Yvette Kendall Secures $6 Million Deal with The Sessions Studios for Horror Thriller, "NORTH"
The Californer/10319731

LOS ANGELES & PARIS - Californer -- Atlanta, GA — Screenwriter and author Yvette Kendall has secured $6 million in production funding from The Sessions Studios for her debut feature film NORTH, a Southern Gothic horror thriller set deep in the backwoods of the South, traveling from Atlanta to Chicago. Kendall initially wrote NORTH as a screenplay, which she later adapted into a book.

NORTH is one of the first films announced under The Sessions Studios' $300 million expansion plan, led by CEO Donovan Watson, Vice President Drakeo Horton, and Executive Producer Joel Fernandez.

About the Film: NORTH

NORTH follows Winston Gale, a journalist based in Georgia who sets out to recreate the path of The Great Migration for a new investigative story, traveling with his fiancée from Atlanta to Chicago. But instead of sticking to interstates and familiar highways, the couple takes questionable back roads, veering into dense, rural pockets of the South where the past still breathes, and not all of it is human.

More on The Californer

• Bookmakers Review: Shohei Ohtani Leads 2025 TIME Athlete of the Year Betting Market
• California: Governor Newsom announces appointments 8.12.25
• Case Management Hub Launches Innovative Platform to Revolutionize Social Services Case Management
• OddsTrader Releases 2025-26 NFL Passing Leader Odds — Can Anyone Top Joe Burrow?
• Snell & Wilmer's Los Angeles Office Recognized as One of the "Best Places To Work" by the LABJ

Winston's real goal? To uncover what happened to the hundreds of thousands of Black men, women, and children who mysteriously disappeared during the original Great Migration. What they find is something far more terrifying than he ever imagined.

Combining historical tension with supernatural horror, NORTH is a grounded, high-stakes thriller that explores the things still hiding in America's underbrush.

The film is currently in early development; the production team is in the process of attaching talent ahead of casting and pre-production.

About Yvette Kendall

Kendall began her writing career in 2018 with the release of her debut sci-fi novel The GOD Maps. Since then, she has written multiple books across many genres, including horror, sci-fi, and speculative thrillers, as well as several children's books in French, eventually transitioning into screenwriting.

She previously held a TV series option deal for The GOD Maps with executive producer, David Knoller (Knollwood Productions, Lovecraft Country, Big Love, and Carnivàle). However, that series is now being redeveloped under The Sessions Studios banner.

"This experience is mind-boggling," said Kendall. "This entire journey has been surreal," said Kendall. "Finding the right team wasn't easy. Doors closed, deals stalled, but I kept pushing. This wasn't about dreaming big; it was about expecting more. Landing film and TV deals for my IP took determination, and now that it's happening, I couldn't be more thankful."

More on The Californer

• MI Partner Health Taps MedWand® to Lead Next-Generation Employee Wellness Model, Cutting Costs and Elevating Care
• Shiba Delivery Launches LA's First Express Moving & Delivery Marketplace
• Social Worker Turned AI Tech Pioneer for Ethical Model Deployment
• Unlikely Collaborators Awards Grant to The Quell Foundation to Launch First Responder Resilience Training Program at Los Angeles Fire Department
• Attn:CEOs, CMOs, Advertising & Sales: Is your ADVERTISING Producing the RESULTS you were hoping for?

Now I'm preparing to bring one of my most creative stories to the screen. NORTH is the kind of horror that sticks with you. It's layered. It's uncomfortable. And it's time."

When asked who her dream directors for NORTH would be, Kendall stated, "Well, of course, Jordan Peele. However, I am completely enamored by Hiro Murai and Ryan Coogler. But whoever we secure to direct this, I'm sure he or she will create something cinematically stunning."

Production for NORTH is scheduled to begin in 2026, with casting announcements and additional creative team members to be revealed in the coming months. With its eerie backdrop, culturally layered themes, and genre-bending approach, NORTH promises to deliver a bold new vision in Southern Gothic horror.

For media inquiries, interviews, or more information, please contact:

Stravard Lux Publishing & Distribution Co.
Email: info@stravardlux.com
Website: www.stravardlux.com
Atlanta, Georgia