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The Hollywood folks who heard their names called during the announcement of Oscar nominations weren't the only ones having a great Tuesday. It was a very fine morning for some Atlanta filmmakers visiting Utah, too.

"The Signal," a low-budget, Atlanta-made horror film shown at the Sundance Film Festival, was picked up by Magnolia Pictures for North American and United Kingdom rights in the hours following the movie's midnight screening Monday. The sale was for more than $2 million.

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Magnolia Pictures bought the horror film "The Signal" for more than $2 million.
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"We've been blown away by the response, our little movie being liked by these people," says Jacob Gentry, one of the film's three directors, calling from Park City with excitement battling exhaustion in his voice. "We didn't imagine we'd even get into Sundance, much less have this happen."

Written and directed by David Bruckner, Dan Bush and Gentry, "The Signal" consists of three separate stories concerning electronic transmissions that drive people mad. (The movie takes place in the fictional city of Terminus, which has an aptly apocalyptic ring to it, and was one of the early names for Atlanta.) The film features Atlanta actors including AJ Bowen, Anessa Ramsey and Justin Welborn.

Two regular contributors on Harry Knowles' Ain't It Cool News movie Web site gave "The Signal" rave reviews Tuesday. One, who writes under the name Rav, claimed that it "may very well be the best independently made horror film of the past 10 years. It's quite easily the best one in the past five years, and the most entertaining film at the festival this year."

Gentry, 29, says negotiations went on till 5 or 6 Tuesday morning. Then, he and his fellow directors and cast members celebrated with friends at the condo they've rented for the festival's duration.

But Gentry admits the reception to the movie, and its sale, makes him wish he could cut the festivities short, head back home and keep working on the next movie for Atlanta-based POP Films. "I'm excited about the future of all of us working together, and the kind of movies we're going to make in Atlanta."