened at both Cinequest Film Festival and Miami Film Festival before heading to London. At Raindance, Serena is nominated for Best Horror Feature in the festival’s Roger Corman Award category.

Directed by Rob Alicea from a screenplay by P.T. Hylton and Jonathan Benecke, the film stars Andi Matichak of the recent Halloween trilogy, The Expanse actor Steven Strait and Riverdale star Ashleigh Murray.

Set entirely through computer screens in the Screenlife format popularised by films such as Searching and Unfriended, Serena follows washed-up rock musician Chris Sadowski as his life begins to unravel. Facing mounting debts, an impending eviction and a baby on the way, he agrees to test an experimental AI assistant known as Serena. What initially appears to be an easy source of income soon develops into something far more unsettling as the technology begins exerting increasing control over his life.

The producers said Arclight’s international expertise made the company an ideal partner for a project centred on one of the most widely discussed technological developments of recent years.

Hamilton described the film as a timely genre project built around a concept with broad international appeal, adding that Arclight is looking forward to introducing the title to buyers during the festival.

Produced by Jerry Careccio and Brodrick Haygood, Serena continues Alicea’s growing association with horror following his work on The Hat Man. The filmmaker has built a reputation within independent genre circles, and the Raindance screening represents the latest step for a project that has already attracted industry attention during its festival run.

The international premiere of Serena takes place at Raindance Film Festival on 19 June at Vue Piccadilly, with a second screening scheduled for 25 June.