“Cher” Wins Top Prize at Frontières, Joins Tokyo Market

By Grace Kim

The schedule puts filming for the Thai horror feature “Cher” in the first three months of 2027, with a global release planned for 2028. The project is the first Thai project selected for and awarded a top prize at Canada’s Frontières Co-Production Market. It is the only Thai entry in the 2026 Tokyo Gap-Financing Market lineup.

“Cher” draws on folklore about the Nang Mai, the forest nymphs of Thai myth. Benetone Films and Fearfolks produce the feature. Songsak Mongkolthong (“Graveyard Horror,” “School Tales the Series”) directs from a screenplay by Patrick Graham, writer of Netflix’s “Ghoul” and “Betaal.”

Mongkolthong said the story raises the possibility that the Nang Mai, long part of Thai belief, may have different origins from those taught in Thailand. “The idea of starting a new life begins with confronting our own prejudices, anger, and hatred. When we learn to move beyond anger and hatred, a new life can begin,” he said.

Benetone Films CEO Rachvin Narula and COO Kulthep Narula said the company backed the project from the outset and treated it as the studio’s first tentpole (a flagship film). They said the studio approached it differently from other Thai studios. “We are absolutely thrilled it is getting the global recognition it deserves so early on,” they said.

Rattanawadee “Mim” Wongthong (“Death Whisperer”) heads the cast, with Pae Arak and Weir Sukollawat (“4 Tigers”). Vikash Nowlakha, who shot the “Dhurandhar” duology (two-film series), is the cinematographer. Benetone Films and Fearfolks said those two Indian films earned a combined $330 million at the global box office.

The $330 million figure measures the commercial reach of Nowlakha’s earlier work, not the prospects of “Cher.” The announcement provides no budget or forecast for the feature.

The film was selected for the It Project market at the Network of Asian Fantastic Films (NAFF), part of South Korea’s Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (BIFAN). It won at Frontières in July.

Fearfolks CEO Hans Audric Estialbo said: “We are extremely grateful to BIFAN, Frontières and TIFFCOM for giving Thai films a voice on this global stage, and for allowing us to bear these great honors. Prestigious markets like TIFFCOM allow the film to build momentum and a community of followers early, which is what most successful IPs need now.”

Estialbo’s reference to IP (intellectual property) places emphasis on a story’s life beyond its first release. Markets such as TIFFCOM therefore serve an audience-building function for “Cher”, even before cameras arrive.

What does Tokyo change for “Cher”?

The Tokyo Gap-Financing Market runs as part of TIFFCOM, the film-industry content market attached to the Tokyo International Film Festival. Gap-financing (pre-production funding for a film project) offers a route to money before shooting.

For “Cher”, the practical change is a chance to seek that money before its 2027 shoot. The announcement identifies no budget, financing terms or distributor for the feature.

Tokyo is the latest stop on the film’s market run, with recognition coming before production rather than after it. The next checkpoints are financing, filming in the first three months of 2027, and delivery of the announced 2028 global release.