The Coven Takes Worldwide Rights to Australian Slasher The Only One
The Coven has picked up worldwide rights to The Only One, an Australian slasher set for its world premiere this month, in a deal reported exclusively by Deadline.
The agreement covers distribution in all territories. That puts one company in charge of finding the film homes around the world.
The film is the slasher directorial debut for Michael Schwarz, who directed from a script by Marek Polgar and Martyn Pedler, according to the same Deadline report. A slasher is a horror story built around a killer stalking a group of characters. John Schwarz produced, with Three777 Films credited as executive producers, a role that usually involves financing or key support rather than day-to-day production.
Mel Jarnson leads the cast as Zoe, the central protagonist. Saphira Moran co-stars as Piper. Both castings were confirmed in the Deadline report.
The buyer, The Coven, is co-founded and led by Priscilla Ross Smith and Kendall Anlian. The company works in horror sales and financing, acting as the link between film-makers and distributors. Its purchase of worldwide rights, meaning control of cinema, streaming and other releases in every market, gives it responsibility for organising the film's rollout.
The Only One will have its world premiere, its first public screening anywhere, at the Brooklyn Horror Film Festival, according to the festival organisers. The 11th annual edition runs from 15 to 22 October in Brooklyn, New York. The festival describes the film as an early aughts throwback slasher, styled after horror from the early 2000s, in a festival post.
Sales closed before a premiere are standard practice in independent film. A worldwide deal struck before the first screening lets the sales team organise buyer screenings, meetings and press during the event. For a debut director, that launch can shape which distributors come on board.
For fans, this means The Only One arrives with its sales path already in place. Expect festival buzz first. Wider release plans usually follow once buyers in individual countries close their own deals.
