Aussie helmer Stephan Elliott ("The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert") has inked with Mark Damon's MDP Worldwide to direct "Eye of the Beholder."
The $15 million thriller -- adapted by Elliott from a Marc Behm novel -- tells of a high-tech detective obsessed with the hit-woman he's assigned to track as she leads him on a cross-country odyssey.
Tony Smith and Hilary Shor, partners in Gotham-based Hit and Run Prods., are producers along with Al Clark. Damon will exec produce.
L.A.-based MDP will handle financing and the worldwide distribution for the pic. Lensing is set to begin this spring.
Elliott currently is in post-production on his sophomore outing, "The Big Red" for the Samuel Goldwyn Co.
Mike Simpson and Cassian Elwes of the William Morris Agency, and attorney Craig Emanuel of Sinclair, Tenen-baum, Olesiuk & Emanuel, brokered the deal on Elliott and Hit and Run Prods.' behalf.
MDP was repped by Stephen Monas of Munro, Wiley & Associates.
MDP has banked on the auteur market in recent years and is currently in post-production on five films including "Liar," helmed by sibling filmmakers Josh and Jonas Pate ("The Grave") and starring Renee Zellweger ("Jerry Maguire").
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