At SXSW, Gloria Mercer’s thriller “A Safe Distance” debuts with a tense clip of backpackers hiding a body, teasing a dark survival tale.
As the lights come up on the 40th edition of the SXSW, one of the festival’s opening-night premieres is already stirring curiosity — and unease.
A Safe Distance marks the feature directorial debut of Gloria Mercer, and a newly released clip offers a glimpse into the film’s tense and unsettling world.
The thriller premieres Thursday night at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema – South Lamar, kicking off its festival run with a scene that quickly sets the tone.
The exclusive moment begins with chaos: a gunshot echoes through the woods. Moments later, two backpackers — Matt and Kianna — scramble to hide a body among the trees. Nearby stands Alex, shaken and covered in blood.
It’s a brief but striking sequence that hints at a story driven by danger, secrets and survival.
The film follows Alex, played by Bethany Brown, who sets out on what should be a romantic getaway. But things spiral when she turns down a marriage proposal from her boyfriend Joey, played by Chris McNally.
Instead of working through the rejection, Joey abandons her deep in the wilderness.
Stranded and vulnerable, Alex crosses paths with an off-the-grid couple — Matt and Kianna, portrayed by Cody Kearsley and Tandia Mercedes. At first, they seem like unexpected saviors.
But the deeper Alex gets into their world, the clearer it becomes that the pair carry a dangerous past.
What begins as a chance meeting slowly shifts into a fight for survival, forcing Alex to rely on her instincts to stay alive.
The screenplay comes from Aidan West, who also produces alongside Nic Altobelli and Mercer. Distribution rights for the film have been picked up by Vortex Media.
For SXSW audiences, the early footage suggests A Safe Distance is less about getting away — and more about how quickly isolation can turn into a trap.
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