Inspired by Carmilla, the original 19th Century vampire tale by Sheridan LeFanu, The Curse of Styria plunges the viewer into a haunted world of fantasy and obsession. In 1989, after Lara, 16, is expelled from an English boarding school for injuring a classmate, her estranged father, an art historian in Communist Hungary, must take her on a research expedition to the small town of Styria. Their destination is the Castle von Karnstein. Once an opulent 19th century spa, the castle is now nearly a ruin, set for demolition by the town's despotic General Spiegel. Lara is struggling to coexist with her distant father when a car accident thrusts the beautiful and enigmatic Carmilla, 17, into her life. Lara eagerly follows Carmilla out that night, to explore the castle and surrounding forest. They fall asleep and Lara awakens alone.