Power Rangers helmer Dean Israelite is set to direct the sci-fi thriller Unexplained Phenomenon for Amblin Partners. From an original script by Andrew Deutschman and Jason Pagan, the film is about a family that discovers a mysterious object that holds a strange power, which sends their life and home into upheaval. The family soon seeks the help of an expert and her teenage daughter who have a connection with the object and might understand its power and agenda. The movie is said to be inspired by trueevents.

Alex Heineman and Andrew Rona will produce through The Picture Company. The film’s title refers to the FBI classification for incidents that are investigated but are left unsolved because they defy logic. The plan is to use the film to launch a franchise surrounding true stories of supernatural phenomena, with the feel of classic Amblin movies such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Poltergeist.

Isrealite previously directed Paramount’s Project Almanac, also written by Pagan and Deutschman.

The Picture Company is also producing at Amblin The Travelers, which recently brought on Will Speck and Josh Gordon to direct.

Israelite is repped by WME and Principato/Young.