Gravitas Uploads Eli Batalion's APPINESS to Digital HD January 28th

Gravitas Ventures, a RED ARROW Studios company, in a partnership with eMerge Entertainment, has announced the Digital HD and Cable VOD launch of writer/director Eli Batalion's quasi-autobiographical (re)start-up buddy comedy Appiness. Appiness will be available to rent or own January 28th on streaming services (including Amazon Instant Video, iTunes, Google Play and Vudu) and Cable VOD (including Comcast, Verizon, DirecTV, and Dish) in the United States.

Appiness is the debut feature from filmmaker Canadian Screen Award nominee Eli Batalion, creator of the acclaimed webseries "YidLife Crisis", who brings a decade of comedic stylings and a reverence for HBO's "Silicon Valley" to the film. He is joined in front of the camera by Varun Saranga ("Schitt's Creek", "Wynonna Earp"), and Amber Goldfarb ("Bellevue", "Helix"). Batalion also produced the film alongside associate producer Sheiny Satanove and line producer Joelle Agathe. Philip Kalin-Hajdu (Game of Death, "YidLife Crisis") served as executive producer. Appiness was supported in production by Telefilm Canada's Talent Fund through MainFilm and in development by SODEC's Jeunes Créateurs.

Batalion steps into the role of Eric Newman, a down-on-his-luck pencil pusher who seeks to become the next tech boy wonder with his high school buddy Raj (Saranga). They don't. Ahead of its stateside bow, Appiness has won awards around the globe, including the Debut Filmmaker Award at the Calcutta International Cult Film Festival, Best Actress for Goldfarb at the Canada China International Film Festival, Best Comedy and Best Screenplay at the Vegas Movie Awards, as well as Best Editing, Best Feature and Best Humor at the Top Indie Film Awards.

When Eric Newman, a shy corporate professional on the cusp of his 30's, gets laid off out of the blue, a chance meeting with long-lost techie buddy Raj Patel leads to scheming on startup billionaire dreams. With the help of a grassroots team led by the multi-talented Jeanine Genet, Eric and Raj may just be on the road to riches, freedom and finding their true calling. But what starts off promising soon turns into a slippery slope of growing sacrifices, leading them to not just question what they should really be doing with their lives, but also, like, how long they have left to live.

Watch the trailer here: