Liaison Pictures, Because the Night Productions co-produce 'Behemoth Ann

Atlanta‑based Liaison Pictures has teamed up with France’s Because the Night Productions on the documentary‑feature “Behemoth Ann Holds a Seance”, which is currently part of the Locarno Film Festival’s Match Me! networking platform. The partnership was announced on Friday in a Variety report, marking the first co‑production between the two companies.

Liaison Pictures is headed by producer John Henry Hinkel, who made a name with the surreal comedy “How to Shoot a Ghost”. The studio has built a reputation for quirky, genre‑blending projects that appeal to niche festival audiences. Joining forces with a French company gives the film a broader reach and access to European distribution channels. The move comes as the film market looks for fresh, cross‑border collaborations after the pandemic‑induced slowdown in cinema releases.

“Behemoth Ann Holds a Seance” is directed by Isidore Bethel, Vicki Bethel and Daniel Hymanson. The film follows a small troupe of performers who stage a seance to honour the late Arthur Douglas, a local occultist who once claimed to speak with the dead. The documentary blends archival footage, interviews and staged reenactments to explore how belief and performance intersect. Variety noted that the film’s unique premise could attract buyers looking for unconventional content for streaming platforms and art‑house cinemas.

The film will screen at Locarno’s Match Me! platform, where producers meet distributors and festival programmers. A successful pitch could lead to a theatrical release in Europe and a streaming deal in North America. The collaboration signals a growing trend of U.S. and European production houses working together to create hybrid documentaries that appeal to global audiences. If the partnership delivers a hit, it could set a precedent for future co‑productions in the documentary‑feature arena.