Budapest-based production outfit Hero Squared is at the Cannes Market looking to woo partners to Love Cubed, its service label focusing on commercials, music videos and independently financed feature films.
Love Cubed is led by former Focus Features exec Jonathan Halperyn and former Korda Studios exec Daniel Kresmery. The duo has also tapped veteran producer-director Vandad Kashefi as a partner, with Kresmery noting of his former Korda Studios colleague: “Vandad is the perfect partner to work with agencies and creatives, and to dig deep into the production concept of the project.”
The company is now gearing up for the Canadian-Hungarian co-production “Controllers” alongside Jonathan Vanger at Wishing Tree, Veronica Ferres’ Construction Films and Arielle Elwes and Oscar winner Cassian Elwes at Elevated, with support from Telefilm Canada. Producing alongside Vanger are Hero Squared’s Halperyn and Kresmery, with Kashefi co-producing. International sales are being handled by Myriad Pictures.
“Controllers,” which marks the feature directorial debut of Canadian filmmaker Adam Azimov, is a horror-thriller set in the aftermath of a devastating outbreak that has driven a small family into isolation on a remote farm. Raised to fear the mysterious Controllers — infected people capable of manipulating others through touch — two sisters have spent their lives cut off from the outside world, surviving behind fences, traps and strict rules meant to keep them alive.
But when a stranger is brought into their home, old fears begin to surface and the fragile dynamic holding the family together starts to crack. As tension mounts and trust erodes, the sisters are forced to question everything they’ve been taught about the world beyond their borders.
Describing it as “atmospheric, intimate and unsettling,” the producers say “Controllers” “blends psychological horror with grounded dystopian suspense, exploring themes of family, isolation and the fear of losing control over the people we love.”
The team behind Love Cubed and Hero Squared has collectively produced or co-produced over 30 features and series, including “Dust Bunny” for Thunder Road and International Emmy-winning TV series “Fallen.” Previous releases include Brandon Cronenberg’s “Infinity Pool” for Neon and Focus Features International, and “Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris,” released by Focus Features worldwide.
In addition, Love Cubed has serviced five lower-budget feature films and nine high-end commercial spots. The company’s work also spans podcasts, EPKs and interactive media along with cutting-edge, next-generation productions, such as a multinational shoot for the Las Vegas Sphere with Lenovo and Formula 1. It’s also earned a 2026 Grammy nomination for the single-take music video “Love” for OK Go.
“As Hero Squared has grown over the last eight years, we never wanted to stop focusing on the business that got us started — commercials, music videos and independently financed features that require a bespoke production approach,” said Halperyn.
“Love Cubed is built on a genuine love for the craft, with an ethos that goes beyond simple service with an aim to forge creatively driven, filmmaker-centric partnerships,” added Kashefi.
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