Oscilloscope Laboratories has secured North American rights to OBEX, the newest film from director Albert Birney (Strawberry Mansion). Written by Birney and Pete Ohs (Jethica), OBEX debuted in the NEXT section at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, where it received praise from outlets such as Variety—calling it “entrancing and singular”—and IndieWire, which described it as “one of Sundance’s most inventive movies.” You can read our review of the film HERE.

Filmed in black-and-white, OBEX follows Conor Marsh (Birney), a solitary individual living with his dog Sandy. When Conor becomes absorbed in a cutting-edge computer game called OBEX, reality blurs after Sandy disappears. Determined to find her, he ventures into the game’s unusual realm.

The film’s cast includes Callie Hernandez (Under the Silver Lake), Frank Mosley (Freeland), and features an original score by Josh Dibb of Animal Collective. The producing team behind OBEX—Birney, Ohs, Emma Hannaway, and James Belfer—continues its collaboration with production company Cartuna, which also backed Sylvio and Strawberry Mansion. Ley Line, recognized for projects such as Everything Everywhere All At Once, rejoined Birney after partnering on Strawberry Mansion.

Birney, whose credits include The Beast Pageant and Sylvio, expressed enthusiasm about working with Oscilloscope Laboratories, noting the company’s history of supporting distinct independent films. Oscilloscope’s theatrical distribution head, Andrew Carlin, described OBEX as “dreamy, nostalgic, frightening, and completely defies classification.”

Oscilloscope Laboratories has a track record of highlighting independent voices, having previously released titles such as Lynne Ramsay’s We Need to Talk About Kevin and Kelly Reichardt’s Wendy and Lucy. The deal for OBEX was negotiated by Oscilloscope’s Aaron Katz with Magnify’s Lorna Lee Torres on behalf of the filmmakers.