Stage 6 Films, owned by Sony Pictures Studios, have selected directors for the sequel to the 2018 film Searching.

According to Deadline, the contract for the production of the tape was signed with debutants Will Merrick and Nicholas D. Johnson, who previously worked on the original film as cameramen and editors.

The film will be produced, as before, by Timur Bekmambetov, Sevak Ohanyan, Natalie Kasabyan and Adam Sidman.

Anish Chaganti, who directed the 2018 tape, will also be among the producers of the project.

Kasabyan emphasizes that with Search, Will and Nick have pioneered a new visual language and pushed the boundaries of editors' contributions to film production.

“We are lucky and we are looking forward to working with them in their new roles, as scriptwriters and directors of the sequel,” said the producer.

According to Chaganti, he did everything he could for this "subgenre", but if anyone has the potential to develop it even further, it is Merrick and Johnson who have been with Search from the beginning.

“With such limited visuals, Search 2 will need a fresh visual style to be different from the original,” Chaganti said.

Timur Bekmambetov, in turn, recalls that "Search" at the moment remains the most successful film work in the screenlife format, and the sequel should become a new important stage in its development.

"A technique that seemed experimental a few years ago has now gained momentum, and more and more film industry professionals are turning to it," says the producer, whom Deadline calls a "digital cinematography guru" and pioneer of the format.

The plot of the second "Search" has not yet been revealed, but it is already known that new characters will be involved in the story.

It is also expected that viewers will be presented with an improved version of the screenlife format.

Filmmakers expect to start production of the tape in the spring of 2021.

Thus, we can assume that the film may be ready for distribution this year.

"This movie has a heart"

The premiere of the thriller "Search" took place on January 21, 2018.

The film tells the story of a California resident (John Cho) who tries to investigate the disappearance of his daughter (Michelle La) by gaining access to her computer.

The picture was shot in screenlife format - its action unfolds on the screen of electronic devices.

The tape earned about $ 75.5 million at the box office, although its budget was a modest $ 880 thousand by Hollywood standards.

At the Sundance Festival, where it premiered, Search won the Alfred Sloan Prize and Audience Award.

Audiences generally took the film more than positively, with its current Rotten Tomatoes rating of 87%.

Critics gave the picture an even higher rating - the tape scored 92% "freshness".

  • Still from the movie "Search", 2018

  • © kinopoisk.ru

Film industry experts have highlighted the ability of the creators of "Search" to grab the attention of viewers and keep them in suspense until the last minute, despite the fact that the action unfolds on a computer screen.

“He does all this online, hacking into her inboxes and social media accounts, consulting with Google and interviewing her FaceTime classmates.

Incredible?

Yes, but unlike Throne, this film has a heart that also beats, "writes Sandra Hall of The Sydney Morning Herald.

Comparing the 1982 film Tron and The Search, she prefers the latter.

Bruce DeMara from Toronto Star has a similar opinion.

“Suffice it to say that watching is accompanied by a constant feeling of fear and anxiety, which does not allow the viewer to leave the screen,” he emphasizes.

“And even when it seems like you’ve come to an end, there’s another plot twist to come.”

"Search" is not the first project of Timur Bekmambetov in the screenlife format.

In 2014, the film Unfriended was released, and four years later - its sequel Unfriended: Dark Web.

In 2018, the premiere of the film "Profile" took place.

On January 31, 2021, the premiere of another screenlife-film is planned, the producer of which is Timur Bekmambetov.

The film "R # D" tells the story of the heroes of the tragedy of William Shakespeare "Romeo and Juliet" in modern realities.

This picture was the first major project of Interface Films, which Bekmambetov founded together with Igor Tsai.