Filmed in sub-zero weather in upstate New York, March of 2007, Frozen River is Courtney Hunt’s directorial debut. THe film has been purchased by Sony Pictures Classics with a release date of August 1, 2008.

Courtney’s feature-length script is set in a real-life smuggling zone on a Native American reservation between New York State and Quebec where the lure of fast money presents a daily challenge to single moms who would otherwise be making minimum wage. Strapped for money and having been deserted by her husband, working class Ray (Melissa Leo), reluctantly teams up with Lila (Misty Upham), a widowed Mohawk Indian, to smuggle illegal immigrants across the frozen St. Lawrence River from Canada to the U.S. in the trunk of a Dodge Spirit. Both women swear each trip will be their last, but one final run across the river leads to a showdown with the law on all sides.

Frozen River stars Melissa Leo (21 Grams, The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada, Homicide: Life on the Street), Misty Upham (Edge of America, Skins), Charlie McDermott (The Ten), Michael O’Keefe (The Great Santini - Oscar nominee, Michael Clayton, The Pledge), and Mark Boone, Jr. (Tree’s Lounge, Batman Returns).

Edited by Kate Williams (Tree’s Lounge, Interview, Empire Falls-Emmy nominee).

Click here to view the trailer