Jacob Chase / Getty Images
Amblin Partners has bought the rights to Jake Chase’s horror short LARRY with plans for him to write and direct the full-length feature and The Picture Co’s Andrew Rona and Alex Heineman producing.
The title character is a monster that manifests itself through smart phones and other screened devices — in the case of the short, in an iPad — with the feature telling the origin of the creature.
Previous horror shorts Lights Out and Mama became huge hits for filmmakers David F. Sandberg and Andres Muschietti when they were turned into features. Sandberg went on to direct the upcoming Shazam! while Muschietti directed last year’s blockbuster hit It, both for New Line.
Paradigm and The Picture Company brought the project to prospective buyers using the short film and a feature treatment by Chase, and Amblin’s Andrew Calof closed its deal over the weekend with Calof overseeing the project for the studio.
Represented by Paradigm, Affirmative Entertainment and Eric Feig, Chase has directed a number of award-winning shorts and commercials as well as writing for the Jim Henson Company. He also wrote the television project Harmony which received a put pilot commitment from ABC.
You can watch Chase’s original short below, and this news was first reported on by Deadline.
Edward Douglas | East Coast Editor
