Buffalo 8 has acquired world rights to the Pakistani crime thriller Jujji, written by Ahmad Umar Ayaz and directed by Habib Shahzad.
BHM Films has partnered with Yugen Studios and Lollipop to produce the neo-noir picture. Buffalo 8 has released a trailer.
The film centers on two detectives chasing a serial killer in Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Muhammad Arsalan plays the murderer, while Mustafa Rizvi and Anjum Habibi play SI Naveed and Constable Arshad respectively. The investigation forces both officers to confront their own moral compromises as the line between justice and revenge begins to blur.
“‘Juji’ is more than just a film. It is a statement that Pakistani cinema can take risks and still resonate globally,” Shahzad said. “We wanted to capture the essence of Rawalpindi while giving it a universal humanity. This has been a deeply personal journey, but a collective one for our team, and one we hope will reach a global audience.”
The project took two years to develop and began as an independent effort to shine an international spotlight on Rawalpindi’s story. ‘Jujji’ won the top prize at the Gandhara Independent Film Festival 2024 and the Best Film award at the Punjab Police Film Festival 2024. The film was also screened at the 2024 Divvy Film Festival.
Nikki Stier-Justice, head of distribution at Buffalo 8, said the acquisition was a huge win for the company. “From its first screening, Juji stood out as a bold, genre-bending thriller that blends authentic South Asian storytelling with the universal appeal of true crime films,” she said. “This is the kind of film that challenges convention while signaling an exciting global evolution in independent filmmaking.”
Santa Monica-based Buffalo 8 produces, post-produces, finances and distributes independent films.
Yugen Studios and BHM Films develop projects across film, theater and digital platforms, with a focus on South Asian stories and emerging filmmakers.
The film will be released on demand in the US and UK on November 21 through Amazon and Verizon Fios/Vubiquity, with additional territories to be announced.
Watch the trailer here:
