Logline
Deadland is an elevated thriller where a US border patrol agent tries to apprehend the ghost of his father, a grave decision that will haunt him forever.
Synopsis
The Rio Grande river cuts through 1200 miles of harsh and unforgiving desert, dividing Texas from Mexico.
U.S. Border agent Angel Waters comes across what would normally be a routine illegal crossing, but it quickly devolves into his worst nightmare as he pulls a dying immigrant from the river. Barely clinging to life, the immigrant utters, “El Paso, por favor”. This dying request is one Angel cannot grant, but soon will wish he had.
In a tragic twist of fate the immigrant is killed while being held at a remote border outpost. Under the cover of darkness, Angel and his two fellow border agents bury the body deep in the desert in an unmarked grave. They swear an oath of silence, but it’s a silence the deceased migrant refuses to accept.
Days later Angel is called back to the river where he finds the SAME migrant at the river’s edge. The man calmly utters the same bone chillingly request, “El Paso, por favor”.
In a world divided, Angel will soon learn that divisions only run so deep.
Director’s Statement
The initial idea for this story began when I read an article about a 1st generation Hispanic U.S. Border Agent. I was floored by the duality this man carries with him on the job having been brought into this world by undocumented immigrants. One quote sticks with me, “I carry my badge in one hand and my heart in the other”. That is a character worth writing about.
After a healthy amount of research Jas Shelton (co-writer) and I decided to create a story focusing on connection as the central theme.
We explored everything from physical and metaphysical borders, always asking the question “Is everything connected”? In exploring the physical aspect of the story we took a hard look at the border between the United States and Mexico, the relationships between families that exist on both sides and the impact the border has had on them. Their stories were heartbreaking and there was no turning back at that point. We had to tell this story.
The research helped us lean into the idea of building a story about connection between a 1st generation U.S. Border Agent, Angel Waters, and his estranged undocumented father, Ignacio Coronado. It’s important to understand that Angel is about to become a father and his wife Hannah desperately wants him reconcile with Ignacio before their first child arrives. The baby in many ways is the catalyst for the events that follow. In an effort to reinforce the theme we dropped a handful of easter eggs into the story.
These metaphors symbolize the relationships of the characters (both Mexican and American) through an ancient coin, a song, day, night, life, death and a mantra about the inseparable connection between the roots and the branches that reverberate through the lineage of Angel’s family tree.
Although this film does not have a religious angle, we liked what The Holy Trinity could offer to the story. The metaphor helped us map out the connection of the characters. Ignacio is represented as The Father, Angel represents The Son, and the Stranger represents The Holy Ghost. All three characters are separate in their own right, but equally joined as one at the same time.
There are two specific moments in the film where Ignacio blatantly draws a connection to the Stranger. There’s the first time Angel meets his father, Ignacio says, “I come from the river.” Angel has literally just come from trying to save the Stranger from crossing the treacherous Rio Grande. The second time Ignacio draws a distinct connection to the Stranger is during his confrontation Angel. In the heat of the argument, Ignacio says to Angel, “I saw you praying in the desert. I was there”. Spooked, Angel backs away from Ignacio wondering how his father could know such a deep dark secret without actually being in the desert with him.
Before writing this film, I learned that a good number of hospice care patients experience a phenomenon known as ‘visioning’. This usually occurs in the final days before the patient passes on. They are seemingly in two places at once. When the patients are lucid they can describe seeing relatives in great detail that live far away. They can describe events/moments that happened in recent days as if they were there. These are events (big or small) that the patient should NOT be aware of, but somehow are. I find that fascinating! In the film Deadland, the co-writer, Jas Shelton, and I took some creative liberties with this phenomenon. The Stranger’s character is the embodiment or physical form of Ignacio’s consciousness when he is visioning/traveling to see his son while out in the field on border patrol duty. So Ignacio is experiencing ‘visioning’ through the eyes of the Stranger. That’s how Ignacio has learned Angel’s deepest, darkest secret, praying for the deceased Stranger in the desert. Both of these scenes are fantastic/jarring moments in the film.
Everything in this film points to the theme of connection. Love and time cannot be contained. They stretch beyond both physical and metaphysical borders.
— Lance Larson
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Cast & Production
Press
20 Jun 2024 Gazettely: A Haunting Journey Across Borders
24 Jun 2024 Distract TV: A Gripping Thriller That Delves into the Mysteries of the Borderlands
20 Jun 2024 Roobla: Almost a Tex-Mex spook-tacular
20 Jun 2024 Walkden Entertainment: Interview with Lance Larson / Deadland (2023)
23 Jun 2024 Screened.Score: Deadland Movie Review
20 Jun 2024 Outloud! Culture: A Haunting Thriller That Defies Death
20 Jun 2024 GBV Reviews: Deadland (2023)
18 Jun 2024 The Guardian: Melancholy horror smuggles deep themes across the US-Mexico border
29 Jun 2024 The Flikfreak: INSTANT MOVIE REVIEW: Deadland (2024)
21 Jun 2024 Wasteland Film Review: Deadland
25 Jun 2024 “Death is just a horizon” – Deadland director Lance Larson talks his new thriller
19 Mar 2024 Digital Trends: 3 dramas on Amazon Prime Video you need to watch
20 Mar 2024 Get Reel Movies: SxSW Reaction – DEADLAND
17 Jun 2024 Metal Life Magazine: Supernatural Thriller Movie DEADLAND Available June 24 2024 In UK and Ireland
21 Jun 2024 Haute Lifestyle: Riveting, Strong Character Driven Performances
18 Jun 2024 Movie Reviews 101
26 Jan 2024 New York Times: Five Action Movies to Stream Now
18 Oct 2023 Deadline: Vertical Takes U.S. Rights To SXSW Thriller ‘Deadland’
3 Nov 2023 Warped Perspective: SPIRIT OF INDEPENDENCE 2023: DEADLAND
2 Nov 2023 Collider: The 7 Best New Horror Movies To Watch in November 2023
17 Oct 2023 Busan 2023 Review: DEADLAND, Where Nothing Actually Stays Dead Forever
29 Sep 2023 Movie Maker: Deadland Stands at the Border Between Life and Death
13 May 2023 Signal Horizon: SXSW 2023 Interview Deadland’s Stars and Director
20 Mar 2023 Austin Chronicle SXSW Film Review: Deadland
31 Mar 2023 Film Authority: Deadland****
14 Mar 2023 Horror Buzz: DEADLAND – A Haunting Morality Tale
20 Mar 2023 GetReelMovies: SxSW Reaction – DEADLAND
7 Apr 2023 Movies Shot on Film 2023 Preview: From ‘Oppenheimer’ to ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ and ‘Maestro’
18 Mar 2023 The MacGuffin Film and TV Reviews: Deadland
17 Mar 2023 FilmInk: To Deadland and beyond with Kendal Rae
16 Mar 2023 Austin Director Lance Larson Talks his ‘Deadland’ Premiere at SXSW
15 Mar 2023 SXSW Film & TV Festival 2023: Premieres, Parties, Film & TV Awards Ceremony Gallery
24 Mar 2023 Roberto Urbina in the American film Deadland
20 Mar 2023 SXSW 2023: Ten Must-See Film and TV Premieres
14 Mar 2023 Deadline Studio at SXSW 2023
14 Mar 2023 Texas Observer: HAUNTING THE BORDER
13 Mar 2023 SxSW 2023 Interview – DEADLAND director Lance Larso
13 Mar 2023 The Movie Waffler: SXSW 2023 Review: DEADLAND
13 Mar 2023 Signal Horizon: SXSW 2023 Deadland Review- Magical Ghost Story That Is As Relevant As It Is Relatable
13 Mar 2023 SXSW 2023 review: DEADLAND’ is a haunting portrait of power, politics, and unresolved trauma.
13 Mar 2023 Unseen Films: Deadland (2023) SXSW 2023
13 Mar 2023 SxSW 2023 Interview – DEADLAND director Lance Larso
12 Mar 2023 Deadland: Review
5 Mar 2023 The SXSW 2023 Curtain Raiser
4 Mar 2023 SXSW 2023: Horror and Sci-fi and Docs, Oh My! A curtain raiser for the masses.
28 Feb 2023 Deadland Movie Releases Tense Trailer Before SXSW Premiere
28 Feb 2023 Screen Rant presents an exclusive first look at the trailer for #Deadland
11 Jan 2023 2023 SXSW Film & TV Festival Lineup Announced With Dungeons & Dragons on Opening Night
11 Jan 2023 ‘Dungeons and Dragons,’ ‘Evil Dead Rise’ Headline First Wave of 2023 SXSW Film Lineup
11 Jan 2023 SXSW: ‘Dungeons & Dragons’ to Open 2023 Fest
7 Dec 2022 South by Southwest Reveals Second Slate of Showcase Artists for 2023 Festival
5 Aug 2022 Filmed in Frederick, Oklahoma, the “Deadland” trailer has just been dropped
25 Nov 2021 Manuel Uriza On Starring in Netflix’s Narcos
2 Nov 2021 Roberto Urbina, McCaul Lombardi & More To Star In ‘Deadland’ Thriller
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