Best Friend Forever acquires international sales rights for Malayalam vampire revenge thriller “Half,” targeting TIFF’s Midnight Madness

Best Friend Forever has boarded international sales rights for the Malayalam-language vampire revenge action-thriller “Half,” with the deal arriving ahead of the film’s world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), Deadline reported in an Aug. 10 exclusive. The acquisition places the title in TIFF’s Midnight Madness program, a slot associated with genre and high-intensity filmmaking, and it marks the distributor’s early positioning of the project months before any home-market release.

Deadline said the arrangement reflects a “rare crossover” for an Indian genre cinema title to secure both a European sales presence and a Midnight Madness programming slot ahead of its domestic rollout timeline. In practical terms, the step can bring international buyers into negotiations earlier than they might otherwise see a title, potentially affecting the market window for marketing materials, subtitling, and distribution planning.

The report describes “Half” as an action-thriller built around vampire revenge, indicating the production’s intent to sit within an international audience for stylized genre content. While the transaction concerns sales rights rather than festival programming itself, the timing matters because TIFF Midnight Madness functions as a high-visibility launch platform for films seeking global buyers and attention from critics and industry attendees.

Deadline’s exclusive framing indicates that Best Friend Forever obtained the sales rights in connection with the film’s festival run, positioning it so that the acquisition can be leveraged during the TIFF period. That approach differs from a strategy in which international negotiations wait until after festival reception; instead, the sales board is set up in advance so that the film can capitalize on the industry focus generated by the Midnight Madness premiere.

The release pathway described by Deadline also suggests the film’s schedule is split across regions, with the TIFF premiere preceding the home-market release. That sequencing can affect how international partners assess the film’s urgency and competitive field, since festival premieres often compete for buyer attention while also influencing what kind of release commitments sellers can credibly secure.

No additional operational details, including the identities of other deal parties, the precise timing for the home-market release, or information about cast and production credits, were provided in the report summary. Viewers and industry professionals will likely look to further announcements around TIFF programming and subsequent distribution updates to confirm the deal’s full scope and the next steps for international rollout.