Ella Balinska & Rob Delaney in Survival Thriller ‘The Occupant’ Trailer
by Alex Billington
July 10, 2025
Source: YouTube
“I never wanted any of this! I just want to go hf fome!” “You are home…” Will she find her way out? Decal Releasing has revealed the full official trailer for The Occupant, an indie original survival thriller from filmmaker Hugo Keijzer. This just premiered at the 2025 SXSW London Film Festival and will be getting a US release in early August coming up. A gripping and uniquely mysterious sci-fi survival, set in the remote Georgian taiga, The Occupant stars Ella Balinska, Stuart Graham, Rob Delaney. When Abby, a guilt-ridden engineering geologist in transit from her remote assignment survives a strange helicopter crash, she must try to escape the harsh environment and make her way back home to safety. But she’s not alone. She is talking to someone on her walkie-talkine hoping to find a way out – but is this voice even real? “A twisty and inventive survival thriller” that will keep you on edge up until the last minute. This is a damn good trailer – eerie and chilling and fascinating. What is this rock? Is it messing with her mind? Only one away to find out.
Here’s the official trailer (+ poster) for Hugo Keijzer’s thriller film The Occupant, direct from YouTube:
You can rewatch the teaser trailer for Hugo Keijzer’s The Occupant right here to catch the first look again.
British actress Ella Balinska is Abby, a desperate geologist who takes a high-paying, high-risk mining job in the remote wilds of Northern Georgia to fund her sister’s experimental cancer treatment. But when her chopper goes down and her radio becomes her only lifeline, Abby finds herself in a survival scenario that’s equal parts icy terrain & psychological warfare. Enter John (Rob Delaney), a mysterious voice on the other end. He’s charming, he’s helpful… and he might not be real. As Abby’s oxygen thins and her doubts rise, the real question isn’t how she’ll get out, but who she’s talking to… and what he wants. Is she really talking to someone who can help, someone who claims to “know exactly how she feels right now”? Scared, alone, and no idea how to get to safety. The Occupant is directed by the indie filmmaker Hugo Keijzer, making his feature directorial debut after many other short films previously. The screenplay is written by Philip Michael Howe, Hugo Keijzer, Roelof Jan Minneboo, Xiao Tang. Produced by Kwesi Dickson, Isabel Freer, Jay Taylor, Raymond van der Kaaij. This premiered at the 2025 SXSW London Film Festival recently. Decal will debut The Occupant in select US theaters + on VOD starting August 8th, 2025. Who’s curious?