A mysterious chunk of magnetic stone buried in the badlands, a couple of geologists, and an ancient consciousness looking for a way out.

Yeah, Split Rock has my attention.

The new supernatural horror feature comes from writer/director Ryan Glover and stars Clark Backo (The Changeling, Venom: The Last Dance), Drew Ray Tanner (Riverdale), Olivia Luccardi (It Follows), and Graham Verchere (Stargirl).

The setup follows geologists Lauren (Backo) and Ben (Tanner) during survey work in the remote badlands, where they stumble across a strange block of magnetic stone embedded in the earth. Naturally, as soon as the team starts poking around, the equipment dies, a violent unseen force makes itself known, and Lauren becomes obsessed with the idea that an eternal consciousness is trying to use her mind to reach the surface.

At which point, any sane person would pack up the geological survey kit and get the fuck out of there.

Shot on an ARRIFLEX 416 using Super 16mm Kodak stock and framed in an ultra-wide 2.66:1 Cinemascope ratio, Glover is leaning heavily into analog texture here, with the film being projected on 35mm for its initial festival run.

Split Rock makes its World Premiere at the Sitges Film Festival on October 9 at Cinema Prado, before heading to the Brooklyn Horror Film Festival for its North American Premiere on October 21 at Nitehawk Cinema Williamsburg.

Glover previously directed The Strings, which landed on Shudder back in 2021. If you’re heading to Sitges next week, keep an eye out for this one.