Back to All News
Taiwan's Horror Blockbuster Incantation' Brings Terror to Netflix on July 8Play Video
Play Video
Entertainment
08 June 2022
GlobalTaiwan
Incantation has been described as the most terrifying film ever made in Taiwan. And it will be streaming exclusively on Netflix from July 8.
Helmed by Kevin Ko, this story of a mother trying to save her child from a deadly curse has earned TW$170M (US$5.7M) and counting, making it 2022's highest-grossing movie to date at the Taiwan box office. It's critically acclaimed too, with seven Taipei Film Award nominations (including Best Narrative Feature and Best Director). Preparations for a sequel, also directed by Ko, are already in progress.
So what makes Incantation so scary-good? The trailer showcases horror techniques familiar to fans of movies like The Blair Witch Project and Paranormal Activity, such as found footage and characters who address the audience through the camera. Ko was inspired by Internet culture, such as forum threads, YouTuber confessionals, and email chain letters. The trailer also features a psychological test with a Ferris wheel and a moving train, which embeds the key idea that viewers' intentions can shape real-world outcomes.
Incantation tells the story of a mother trying to save her child from a deadly curse.
Incantation has resonated strongly with Taiwanese audiences, and we are excited to share this movie with our members around the world, says Janelle Ong, Chinese Language Content Acquisition Manager. Asian horror has been very influential in shaping the genre and bringing it to new heights, and we are proud to partner with a new generation of Asian film-makers who are creating the movies that will define what terror means for today's viewers.
Ko explains that his goal was to create an interactive connection with the audience. I know how to scare the audience with an effective horror sequence. But a good horror movie is not just about these tricks, he says. The core has to be about human nature. Ultimately, the audience has to care about the characters.
In this, he is very much influenced by the wave of Asian horror that became globally popular in the 1990s and early 2000s, and included films like Japan's Ring, One Missed Call, Ju-on, and Dark Water, as well as Hong Kong's The Eye. Asian horror is not just about hardcore gore, says Ko. It has a softness to it. It scares you but it also moves you, even heals you.
Director Kevin K believes that for a horror movie to work, audiences have to care about the characters.
Taiwan horror may well be sparking a new wave of Asian horror. In recent years, The Tag-Along, Detention, The Bridge Curse, and The Rope Curse and its sequel have given this genre a new lease of life in Taiwan. Many more such movies featuring original stories are set to be released in 2022, which is being billed as a year of terror (but just on-screen, hopefully).
Horror movies can be made effectively without many special effects and expensive set pieces, which is one reason they have taken off in Taiwan. Asian horror movies, in particular, also often feature local lore that resonates with local audiences. For instance, Incantation is loosely inspired by a true Taiwanese story involving a family of cult worshippers. Ko says he was intrigued by but also fearful of this story.
Respect for religion, especially religious taboos and religions that are very obscure, has some degree of fear in it, he believes. I love scary stories, and even so I didn't really quite dare to touch this topic. I wanted to magnify this feeling in Incantation.
Incantation is loosely inspired by a true Taiwanese story involving a family of cult worshippers.
Such taboos and practices may be even more intriguing to global audiences. Beyond that, the elements that make horror a genre that travels are fear of death and unknown forces, and identifying with characters and relationships like the mother-child bond in Incantation, he says.
Watching horror at home on Netflix, and bringing the scares into a familiar domestic space, brings a whole new level of terror, which horror fans are always chasing. As Ko puts it: It's like riding a rollercoaster - what scares you somehow also attracts you. I'm really proud that Incantation is going to be released on Netflix globally, maximizing the number of people who can watch it. It has always been my dream to make films that travel around the world and are watched by every horror fan on earth, keeping them awake at night. I can't wait to hear viewers' reactions.
Catch Incantation on Netflix from July 8.
Most recent headlines
04/08/2024
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, is excited to announce Santiago Solanas as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)....
03/06/2024
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, a...
28/04/2024
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with U...
27/04/2024
On April 26, L3Harris Chair and CEO Christopher E. Kubasik joined CNBC's Mor...
27/04/2024
PORTLAND, Oregon Audinate Group Limited, the developer of the Dante AV-over-IP solution, announced significant new additions to Dante Connect, its cloud-based D...
27/04/2024
TORONTO Bell Media has launched 10 English and French-language FAST channels featuring entertainment, factual, news, and sports programming. The new free stream...
27/04/2024
An extensive new analysis of the news segments in the broadcast evening news programs of ABC, CBS, NBC and PBS has found that broadcasters devoted most of their...
27/04/2024
GERMANTOWN, Md. EchoStar's Hughes Network Systems has opened a new manufacturing facility and private 5G incubation center in Germantown, Maryland....
27/04/2024
Harry Pappas, one of three brothers who founded Pappas Telecasting Companies in 1971, died April 24. He was 78 years old....
27/04/2024
ATLANTA and LONDON Mexican telecommunications and broadcast company Televisa has selected Synamedia for an overhaul of its broadcast distribution....
27/04/2024
Participate in the Survey - The Impact of AI on Media and the Creative Industry
Pascal Wagner April 26, 2024
0 Comments
By participating in this surve...
27/04/2024
SDVI Rally Access Workstation Earns Two Top Awards at 2024 NAB Show
Brie Clayton April 26, 2024
0 Comments
SDVI, the leading platform provider for clo...
27/04/2024
Berklee's Music and Health Institute Launches Community Health Musician Cert...
27/04/2024
Charter Communications reported higher first-quarter profits despite continued cord-cutting and competition for broadband customers....
27/04/2024
Two environmentally-focused groups are partnering to engage the unscripted TV world in finding better ways to address climate change. Reality of Change is an ec...
27/04/2024
Sarah Garcia has been promoted to weekend anchor at KTLM McAllen, Texas, known as Telemundo 40. Starting April 27, she will anchor Noticias Telemundo 40 weekend...
27/04/2024
CBS Sports said it launched a new 24-hour free, ad supported streaming television (FAST) channel devoted to the UEFA Champions League....
27/04/2024
Comcast chairman and CEO Brian Roberts received $35.4 million in compensation in 2023, up 11% from the previous year, according to a proxy statement filed by th...
27/04/2024
Art Happens Here With John Lithgow, which sees the actor study dance, ceramics, silk-screen printing and vocal jazz with students in Los Angeles, debuts on PBS ...
27/04/2024
Remember Leave It to Beaver? Bewitched? Dragnet? When cable ratings were rising?...
27/04/2024
Next up for the weekend binge at Catchy Comedy is Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. Every weekend, Catchy Comedy features The Catchy Binge, a marathon of a classic sitcom....
26/04/2024
Sundance Film Festival CDMX 2024 kicks-off today with screenings in 5 theaters in Mexico City and the opening-night film, FRIDA, directed by Carla Guti rrez...
26/04/2024
[Editor's Note: This interview is part of a larger feature about the women d...
26/04/2024
Once again this year, SGL Carbon opened its doors to interested children and young people. On the occasion of the German Girls and Boys Day, which took place on...
26/04/2024
Orders1 of $5.5 billion; book-to-bill of 1.06x
Revenue of $5.2 billion, up 17%,...
26/04/2024
Five Considerations For Communications Modernization In The 21st Century
In the digital-enabled battlespace, the Joint Force needs to shoot, move and communica...
26/04/2024
CBS Sports has launched Champions League as a new, 24-hour streaming channel that will serve as the year-round destination for nonstop highlights of the UEFA ...
26/04/2024
Despite tough competition in the streaming space, Roku reported solid results in Q1 2024, beating revenue expectations, with total net revenue up 19% YoY to $88...
26/04/2024
LONDON AND TORONTO Pinewood Toronto Studios has appointed Sarah Farrell as general manager of the Studios in downtown Toronto....
26/04/2024
Quantum to Offer Advanced Filesharing Technology and Performance in StorNext and...
26/04/2024
FilmLight Colour Awards welcomes 2024 entries and introduces new Emerging Talen...
26/04/2024
Picture Shop Announces Chris Evans as Head of Unscripted
Brie Clayton April 26, 2024
0 Comments
Picture Shop announced Chris Evans will lead Unscripte...
26/04/2024
Participate in a Survey - The Impact of AI on Media and the Creative Industry
Pascal Wagner April 26, 2024
0 Comments
By participating in this survey,...
26/04/2024
Toy maker Mattel said it is working with Samsung to launch its first free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channels later this year....
26/04/2024
Trusted Media Brands (TMB) said it named Marty Moe as president....
26/04/2024
Ron Howard is the director on Jim Henson Idea Man, a documentary that premieres on Disney Plus May 31. Henson of course created Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Big...
26/04/2024
The ice continues to melt under the regional sports network business as the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League have made a long-term deal to broadcast...
26/04/2024
Heading into the upfronts, Warner Bros. Discovery said it launched Olli, a first-party data platform advertiser can use for converged, targeted advertising camp...
26/04/2024
CBS has renewed the drama The Equalizer, which will see season five on in 2024-2025. Queen Latifah stars....
26/04/2024
The CW has entered into an exclusive multiyear broadcast partnership for the Miss USA Pageant and the Miss Teen USA Pageant. The 73rd Miss USA Pageant will air ...
26/04/2024
Fuse Media isn't mincing words in a campaign urging its young viewers to register and participate in the 2024 elections....
26/04/2024
Dead Boy Detectives, a series from Neil Gaiman about a detective agency staffed by ghosts, debuts on Netflix April 25. George Rexstrew and Jayden Revri are in t...
26/04/2024
The Story Collective has gradually repurposed the former Mortlake Brewery to include production offices, workshops and sound stages
By Matthew Corrigan
Publi...
26/04/2024
Perkett joins the company following a 25 year career in product management, product marketing, engineering and user experience (UX) across multiple industries
...
26/04/2024
Teradek, the industry leader in wireless video transmitters and receivers, announced today the launch of new Bolt 6 LT 750 and Bolt 6 Monitor Module 750 RX with...
26/04/2024
NEW YORK Amagi has appointed Richard Perkett chief product officer (CPO)....
26/04/2024
WASHINGTON, D.C. The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has announced the results of the 2024 NAB Radio and Television Board of Directors elections. The...
26/04/2024
EL SEGUNDO, Calif. & NEW YORK Mattel has announced a deal to launch its first three 24/7 free ad supported streaming (FAST) channels on Samsung TV Plus, Samsung...
26/04/2024
PORTLAND, Maine Viewers here can now receive the NextGen TV signals of five local stations with the launch of ATSC 3.0 service from host station WPFO, which is ...
Back to All News
