Pluto Film has acquired international sales rights for Sick, the horror feature debut from Ida actress Agata Trzebuchowska, ahead of its world premiere at Texas's Fantastic Fest this month.
TL;DR
- Pluto Film has boarded international sales for Sick, marking Trzebuchowska's directing debut.
- The film premieres at Fantastic Fest in Austin this month, then heads to Spain's Sitges Film Festival.
- Sick follows two Polish siblings caring for their ailing grandmother across a tense summer.
- Trzebuchowska is best known to UK audiences for starring in the Oscar-winning Ida.
What is Sick about?
Sick is set during the summer holidays, when 16-year-old Maks (Konrad Kąkol) and his 19-year-old sister Emma (Katarzyna Łubik) are sent to the Polish countryside to look after their frail grandmother, played by Monika Niemczyk. According to Deadline, the sibling relationship curdles into something unsettling as the isolated summer wears on. Julian Świeżewski and Eliza Rycembel round out the cast.
Patryk Sielecki and Adrianna Rędzia of Warsaw-based Lumisenta produce.
SickMaciej Edelman
Who is Agata Trzebuchowska?
Trzebuchowska is a Polish screenwriter, actress and now director who shot to international attention playing the title role in Paweł Pawlikowski's 2015 Oscar-winning film Ida, according to Deadline. She was scouted by a friend of Pawlikowski's while sitting in a Warsaw café, and had no acting background before taking the role.
Since then, Trzebuchowska has largely avoided the spotlight, working as a journalist and directing short films. Sick is her first feature behind the camera, and she also wrote the screenplay.
Pluto Film managing director Daniela Cölle said the film is "an atmospheric and unsettling horror film" that reframes the familiar coming-of-age summer story, according to Deadline.
Festival circuit and sales
Sick will have its world premiere at Fantastic Fest in Austin this month, running 90 minutes, according to HorrorBuzz's rundown of the festival's 2026 lineup. Its European premiere follows at the Sitges Film Festival in Spain.
Sick at a glance Runtime: 90 minutes Source: HorrorBuzz Fantastic Fest 2026 lineup
The film joins a busy autumn festival circuit. Screen & Story's own coverage this season has included John Malkovich's emotional standing ovation at Venice and Vincent Gallo turning down a Venice competition slot.
A UK talent angle
Sick does not yet have a confirmed UK distributor. But Trzebuchowska already has a UK following through Ida, which was released in British cinemas by the distributor Artificial Eye, according to Wikipedia's entry on the film. That earlier arthouse hit went on to win the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, giving her directorial debut a built-in audience among UK cinemagoers who remember her breakout performance.
Reportedly, further UK release plans for Sick will be announced once distribution deals are finalised.
Reported from publicly available interviews and verified press sources. Last reviewed September 14, 2026.
