Watch Mads Mikkelsen In Intense Trailer For ARCTIC Survival Movie

The sole survivor of a plane crash in an icy wasteland lives by his wits as he waits for help to arrive. But when a long-awaitedrescue effort fails, he faces a life-or-death decision: remain in the relative safety of his camp and hope to be found,or embark on an arduous trek that may be the only hope for both him and a critically injured stranger.

An official selection of the 2018 Cannes Film Festival, ARCTIC marks the feature debut of writer and director Joe Penna, creator of the innovative and popular YouTube channel MysteryGuitarMan. Mads Mikkelsen (The Hunt, Casino Royale) delivers an engrossing tour de force performance as Overgård, a resourceful yet increasingly desperate man stranded in a remote, snow-covered wilderness.

Filmed in Iceland under grueling conditions, ARCTIC is a captivating,white knuckle cinematic experience that explores our insurmountable will to survive and overcome. The film is directed by Joe Penna (Turning Point, upcoming Stowaway) from a script he co-wrote with Ryan Morrison (Turning Point, upcoming Stowaway).

The film stars Mads Mikkelsenand Maria Thelma Smáradóttir (“Fangar”). Producers are Christopher Lemole (Mudbound, upcoming El Tonto) and Tim Zajaros (Mudbound, upcoming El Tonto) of Armory Films and Noah C. Haeussner (Janis: Little Girl Blue, Hateship Loveship). Executive producers are Martha De Laurentiis (Hannibal, U-571), Einar Thorsteinsson (Pathfinder, Blue Mountain State: The Rise of Thadland), Manu Gargi (99 Homes, Silence),Joe Pennaand Ryan Morrison. Co-producer is Aaron Scotti (Peanut Butter Falcon, El Tonto), Editor is Ryan Morrison. Composer is Joseph Trapanese (Oblivion, Straight Outta Compton). Cinematographer is Tómas Örn Tómasson (“LazyTown,” Pacific Rim: Uprising). Production designer is Atli Geir Grétarsson (Mihkel, “Trapped”). Costume designer is Margrét Einarsdóttir(22 July, Swoon).

Check out the first trailer now.

In addition to extreme weather conditions and the threat of starvation, the harrowing trailer shows Overgård facing constant danger from a hungry polar bear that looms distantly over the action.

Initially, the director planned to hint at the bear’s presence with a sharply clawed paw here and rattling rocks there to indicate its presence. “We had no budget for a bear,” he says. “We weren’t even sure there was a trained polar bear out there that could do what we needed.”

But it became clear that showing a live bear would be a far more powerful choice. Penna located 22-year-old Aggie in Vancouver and brought the production to her. “Luckily, the trainer was a fan of Mads and he agreed to give us a deal,” says the director. “I had worked with dogs,cats, and horses before but this was very different. Aggie was massive. There is just no way to explain how big this animal is until it is in front of you.”

Once her trainer explained what the bear could and couldn’t do, they began filming footage to be inserted in the scenes Mikkelsen had already shot. “At least for the first 10 minutes, it was the scariest thing I have ever done,” Penna confides. “We had a fence to contain her, but it was really just the one wire that wasn’t even electrified. But you get used to it and you realize, ‘okay, the trainer is in control of the situation. Let’s see what we can do.’”