Wayfare Entertainment has acquired the rights to produce and finance a feature-length version of the short thriller The Gate from its director Matt Westrup and producer Spencer Friend, Deadline said.

Westrup will direct the feature version, while Friend will produce with Wayfare’s Browning and Sarah Shepard. Michael Maher will be exec producer. They will soon hire a screenwriter to expand the film to feature length. The Gate is a cool mutant tale that was named one of Viewfinder’s 10 best short films of 2011 and has drawn comparisons to Alive In Joburg, the short that was expanded into District 9.

“Our plan for The Gate was to always expand and build upon the world that I conceived for the 11 minute short,” Westrup said. “Wayfare Entertainment shares our vision in taking those themes and ideas, and adapting them into a sci-fi thriller that is driven by a grounded, sophisticated plot and intriguing character arcs.”

Said Wayfare’s Ben Browning: “We’re always looking for intelligent genre films filled with spectacle. The Gate is a daring and original work that is a perfect addition to our slate.”

Below is the original short movie.