The Shift is starred by Kristoffer Polaha
The Shift, a film produced by Angel Studios and the directorial debut of Brock Heasley, who also wrote it, is being distributed by Spanglish Movies in cinemas across Latin America, except Brazil. Its journey through the region began in Mexico, Ecuador, and Peru on Thursday, April 8th.
It will continue on April 11th in Colombia, Chile, and Bolivia; on April 18th in Venezuela, Paraguay, Uruguay, and the Dominican Republic, and will conclude on April 25th in Brazil. In the United States, the film premiered in December 2023 and has already finished its theatrical run.
Heasley mentions that the idea for the feature film originated as a short film made in 2017, which he later transformed into a screenplay for a movie.
“The movie is about several different things. But if there’s one thing it communicates, it’s hope, specifically that there is still hope in our worst challenges, in darkness, and loss,” commented Heasley.
“Brock has told a story that is fun to watch, there is a lot of action, in some ways it’s dangerous, our characters face some circumstances, but beyond all that, the movie has a lot of heart, there is a lot to feel in this movie. We hope that the audience in Latin America appreciates the emotional experience that the movie invites us into, and much of that takes the form of a man fighting hard to get back to the woman he loves. In that sense, even though it has science fiction and action and all those things, there is also a lot of romance in the movie,” expressed Ken Carpenter, producer. Heasley added that the film highlights the importance of family and marriage, a concept that resonates with Latin culture.
“The Shift is one of the most original movies I’ve seen, blending science fiction concepts with spiritual values and emphasizing the ability to have hope after a loss. It was a great privilege to participate in the distribution of this film by Brock Heasley, Ken Carpenter, and Angel Studios,” commented Gustavo Aparicio, CEO of Spanglish Movies.
The film features some actors well-known to Latin American audiences, such as Sean Astin, who is remembered for his role in The Lord of the Rings.
“I also believe that the series The Chosen, which is also from Angel Studios, is very popular in the region, and our cast includes three actors from The Chosen: Elizabeth Tabish, who portrays our female protagonist; Paras Patel, and Jordan Walker Ross,” Heasley added.
Regarding the relationship with Angel Studios, they explained that the studio had been interested in the story for several years when it was a short film. The way Angel Studios finances projects is through crowdfunding.
“When they saw the film, they thought it could be perfect for their audience because it’s something that deals with the forces of good and evil and tries to amplify the positive things. We took that short film and presented it to people, and that’s how we raised over US$3 million in funding, which is Angel Studios’ model. We are very grateful to Angel Studios, who, thanks to the 6,000 investors who bet on the film, helped us produce the film. It has been a long experience because we started in 2018 and completed production in March 2023,” Heasley explained.
Regarding the partnership with Spanglish Movies, they said: “This is the first time we have worked with Gustavo Aparicio from Spanglish Movies, and we know he is someone with whom Angel Studios has previously worked successfully. We have had an incredible experience, the way Gustavo and his team have treated this film and placed it in front of the right people has been amazing.”
