New US Trailer for African Spiritual Thriller ‘Omen’ Directed by Baloji
by Alex Billington
November 9, 2023
Source: YouTube
“Here they tell you to do something, and you do it.” Utopia has unveiled the first trailer for an atmospheric thriller from Africa titled Omen, the feature directorial debut of the artist / filmmaker known as “Baloji”. This premiered at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival earlier this year as one of the most unique discoveries from the fest. It’s also now Belgium’s submission to the 2024 Academy Awards. “Zabolo. It means the mark of the Devil.” After years in Belgium, a young Congolese man comes back to his hometown of Kinshasa to face the complexities of his family and his culture. Omen is an ensemble film about people accused of being witches & sorcerers. Despite their misfortune they find the way to guide each other away from their destinies and into the phantasmagoria of Africa. Starring Marc Zinga, Lucie Debay, Eliane Umuhire, Yves-Marina Gnahoua, and Marcel Otete Kabeya. This trailer plays like a full-on horror movie, which really might be the right away to get audiences interested. It’s a fully captivating film, unsettling in many unexpected ways.
Here’s the official US trailer (+ two posters) for Baloji’s film Omen, direct from Utopia’s YouTube:
After spending years in Belgium, Koffi (Marc Zinga), a young Congolese man, returns to his birthplace of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo to confront his family and homeland culture. Secrecy and sorcery erupt when a nosebleed is mistaken for a curse, and Koffi is shunned from his family. Using magical realism to paint a portrait of “undesirables” and “sorcerers,” Omen delves into the intricacies of identity, culture, and belief systems through a deeply rich and visually captivating lens. Omen, originally known as Augure, is directed by acclaimed Congolese musician / filmmaker / polymath Baloji (aka Baloji Tshiani), making his feature directorial debut after a few other short films previously. The screenplay is also writen by Baloji, in collaboration with Thomas van Zuylen. It’s produced by Benoit Roland. This initially premiered at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival this year in the Un Certain Regard section. Utopia will debut Baloji’s Omen film in select US theaters sometime in early 2024 – stay tuned for updates. Who’s intrigued?
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