THE KINGDOM

OF VAR

PRESS KIT
 LOGLINE:
A college student finds an old VHS
cassette, which contains a film from
the 1500’s which is purported to be
haunted. After viewing it and
dismissing this as nonsense, the spirit of
a demonic 16th-century sorcerer is
released, who proceeds to
relentlessly attack her.

PLOT SYNOPSIS:
Sonja, a physics student, skeptic, and
atheist, finds an old VHS cassette in
her basement one day. She watches
it, and it contains an old black-and-
white film of what appears to be a
man sacrificing a woman. Upon further
investigation, she discovers this film is
purported to be from the 1500’s,
made by a time-travelling sorcerer
named Var who harvested film
equipment from the future and used the film as a means of imprinting his spirit before he
was killed by Inquisitors. After dismissing this as nonsense, she is quickly ambushed by Var,
who proceeds to relentlessly attack her at every turn, which includes face-peeling,
fingernails, mutilations, and disemboweling. She must also deal with cannibal cultists, a
demented sex-addicted security guard, betrayal, murder, and other various
complications.
 PROJECT OVERVIEW:
My name is Nicholas Kleban and I am the writer, producer, and director of the feature-
length horror motion picture “The Kingdom of Var.” With this film, my intention was to try
and explore the theme of belief, which is reflected in the motivations of each character.
Sonja (Vida Zukauskas), the lead character, goes from a skeptic to a believer through the
supernatural and bizarre events she experiences. Other characters in the film are
deranged cultists who worship Var and think he will give them eternal bliss in the afterlife
– provided, of course, they sacrifice (and eat) people in his name on a regular basis.

Furthermore, as a work of fantasy horror, taking inspiration from the works of H.P.
Lovecraft and Jorge Luis Borges, the film also serves as an illustration of the line between
fantasy and reality and what is really scary. Two of the characters in the film, Kyle
(Stephen Ingram) and Morgan (Matt Sears), who are respectively the boyfriends of the
characters Sonja (Vida Zukauskas) and Danielle (Madi Violet Graves), turn out later in
the film to be horribly abusive towards them. Which crystallizes the point this film is trying
to make: what is scarier? The insane time-travelling sorcerer who can zap around
anywhere and bend reality to his whims, or the abusive boyfriend who threatens to beat
the teeth out of his girlfriend’s head? One is real, the other is not.

DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT:
“The Kingdom of Var” is a work of fantasy sci-fi horror. I am particularly drawn to this
genre, being a horror aficionado, and am fascinated with the concept of belief and how
it relates to man’s desire for immortality. I am also attracted to horror because it is
exemplary for exploring man’s primal and base nature, and is frequently underutilized in
this regard. A filmmaker I have found particularly inspirational is the British director Ken
Russell, particularly his film “The Devils” which has influenced my work both stylistically
and in regard to subject matter, as well as Stanley Kubrick’s film “The Shining.” From a
filmmaking standpoint, this film was written and directed with the intention of using
classical story structure and contains almost no improvisation at all (the only ad-libbed
scene is the one where Danielle and Sonja talk on the balcony), and was almost fully
storyboarded as well. Production took 13 days (10 for principal photography and 3 for
pickups/reshoots). Although this is a Canadian film, it was self-funded and received no
financial support from Telefilm Canada or the arts councils.
 THE CAST:
VIDA ZUKASKAS AS SONJA
Vida Zukauskas is an actress, model, yoga instructor, and stand-up
comedian from Hamilton, Ontario. “The Kingdom of Var” is her
debut as a lead in a motion picture; she also played Christine in the
2016 film “The Wall of Souls” and appeared in the Tony Watt film
“Frankenpimp.” She is also working on a documentary about her
mother’s journey from Lithuania to Canada.

SARAH SWERID AS ASHLEY

Sarah Swerid is an actress. She studied at the American
Academy of Dramatic Arts and played Candace in the 2017
film “Exorcism of the Dead.” She also appeared in Paul Tanter’s
film “Once Upon a Time at Christmas” and the webseries’ “Circa:
1981,” “Scars,” and “The Shelter.”

STEPHEN INGRAM AS KYLE

Stephen Ingram is an actor, singer, and pianist. “The Kingdom of Var” is
his debut appearance in a motion picture, although he has made many
appearances on stage and in community theatre, and appeared in the
short documentary “Mr. Manuel,” about the singer Richard Manuel (from
The Band).

MARK BROMBACHER AS ELMER GREUBA

Mark Brombacher is a versatile actor and screenwriter who
produced and appeared in the short film “Family Game Night,” for
which he won the Crystal Shocker award at Shock Stock for Best
Actor. He also appeared in Nicholas Kleban’s short film “The Dweeb.”
He has also appeared in many commercials and short films.

ALISON NIVEN AS NIXUS

Alison Niven is an actress. She made her screen debut at age six on the
TV show “Goosebumps,” She has appeared in many short films and
made appearances in the TV shows “What We Do in the Shadows”
and “American Gods.”
 THE CAST:
MADI VIOLET GRAVES AS DANIELLE
Madi Violet Graves is an actress and the daughter of NHL hockey
player Adam Graves. She studied acting at the William Esper Studio
in New York. She has made appearances in many short and feature-
length films.

MATTHEW SEARS AS MORGAN

Matthew Sears is an actor who has appeared in many short films and
features, including the Lifetime Channel thriller "Kidnapped: The Kimiyah
Mobley Story," and the TV shows “Reign” and “Rogue.”

LARS CLASSINGTON AS GHORGHOULIA THE

MAGNIFICENT
Lars Classington is an actor and comedian, who appeared in the
film “Stockholm” with Ethan Hawke, and who has appeared in
many commercials and TV series. He is also the host of the podcast
Drunk & Disorderlies.

BRITTANY CLOUGH AS ELVIRA

Brittany Clough is an actress and singer, who studied at the
Randolph Academy for the Performing Arts and who has made many
appearances on the stage and screen.

CYNTHIA STONE AS THE SKELETON

WOMAN
Cynthia Stone is an actress and model who has made many TV and
film appearances, including in “The ABC’s of Death 2,” and is
known for her humanitarian and charity work, which includes
helping survivors of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in 2003.

SHAWN VAN EVERY AS VAR

Shawn Van Every is an actor. “The Kingdom of Var” is his feature-film
debut appearance.
 NICHOLAS KLEBAN – THE WRITER/DIRECTOR/PRODUCER
Nicholas Kleban is the director of “The Kingdom of Var.” This is his feature-film debut. He
has directed many short films including “Polydoris and Cordelia,” “Trapezohedron,”
“Dana,” and “The Dweeb.” When “Dana” was screened at the Toronto International
Spring of Horror Film Festival, someone in the audience almost vomited. He studied
philosophy for a year at McMaster University. After dropping out, he worked at a gas
station before attending Confederation College in Thunder Bay, Ontario, where he
graduated with a diploma in film production in 2010.

THE CREW

LUKE MENEOK Associate Producer

KEVIN REITZEL Art Director
MILES ROBERTS Sound
REID GOOBIE Sound
NATHANIEL BARKER Sound
CHRIS COOPER Prosthetics
MICHELLE EVANS Make-Up
ERIN SWEENEY Make-Up
TABI FERGUSON Make-Up/Special Effects
MEGAN FINDLAY Assistant Camera
ZACHARY TURNER Assistant Camera/Production Assistant
COLIN BAXTER Gaffer/Key Grip
BRAD DESJARDINS Production Assistant
COLLEEN RICHARDSON Production Assistant
NICHOLAS KLEBAN Cinematographer (as John Gillam)
NICHOLAS KLEBAN Editor

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Duration 81 mins (1 hr 21 mins)

Country of Origin Canada
Production Budget $43,000 CAD (estimated)
Aspect Ratio 1 . 78 : 1
Sound Stereo
Colour Colour/Black-and-White/B&W Tinted
Image Quality 2K
Presentation Format(s) DCP, Pro-Res, Blu-Ray, DVD
STILLS:
PRODUCTION STILLS:
 For Inquires, contact:

NICHOLAS KLEBAN
905-807-2475
nkleban1132@gmail.com