New York, NY (September 23, 2011)—New Yorkers can now celebrate Halloween a few days early. The Museum of Arts and Design hosts the 3rd edition of the short film fest Daggers, featuring 12 exquisitely creepy films that will share the spotlight on October 20, 2011, at 7:00 pm, and on October 22 at 3:00 pm in the Theater at MAD. Curated by noted critic Peter Gutiérrez, the all-shorts Daggers showcases work by up-and-coming talents, as well as contemporary classics by renowned filmmakers such as Denis Villeneuve and Jason Eisener. This mini-fest sports a macabre mix that is sure to please horror-hounds of all stripes.

“Horror is a much richer and more diverse genre than it is often given credit for,” observes Gutiérrez, who founded Daggers in 2008. “With Daggers we get to show off that range of artistry. In this year’s lineup, for example, we have surrealism, gothic mystery, psychological horror, a silent film, a musical, Cronenberg-style body horror, stop-motion animation, an experimental dance piece, and even gore-comedy. The goal is to represent the unsettling, the poetic, the thought-provoking, and yes, the stomaching-turning.”

Unspooling its dozen films in about two hours, Daggers will screen some of the best short-form horror from around the world, giving local audiences a chance to enjoy titles that are typically accessible only via major film festivals. Shot on the streets of Prague, “Prahands” recalls classic avant-garde cinema while “New Born” is an early effort of Israel’s Navot Papushado, co-writer and co-director of this year’s Tribeca favorite “Rabies” (“Kalevet”). Tasmania is represented by Briony Kidd‘s “The Room at The Top of The Stairs,” which makes its New York premiere. And of course there will be films by American, Canadian, and British filmmakers.

These include the H.P. Lovecraft adaptation “The Other Gods,” Matthew Garrett‘s “Beating Hearts,” Firas Momani‘s Fantasia-winning “The Adder’s Bite,” and the world premiere of “(Baby) It’s You,” a fun twist on the archetypal “mad scientist” film. Also making its New York premiere is Jerome Sable‘s acclaimed Sundance hit, “The Legend of Beaver Dam.” As always, the programming strategy seeks to combine fresh titles, many of which are new to Big Apple audiences, with ones that are well worthy of encores. Faye Jackson‘s “Lump” was shown directly before “Pan’s Labyrinth” at 2006′s New York Film Festival, and Jason (“Hobo with a Shotgun”) Eisener‘s “Treevenge” won the audience award for best short at the 2008 edition of the New York City Horror Film Festival. Moviegoers will know “Next Floor”‘s Denis Villeneuve as the director behind the Oscar-nominated “Incendies,” but may not have been able to catch this short, a prize-winner at TIFF, Sitges, and Cannes, not to mention a recipient of the Genie, Canada’s highest filmmaking award. The lineup also happens to boast another Genie-winner, Pedro Pires‘s unforgettable “Danse Macabre.”

“From last year’s Zombo Italiano and Jodorowsky series to this fall’s Sion Sono retro, MAD is proving itself to be a force in bold yet offbeat genre programming,” explains Gutiérrez. “That’s an approach that appeals to New York’s cinephiles and horror fans alike. It also happens to be very close to Daggers‘ sensibility, so I couldn’t be happier that this unique event has found such a great venue.”

ABOUT THE SERIES

Daggers will screen in the Theater at MAD on October 20, 2011 at 7:00 pm and on October 22, 2011 at 3:00 pm.

Both screenings $10 General
$7 MAD Members and Students.

Daggers is curated by film critic Peter Gutiérrez, frequent contributor to Rue Morgue and TribecaFilm.Com.

For more information, or to order tickets, please visit: http://www.madmuseum.org/series/daggers

THE 2011 DAGGERS LINEUP
All films will be projected digitally.

The Adder’s Bite (2010)
Dir. Firas Momani
9 min

(Baby) It’s You (2011)
Dir. David Cowles, Jeremy Galante, and Brad Pattullo
3 min

Beating Hearts (2010)
Dir. Matthew Garrett
11 min

Danse Macabre (2009)
Dir. Pedro Pires
9 min

The Legend of Beaver Dam (2010)
Dir. Jerome Sable
12 min

Lump (2006)
Dir. Faye Jackson
12 min

New Born (2006)
Dir. Navot Papsushado
14 min

Next Floor (2008)
Dir. Denis Villeneuve
11 min

The Other Gods (2006)
Dir. Mike Boas
6 min

Prahands (2007)
Dir. Charles Pieper
5 min

The Room at the Top of the Stairs (2011)
Dir. Briony Kidd
15 min

Treevenge (2008)
Dir. Jason Eisener
16 min

ABOUT THE MUSEUM OF ARTS AND DESIGN
The Museum of Arts and Design explores the blur zone that characterizes so much of art, design, and craft today. The Museum focuses on contemporary creativity and the ways in which artists and designers from around the world transform materials through processes ranging from the artisanal to digital. The Museum’s exhibition program explores and illuminates issues and ideas, highlights creativity and craftsmanship, and celebrates the limitless potential of materials and techniques when used by gifted and innovative artists. MAD’s permanent collection is global in scope and focuses on art, craft, and design from 1950 to the present day. At the center of the Museum’s mission is education. The Museum’s dynamic new facility features classrooms and studios for master classes, seminars, and workshops for students, families, and adults. Three open artist studios engage visitors in the creative processes of artists at work and enhance the exhibition programs. Lectures, films, performances, and symposia related to the Museum’s collection and topical subjects affecting the world of contemporary art, craft, and design are held in a renovated 144-seat auditorium.

Check it out online here:
http://anotherholeinthehead.slated.com/2011/schedule/week

And see their promo film (animated by yours truly, Mike Boas) below:

DEBUT LIVE SHOW: FRIDAY 15 APRIL 2011, CENTRAL LONDON

Tickets available here:

http://www.ticketweb.co.uk/user/?region=xxx&query=schedule&promoter=wakeup

Dare you enter the dark, twisted cabaret of HP LOVECRAFT: REANIMATED – the UK’s first live show devoted to the eldritch works of New England’s dreamer of unspeakable terrors?

In this humdrum modern world where adolescent vampires, brutish werewolves and dumbass zombies dominate mainstream horror – and our beloved creatures of the night have been reduced to bit-players in garish movies and TV dramas – HP LOVECRAFT: REANIMATED flies in the face of convention to celebrate the absurd imaginings of the man who unleashed From Beyond, The Call Of Cthulhu, At The Mountains Of Madness and other tales of cosmic dread, and plays fast and loose with the mythos, magic and monsters he created.

Staged by Wake Up Productions in association with The HP Lovecraft Literary Podcast – and with support from the publishers of the At The Mountains Of Madness and forthcoming The Lovecraft Anthology: Volume I graphic novels, SelfMadeHero – our mission with HP LOVECRAFT: REANIMATED is to take everything that’s great about live entertainment and give it a deviant, Lovecraftan twist.

The first HP LOVECRAFT: REANIMATED will take place in The Horse Hospital, near Holborn, central London, on FRIDAY 15 APRIL 2011.

And here’s a taste of the necrophagous terrors we have in store…

***LIVE LOVECRAFT READINGS***

The cornerstone of HP LOVECRAFT: REANIMATED will be live readings of Lovecraft’s most notorious tales. The stories will be performed by The Fitzrovia Radio Hour; a group of actors who conceive, write and perform theatrical radio plays in a 1940s style. The Fitzrovia Radio Hour – who have featured many times on BBC Radio 4 – perform all their shows in evening dress, behind period microphones and with live sound effects and music.

***LOVECRAFT GRAPHIC NOVEL LAUNCH***

HP LOVECRAFT: REANIMATED will host the London launch of SelfMadeHero’s latest graphic novel based on the short stories of HP Lovecraft, The Lovecraft Anthology: Volume I. A handful of the artists and editors of The Lovecraft Anthology will also be on hand to sign copies of the book, two weeks before its official UK release.

***LAUGHS WITH LOVECRAFT***

You won’t find many laughs in a Lovecraft book – but with HP LOVECRAFT: REANIMATED we want to have fun with the diabolical world he created. And they don’t come any funnier than HP LOVEBOX – a tentacle-headed crooner wearing a natty suit and belting out indie hits… like Frank Sinatra from Lovecraft’s darkest nightmare.

***TWO EXCLUSIVE FILM SCREENINGS***

• THE OTHER GODS: A long-lost silhouette animation, purportedly made in the 1920s and based on one of Lovecraft’s most enduring stories. Presented for the first time in the UK on a cinema-quality print.

• THE WHISPERER IN DARKNESS: An EXCLUSIVE clip from the forthcoming The Whisperer In Darkness big screen movie – this will be the first time a scene from the flick has been publicly screened in the UK.

***AND MORE LOVECRAFT THRILLS…***

• Hosted by Chris Lackey, HPL expert and host of the insanely popular HP Lovecraft Literary Podcast

• HP Lovecraft quiz, with valuable prizes and artwork from SelfMadeHero to be won

• Geek out! Plenty of drinking time with fellow Lovecraft fans after the cabaret ends

• Great period music, all of which was available during Lovecraft’s lifetime. Nothing after 1937!

We’re aiming to finish the cabaret by 10.30pm, to give Lovecraft fans time to hang out, have a beer, and debate the finer details of The Cthulhu Mythos.

So now you know the truth. Whisper it if you dare… CTHULHU LIVES! After eons dreaming on the ocean floor, the cyclopean sleeper has finally awoken and is rising from the depths. Before long, those cursed with psychic sensitivity will be driven insane by unspeakable nightmares, heralding the end of humanity as we know it.

But don’t be scared. Join us at HP LOVECRAFT: REANIMATED as we celebrate the return of Great Old One from his ancient slumber, and take our hand as we flee screaming into the peace and safety of a new dark age!

You can buy tickets from www.ticketweb.co.uk at the following link:

http://www.ticketweb.co.uk/user/?region=xxx&query=schedule&promoter=wakeup

HP LOVECRAFT: REANIMATED IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY…

The award-winning impresarios at Wake Up Productions, who brought you the ‘Bizarre Ball’ and ‘Alice Cooper’s Halloween Nights Of Fear’. Creating yet another unique and inspirational event!

Join Wake Up Productions on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/wakeupproductions

Evil spirits and skin-crawling chills await you at the Montreal premiere of James Wan’s critically-acclaimed horror epic INSIDIOUS.

Fantasia will be co-presenting this unholy unveiling on Wednesday March 30 7pm (time subject to change) 2 days before it possesses North American screens on April 1 2011.

For your shot at damnation, be among the first 25 people to send your real name and mailing address to contest@fantasiafestival.com. Fantasia Festival is not responsible for any glitches caused by Facebook poltergeists. To ensure the privacy of the ritual, only the haunted 25 will be contacted.

From the mind-blowing team of director James Wan and writer Leigh Whannell who brought you the original SAW, not to mention DEAD SILENCE. Produced by PARANORMAL ACTIVITY makers Oren Peli, Steven Schneider & Jason Blum and featuring a beat-perfect cast that includes Patrick Wilson (WATCHMEN), Rose Byrne (28 WEEKS LATER) Ty Simpkins (WAR OF THE WORLDS) and Barbara Hershey (BLACK SWAN, THE ENTITY, LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST… the reasons to love her are endless).

There are moments in this film that will scare the life out of you.

Midnight Madness-Toronto International Film Festival 2010

Official Selection – SXSW 2011

Official Selection-Film Comment Selects 2011

Many thanks to the kind spirits at Alliance VivaFilm1

More info can be explored at
http://www.insidious-movie.com/
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Insidious/148418438545351?sk=wall

Alliance VivaFilm + The Fantasia International Film Festival present
HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN – THE CANADIAN PREMIERE!
Hosted by director Jason Eisener and producer Robert Cotterill!

March 21st – 7:30 PM
Scotiabank cinema
4 days before it hits theatrical release!

PLUS! Bonus Second feature: STORY OF RICKY (RIKI-OH) and a smorgasbord of 35mm grindhouse trailers from the 70s and 80s!

The only way in to this screening is by winning a ticket! Fantasia will be giving away over 30 double passes through our Facebook page, and there will also be ticket giveaways over the next few days at Arrow in the Head, Ioncinema, Fangoria, Montreal Mirror, Rue Morgue, Sinistre Blogzine, Sound on Sight and Twitch!

————–

Alliance VivaFilm is joining forces with the Fantasia Film Festival to give HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN the spectacular Canadian launch it deserves!

The story of a kind-hearted, lone-wolf raggedy man (Rutger Hauer, in his most show-stopping role since 1986’s THE HITCHER) who takes on an evil crime kingpin Travis Bickle-style, HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN is more funny, crazy, bloody and brazen than any film in recent memory – and it’s coming to Montreal with a vengeance!

The HOBO saga started with a contest. SXSW’s ‘Grindhouse Trailer contest’ to be exact: As part of the promotions for Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino’s GRINDHOUSE in 2007, Ain’t It Cool News announced a three week deadline to come up with a “grindhouse” style trailer for a fake movie, and Jason Eisener, Rob Cotterill and Jon Davies spent the next six days running around Halifax with no budget, no permits and a blood-soaked vagrant carrying a real shotgun. Contestants around the globe waited as their posted entries battled it out on the internet, and the HOBO creators watched as their trailer soared in the audience ratings department and became a Youtube phenomenon. When Rodriguez announced HOBO as the winner, the trailer not only ended up as a special feature on the Blu-Ray edition of GRINDHOUSE, but Alliance’s Jim Sherry decided to strike 186 35mm film prints of the trailer to release it Canada-wide, in every theater where GRINDHOUSE screened. And from there, the idea of a feature film version was born.

HOBO Producer Rob Cotterill is a former Montrealer who is a longtime Fantasia friend and regular; his first taste of working on a film set was on Karim Hussain’s SUBCONSCIOUS CRUELTY as well as several of Mitch Davis’ projects at Infliction Films. When he completed school at Concordia, Rob began working in the industry as an Assistant Director and met his future partner Jason Eisener on the set of TRAILER PARK BOYS. After the HOBO trailer won the hearts and minds of genre fans around the globe, the two followed it up with the now-obligatory cautionary Christmas tale TREEVENGE, which had its World Premiere at Fantasia, won the audience award and later because a major cause celebre at Sundance!

Sundance continued their support of our Canuck wunderkinds with the World Premiere of HOBO at Sundance earlier this year, where it took Park City by storm, leaving audiences gobsmacked and amazed and garnering rave reviews in every kind of media – from the leading cult / alternative press to Hollywood Reporter and Esquire!

The film boasts more of the red stuff than we’ve seen in any Canadian film since SUBCONSCIOUS CRUELTY (which is perhaps to be expected since HOBO was lensed by CRUELTY’s director Karim Hussain, who also directed LA BELLE BETE, wrote Nacho Cerda’s THE ABANDONED, and served as one of Fantasia’s key film programmers from 1997-2001) but at its heart is also an underdog story: the kind of story that any Canadian independent artist can relate to when faced with bigger and badder competition south of the border. The kind of story that our national film industry was built on.

HOBO reclaims Canada’s standing as a hotbed of original and subversive genre cinema. Like 2008′s festival sensation SWEET KARMA (which World Premiered at Fantasia and went on to win numerous awards throughout the circuit) HOBO brings Canada back to the glory days of the tax shelter era, when independent companies like Cinepix, Quadrant and Astral Films gave genre cinema a national identity (once upon a time we made more horror films that the US did!) HOBO was funded by Telefilm, which until 1984 was known as the CFDC – the primary investor in over a decade of amazing genre cinema. And after almost 30 years of trying to clean up the ‘face’ of Canadian cinema, cheers to Telefilm for acknowledging the massive genre potential of our country. Like I always say: there are two kinds of people in the world: those who want to see the bus go over the cliff, and those who don’t. There are a lot more Canadians in the former camp than you might think.

While HOBO will undoubtedly be a hard act to follow, our guests have curated a bonus second feature: an eye-popping uncut 35mm print of Ngai Kai Lam’s insane 1991 grindhouse classic STORY OF RICKY (Riki-oh)! PLUS! rare 35mm exploitation film trailers from the ’70s and ’80s, and other surprises! Don’t miss your chance to be part of Canadian genre film history – be there!

(Kier-La Janisse)

HOBO WITH A SHOTGUN will be in theatres across Canada March 25.

Or if you’ve got a ton of new info, visit our submission page.

Thanks!
-Mike

We will be forming a new steering committee and executive committee for the HPLFF Portland festival in early 2011.

Director Stuart Gordon (Re-animator, Feed, Stuck) and director David Prior (AM 1200) will be on the committee with others to be named.

The current plan is to have the Portland festival in early May of 2012 which pushes out the Portland festival by 6 months from where it has traditionally been held. The plan is also to have the executive committee and positions flushed out by March of 2011.

I am stepping down as festival director as announced at this year's Portland festival but will remain as an executive director and founder for the organization run by Lurker Films.

Would love to hear from you with any feedback. There are a lot of people who want to get involved which is great.

Until then, have a very Dreary Cthulhumas and hopefully a New Year!

I was previously under the impression that there would be no more Portland festivals. It was even possible that an L.A. fest might supplant the event. It's good to know that Lovecraft fans will continue to keep Portland weird for the forseeable future.

Via H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival and CthulhuCon.]]> http://ominous-events.com/news/archives/201/feed 0 http://www.hplfilmfestival.com/news/2010/12/21/hplff-la-dates-2011 http://www.hplfilmfestival.com/news/2010/12/21/hplff-la-dates-2011#comments Tue, 21 Dec 2010 18:25:20 +0000 newsfeed
From the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival blog:

The festival will be held Friday Sept. 16 (7-midnight), and Saturday Sept. 17 (4pm-midnight). There will be 13 hours of programming, vendors, guests and more.

Easy parking, pay for two hours on Saturday, then it's free.

The festival hotel will be the Crowne Plaza.

The Victoria Film Festival has established itself as an impressive showcase for Canadian films, international cinema, shorts, animation and documentaries, but its organizers haven't been above programming the occasional zombie movie.

This time they've outdone themselves, however, by luring the "Grandfather of the Zombie" himself.

None other than George A. Romero, the zombie-meister best known for his 1968 cult classic Night of the Living Dead and its satiric sequels Dawn of the Dead (1978) and Day of the Dead (1985), has agreed to be a guest next year.

...The 17th annual festival, which runs Feb. 4-13, will feature a tribute to Romero and cinematographer Adam Swica, whose credits include Romero's Diary of the Dead (2007) and Survival of the Dead (2009).

The Festival kicks off on Friday Night with a Zombie Walk. Everyone will meet in make-up at Java’s at 10pm. The walk will begin at 10:30pm. Zombies will make their way down East Ave. to the Little Theatre.

SCHEDULE

Friday, October 29th
o 10pm – ZOMBIE WALK @ JAVA’S

Saturday, October 30th
o 12am – SHAUN OF THE DEAD (2004)
o 2am – DEAD, ALIVE (1992)
o 4am – RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD (1985)
o 6am – SURVIVOR’S CHOICE (5 PUBLIC DOMAIN FILMS)
o 9am – MVP Little Buddies presents IGOR (2008)
o 11am – Emerging Filmmakers presents HORROR SHORTS*
o 1pm – AMERICAN MOVIE/ COVEN (1999)
o 4pm – DIARY OF THE DEAD (2007)
o 6pm – Fright Rags Presents DARK NIGHT OF THE SCARECROW (1981)
o 8pm – Grindhouse presents PLANET TERROR (2007)
o 10pm – DEATH PROOF (2007)

Sunday, October 31st
o 12am – HUMAN CENTIPEDE (2009) – ONLY ROCHESTER SHOWING TO DATE!

Burn Witch Burn! Here’s a fast paced promo, featuring clips from Horror Hotel, a public domain film starring Christopher Lee.

From Alex Dodds:

Die2Nite is a free community survival game set in a hostile world inhabited by zombies and other living dead creatures. Players (or Citizens) are grouped into small towns with the task of organizing their day to day lives in order to survive as long as possible in their constant battle against these creatures…

To check it out for free, go to http://www.die2nite.com/

THE WEEKEND OF OCTOBER 15th, 16th & 17th teams of filmmakers will embark on a mission, a chance to make a short film in just 3 Days. Each film will have a specific HORROR theme that will be selected by team leaders at random (at the launch event on October 15th), these films must be a min of 3 minutes and no longer than 6 minutes in length. Volunteer teams will have 72 hours to write, shoot, edit and deliver their Hitchcockian tributes, then at the Premiere Screening on Friday October 22nd, enchanted film-goers will descend upon the Bluelight Cinemas for special 9pm screenings and a very haunted AFTER-PARTY presented by The Oaks Event Center & the 3 Day Film Challenge.

More details at http://www.3dayfilmchallenge.com/horror-genre—3-day-film-challenge.html

The Midway Drive-In
91 Palmyra Road
Dixon, Illinois

Saturday afternoon events including the Bruce Campbell autograph
signing to be held at the;

Comfort Inn
136 Plaza Drive
Dixon, IL 61021
The Comfort Inn is a 10 minute drive from the Midway Drive-In

Flashback Weekend at the Midway Drive-In
Friday Sept. 10, 2010
Friday Night events to be held at the

Midway Drive-In
91 Palmyra Road
Dixon, IL 61021

5:30PM
Registration Booth open

5:30PM-7:45PM
Horror Vendor area – In front of concession stand

7:45PM
Opening remarks and introduction by Charles Band of Full Moon Entertainment

8:00PM
DOLLS (1987) courtesy of Full Moon Entertainment

9:45PM
THE UNDERTAKER & HIS PALS (1966)

11:15PM
PIECES (1983) courtesy of Grindhouse Releasing

Saturday Sept. 11, 2010
Saturday afternoon events to be held at the
Comfort Inn
136 Plaza Drive
Dixon, IL 61021

12:00PM
Registration booth open – COMFORT INN

12:00PM-5:00PM
Horror Vendor room open – COMFORT INN

2:30PM
Bruce Campbell autograph session-COMFORT INN

Saturday evening events to be held at the
Midway Drive-In
91 Palmyra Road
Dixon, IL 61021

5:30 PM
Midway Drive-In gates open – MIDWAY DRIVE-IN

5:30PM-7:45PM
Horror Vendor area – MIDWAY DRIVE-IN

7:45PM
Bruce Campbell Q & A – at the stage in front of the screen

8:30 PM
MY NAME IS BRUCE (2008)

10:00PM
CHARLES BAND’S FULL MOON ROAD SHOW – at the stage in front of the screen

11:00PM
THE EVIL DEAD (1983) courtesy of Grindhouse Releasing

1:00AM
EVIL DEAD 2: DEAD BY DAWN (1987)

3:00AM
ARMY OF DARKNESS (1993)

4:30AM
SURPRISE!!! NOT TO BE MISSED!!!

Admission Prices –at the door

Friday, Sept. 10th – $10.00

Saturday, Sept 11th – $20.00

Bruce Campbell Autograph Tickets – $25.00
The number of tickets are limited (we expect them to sell out).
Remaining autograph tickets on sale the days of the event!

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Phone – (847) 478-0119 or visit www.flashbackweekend.com

www.themidwaydrivein.net

Facebook – http:// www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=28555330583 ]]> http://ominous-events.com/news/archives/70/feed 0 http://ominous-events.com/news/archives/62 http://ominous-events.com/news/archives/62#comments Wed, 08 Sep 2010 05:32:13 +0000 Mike http://ominous-events.com/news/?p=62 A veritable best of Lovecraft is playing this Saturday, September 11 in San Pedro, California.

Here’s the new promo video (animated by yours truly, Mike Boas).

For ticket info, visit http://bit.ly/hplffla

The first H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival® in Los Angeles will screen six of the best movies that have played at the original HPLFF® in Portland, Oregon, from the past 14 years.

Location: Warner Grand Theater, 478 West 6th Street, San Pedro, CA

Doors open at 2pm
After party at 10pm at the Whale & Ale pub (327 West 7th Street, two blocks from theater – www.whaleandale.com), with music by Thelonious Dub (www.theloniousdub.com)

SCHEDULE AND DESCRIPTIONS
2pm – 2:45 = Socializing and opening ceremonies
2:45 – 5:45 = Movie Block 1 (180 minutes)
5:45 – 6pm = Q&A with block 1 cast and crew
6pm – 6:45 = Break
6:45 – 7pm = Astra Dance performance
7pm – 9:30 = Movie Block 2 (150 minutes)
9:30 – 9:45 = Q&A with block 2 cast and crew
10pm – 2am = Party at Whale & Ale (free admission with festival ticket, 21+), music by Thelonius Dub

Block One:
Lovecraft: Fear of the Unknown (2008) – An award-winning documentary about the man who created the Cthulhu Mythos, H.P. Lovecraft. Directed by Frank H. Woodward (90 minutes)

Cool Air (1999) – “Never underestimate the power of the human will.” Jack Donner (Transformers 3, Star Trek: The Original Series) stars in this powerful period adaptation of the classic Lovecraft tale about a man who will do anything to survive. Masterfully filmed in Los Angeles on a shoestring budget, directed by and also starring Bryan Moore. (44 minutes)

AM 1200 (2008) – Eric Lange (Lost), John Billingsley (True Blood), and Ray Wise (Reaper, Twin Peaks) star in this taut supernatural thriller about a man on the run who flees into a far worse Hell than the one he left. A modern Lovecraft-inspired tale directed by David Prior. (40 minutes)

Intermission:
During the break, The Astra Dance Company, a theatrical dance company inspired and influenced by famed Gothic horror author Edgar Allan Poe, will perform some of their haunting scenes. See www.astradance.com

Block Two:
The Music of Erich Zann (1980) – One of the earliest versions of one of Lovecraft’s most popular stories. A boarder is drawn into the web of his mysterious old musician neighbor, who plays haunting music for an unseen audience. Directed by John Strysik (17 minutes)

The Call of Cthulhu (2005) – Filmed in Mythoscope, this black and white film was made as if it were produced in 1926, the year Lovecraft wrote his definitive tale about a worldwide cult bent on raising their obscene god from the depths of the ocean. Expertly crafted by the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society, this is the most faithful Lovecraft story adaptations to date. Winner of many awards. Directed by Andrew Leman (47 minutes)

Re-Animator (1985) – This extreme 80′s horror movie spawned many filmmakers to follow in its footsteps by adapting Lovecraft tales. Starring Jeffrey Combs (Star Trek, The Frighteners) as Herbert West, a scientist obsessed with curing death. 2010 is the 25th anniversary of this outrageous horror-comedy. Directed by Stuart Gordon (86 minutes)

SPECIAL SURPRISES AS WELL! SNEAK PREVIEWS AND DOOR PRIZES!

CONFIRMED GUESTS
Portland H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival® founder Andrew Migliore

All directors of all six films: Stuart Gordon, Frank Woodward, Bryan Moore, David Prior, John Strysik, Andrew Leman & Sean Branney

Music composer Richard Band (Re-Animator, From Beyond)

Actor Eric Lange (AM 1200, Lost)
Actor Jack Donner (Cool Air, Star Trek: TOS)
Cast and crew from The Call of Cthulhu: Noah Wagner, Barry Lynch, Patrick O’Day, Richard Lucas, Leslie Baldwin, Cinematographer David Robertson and Special Visual Effects artist Dan Novy

VENDORS
Sigh Co. – www.sighco.com
Arkham Bazaar – www.arkhambazaar.com
The H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society – www.cthulhulives.org
Behind the Scenes Costumes – www.behindthescenescostumes.com
Perilous Press – www.perilouspress.com
Artist Mike Dubisch – www.dubisch.com

ADVERTISERS
Mythos Con – www.mythoscon.org
Film Threat – www.filmthreat.com
Star Costumes – www.starcostumes.com

Follow the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival® Facebook page: Facebook page

Come enjoy the finest cosmic horror weird tale films with your fellow Lovecraft enthusiasts!

Ia! Cthulhu fhtagn!

If you’re in the Pasadena area, check out a FREE outdoor screening of Night of the Living Dead (1968). This screening is part of the Old Pasadena Film Festival, and will be shown on Saturday July 31, at 8:30 pm at Central Park, 120 S. Raymond Ave. Pasadena, California.

Visit the Old Pasadena site for more information including a map:

http://www.oldpasadena.org/

On Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=573881372#!/event.php?eid=135533266466235

This one kind of snuck up on me. When researching some other Western
NY events, I discovered the Buffalo Monster Fest — less than two
weeks away!

It’s a celebration of independent horror, with a focus on Buffalo
filmmakers. I’ve met several of these folks over the years, and it
should be a great time.

From their website:

The Buffalo Monster Fest is presented by Jim Breidenstein and WebArt
Designs and will take place on Friday, July 30th at D’Arcy McGee’s
Irish Pub in Downtown Buffalo . The event is designed to be a
celebration of horror movies and basically “all things scary”.

The Monster Fest starts at 7PM and runs through midnight. This is a 21
and over event.

Watch Independently Produced CREEPY-SCARY films all night on our huge
10 ft screen!

Meet the Actors, Artists & Filmmakers
• Emil J. Novak Sr • Justin Sammarco • Jay Mager • Ken Cosentino •
John Renna • And More

Playboy Model and Scream Queen Actress Angelina Leigh

Music Videos and Horror Film Shorts by Daniel James

Book Signing with Author and Filmmaker Gregory Lamberson

“An Artist Painting Dead People Live” by Mike Alvarez

FX Makeup and Prop displays

Rod Durick from Zombified Studios

MC for the Night -MONSTER MATT

The Terror Technoligies Blood Crew

Live Music by A Band of Demons

Art Display by Ozzy from Sin Steel

• Costumes are Encouraged

• Food and Drink Specials

Music • Prizes • Contests • Zombies

Find out more at http://themonsterfest.com

Coming to London August 26-30, 2010, FrightFest looks to have another
stellar line-up this year. (I’ve never been, but I enjoy hearing the
annual recap from the guys at the Mondo Movie Podcast.)

Check the festival vitals here:
http://ominous-events.com/index.php?title=FrightFest

Read on for a list of feature films screening this year.
(Thanks to TwitchFilm.net )

***

HATCHET II (World Premiere)
Director: Adam Green, USA 2010
FrightFest continues its strong relationship with Adam Green by
hosting the world premiere of the sequel to his 2006 slasher
sensation. Picking up right where the splatter-tastic original ended,
Marybeth escapes the clutches of the deformed, swamp-dwelling iconic
killer Victor Crowley. After learning the truth about her family’s
connection to the hatchet-wielding madman, Marybeth returns to the
Louisiana swamps along with an army of hunters to recover the bodies
of her family and exact the bloodiest revenge against the bayou
butcher. Delivering unapologetically unrestrained gushers of gore,
HATCHET II is everything you loved about the original – only darker,
funnier and on shocker steroids.

PRIMAL (World Premiere)
Director: Josh Reed, Australia 2010
Primordial nature runs amuck in a smartly played spectacular slice of
neo Ozploitation. 12,000 years ago a caveman tried to communicate the
presence of an unknown primal entity only to be devoured by the
Neanderthal evil. Now six friends on a field trip set up camp in the
same remote wilderness. But when one takes a dip in a nearby waterhole
terror descends on the remainder as they realise its kill or be
killed. A frenzied visceral nightmare, PRIMAL is a hugely enjoyable
rollercoaster ride through primitive panic with the best one word
ending ever!

DEAD CERT (World Premiere)
Director: Steve Lawson, UK 2010
It’s a splatter Disco Inferno as East End gangsters and Eastern
European vampires battle it out for the ultimate prize – owenership of
the night-club, ‘The Inferno’. Foul-mouthed thugs take on a city
infested with the undead in a super-modern take on ‘Dracula’
influenced by House of Hammer classics plus FRIGHT NIGHT and THE LOST
BOYS. You think you know all there is to know about vampires? Well,
you’re wrong, dead wrong, in director Steve Lawson’s all-action horror
that paints London town red – with blood!

TOTAL ICON: TOBE HOOPER
Total Film Magazine have joined forces with FrightFest to introduce a
new attraction to this year’s festival. It’s called ‘Total Icon’ and
will celebrate the career of living legend Tobe Hooper. As well as
showing Tobe’s ferocious 1974 masterpiece THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE
on the big screen, we will be unveiling his rarely seen, restored and
re-mastered 1969 debut, EGGSHELLS. And that’s not all: there will be a
45-minute onstage Q&A with the great man himself, here visiting the UK
for the first time in 18 years.

EGGSHELLS (Total Icon Retrospective)
Director: Tobe Hooper, USA 1969
Director Tobe Hooper’s little seen and long thought lost debut feature
is now a must-see hippy trippy head space fantasy time capsule
containing many portents of THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE to come.
Hooper: “It’s a real movie about 1969, kind of verite but with a
little push, improvisation mixed with magic. It was about the
beginning and end of the subculture. Most of it takes place in a
commune house. But what they don’t know is that in the basement is a
crypto-embryonic hyper-electric presence that managed to influence the
house and the people in it. The presence has embedded itself in the
walls and grows into this big bulb, half-electronic, half organic.
Almost like an eye, but like a big light, it comes out of the wall,
manipulating and animating. I’ve always described it as being a
mixture of Andy Warhol’s TRASH and Walt Disney’s FANTASIA”.

THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE (Total Icon Retrospective)
Director: Tobe Hooper, USA 1974
Time has not dimmed the shock value of the seminal classic from
director Tobe Hooper, based on the same real-life Ed Gein case that
inspired PSYCHO. Only granted a certificate from the British Board of
Film Classification for its 25th Anniversary release in 1999, this
highly influential scream-filled chiller tells the story of five Texas
hippies who encounter a family of murderous cannibals. Hooper
masterfully uses documentary-style realism, coupled with the horror of
anticipation and suggestion, to take the terror factor into stunning
and disturbing areas. Made on a micro-budget that adds to the harsh
tone, this razor-sharp nightmare began the power tool cult and brought
Gunnar Hansen’s Leatherface to horror icon glory. But it’s the brutal
accumulative effect of Hooper’s mater-of-fact direction that freezes
the scalp and puts alarmed imagination on overdrive.

INTERVIEW WITH TOBE HOOPER.
The interview will be conducted by Total Film’s deputy editor Jamie
Graham. Total Film has regularly tagged THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE
as ‘The Greatest Horror Movie Ever Made’ and could not be happier to
welcome Tobe Hooper to FrightFest.

ISLE OF DOGS (World Premiere)
Director: Tammi Sutton, UK 2010
Darius is the gang boss from hell, a deadly bastard and the last man
you’d cross. So when he discovers his young Russian bride Nadia is
sleeping with Rilry, a small time crook, he makes him an offer he
can’t refuse. Kill or be killed. In the tradition of LONDON TO
BRIGHTON, an unflinching exploration of just what people will do to
survive. Written by Sean Hogan and director Tammi Sutton (the upcoming
WELCOME TO GRAVELAND starring Danny Trejo and Vinnie Jones), comes a
barking Brit body count horror.

F (World Premiere)
Director: Johannes Roberts, UK 2010
Welcome to the Class of 2010. The college day ends, the school
building becomes a vast complex of dark corridors, and eerily quiet
classrooms, What none of the remaining teachers and pupils realize is
tonight is going to be a night they will remember for the rest of
their lives – especially English teacher Robert Anderson, a
burned-out, world-weary alcoholic trying to reconnect with his
daughter. For the school comes under relentless attack from a
faceless threat intent on causing maximum mayhem. Will lessons be
learned?

RED HILL (Preview)
Director: Patrick Hughes, Australia 2010
Police officer Shane Cooper (‘True Blood’ star Ryan Kwanten) relocates
to the dusty farming village of Red Hill with his pregnant wife,
Alice, to start a family. Then news of a prison break sends the local
law enforcement officers into a panic and Shane’s first day on duty
rapidly turns into a nightmare. A taut horror western, which unfolds
over the course of a single day and night, and told with explosive
action and chilling violence,

ALIEN VS. NINJA (UK Premiere)
Director: Seiji Chiba, Japan 2010
Once upon a time in Japan, a band of great Iga Ninja warriors witness
a roaring giant fireball crashing into the distant forest. Rushing to
investigate the mysterious asteroid, they are stunned to be confronted
by new alien enemies. This is the story of the brave Ninja facing
their biggest challenge ever to defeat the space monsters and their
alien offspring. In the tradition of TOKYO GORE POLICE comes killer
Kung Fu, gratuitous violence, silly splatter, high-powered action –
and men in grey rubber suits.

CHERRY TREE LANE Preview)
Director: Paul Andrew Williams, UK 2010
CHERRY TREE LANE was Mary Poppins’ address, but there’s nothing
remotely Disney about this cautionary tale from Paul Andrew Williams,
director of the critically acclaimed LONDON TO BRIGHTON and THE
COTTAGE. Christine and Mike are an ordinary middle-class couple living
in what could be any house on any street. It’s an average evening as
they prepare dinner, open a bottle of wine and bicker waiting for
their teenage son, Sebastian, to come home from football. The doorbell
rings. And the family’s nightmare begins. Tense, harrowing and
disturbing, CHERRY TREE LANE is one address worth visiting if your
nerves can stand it.

THE TORTURED (UK Premiere)
Director: Robert Lieberman, USA/Canada 2010
Meet Elise and Craig, an upper-middle-class couple with a beautiful
son and a very good life. But that charmed life is destroyed and
shattered when their only child is kidnapped and killed by a sexual
deviant. Obsessed with revenge when the criminal justice system does
not adequately punish the murderer, the couple seizes a golden
opportunity to abduct him when a tragic accident occurs. Hold on tight
as the twists and turns in director Robert Lieberman’s horror thriller
continually surprise and shock.

13HRS (World Premiere)
Director: Jonathan Glendening, UK 2010
Sarah Tyler returns to her troubled family home in the isolated
countryside, for a much put-off visit from Los Angeles. But as a storm
rages outside, Sarah, her family and friends shore up for the night,
cut off from the outside world. But something is about to come out of
the driving rain and darkness. Something that needs to kill and is
looking for human prey. Something that holds a terrifying secret so
devastating that, in one night, it could wipe out the entire Tyler
bloodline.

THE HORROR CHANNEL PRESENTS
I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE (European Premiere)
Director: Steven R. Monroe, USA 2010
Arguably the most notorious title in horror history, the original 1979
exploitation classic became an iconic Video Nasty. So prepare for the
one unrated remake everybody has been anticipating, a violent,
shocking story of bloody revenge. When writer Jennifer Hills retreats
to a charming cabin in the woods to start her next book, her presence
in the small town attracts unwanted redneck attention. Intending to
teach the city girl a lesson, they break into her cabin to scare her.
However, what starts out as terrifying acts of humiliation,
uncontrollably escalates into a night of abusive assault. But against
all odds Jennifer survives her ordeal and intends to turn the tables
on her tormentors…

TOTAL FILM PRESENTS
MONSTERS (Preview)
Director: Gareth Edwards, UK 2010
Director Gareth Edwards’ sensational debut is a provocative
post-Apocalyptic parable and an all-round remarkable achievement. Six
years ago a NASA probe returning to Earth with samples of alien
organisms crashed over Central America. Soon after, new life forms
began to appear there and half of Mexico was quarantined. Now the
American and Mexican military struggle to contain the giant creatures.
It’s through this perilous infected zone that a cynical journalist
must escort his stranded boss’ daughter to U.S. border safety.
MONSTERS is involving and satisfying as it is surprising and moving,
something utterly unique, original and awe-inspiring.

DREAM HOME (UK Premiere)
Director: Ho-Cheung Pang, Hong Kong 2010
How far would you go to keep your dream home? FRIDAY THE 13th meets
‘Location, Location, Location’ in a blood-soaked slasher doubling as a
satire on the current housing and banking crises. Cheng Lai-sheung is
an upwardly mobile professional happily working two jobs, finally
ready to invest in her first home. But when the deal falls through on
her luxury dream home she takes drastic action to keep her dream
alive. DREAM HOME returns Hong Kong Cinema to a level of gratuitous
violence not seen since the glory days of RIKI-OH! and THE UNTOLD
STORY, and is the strongest Asian horror for ages.

THE PACK (UK Premiere)
Director: Franck Richard, France 2010
The earth wants blood…and there are those who cannot refuse it. In a
snowy no man’s land loner Charlotte Massot picks up hitchhiker Max for
security after being hassled by an unruly motorbike gang. But when Max
goes missing at the La Spack truck-stop café and she investigates his
disappearance, little does she realise she is being set up to take
part in a ghastly, unholy ritual. Franck Richard’s debut feature
follows in the sick and slick tradition of recent French fear fare
with BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF star Emilie Dequenne and Gallic gore
favourite Philippe Nahon acting their heads off. Literally.

WE ARE WHAT WE ARE (SOMOS LO QUE HAY) (UK Premiere)
Director: Jorge Michel Grau, Mexico 2010
Shown in the Director’s Fortnight strand of the Cannes Film Festival
2010, Jorge Michel Grau’s independently produced, envelope-pushing
shocker was acclaimed as “the Mexican LET THE RIGHT ONE IN”. A
middle-aged man dies in the middle of a shopping mall leaving his
widow, two sons and daughter destitute. The devastated family is
confronted with a massive challenge…for they are cannibals. But who
will provide the victims now their father has gone? The task falls to
the eldest son Alfredo, yet he’s far from ready to accept the
challenge especially as he carries another secret all his own.

KABOOM (UK Premiere)
Director: Gregg Araki, USA/France 2010
The director of NOWHERE and MYSTERIOUS SKIN brings his signature
vision and sharp sense of smart fun to a wildly sexy apocalyptic
movie. Bisexual college student Smith stumbles upon a monstrous
conspiracy in a seemingly idyllic Southern California seaside town.
And his drug-fuelled everyday life of lusting gets turned upside down
after witnessing a gruesome murder that draws him into a sinister
underground cult. A surreal mash-up of styles, sexuality, supernatural
and sci-fi genres, file this one under instant cult classic.

A SERBIAN FILM (UK Premiere)
Director: Srdjan Spasojevic, Serbia 2009
The most controversial hot button movie of the year is an unflinching
look into the moral, political and ethical abyss that is Serbia today.
When a former porn star is lured out of retirement to make one last
‘artistic statement’ on the sexploitation industry little does he know
the depths of depravity to which he will sink. For the director is
concerned less about the pleasures of the flesh than the degradation
of the human animal. Be warned, the depiction of one man’s descent
into vice-ridden hell is brutal and violent to an extreme. Director
Srdjan Spasojevic’s walk on the wildest side is meant to shock the
viewer out of complacency and could only come from those living
through collective national pain and victimization now determined to
throw that hurt and fury on screen. The result is an experience you
will never, ever forget.

THE LOVED ONES (UK Premiere)
Director: Sean Byrne, Australia 2009
The coolest Ozploitation horror in ages is director Sean Byrne’s
hilariously dark and supremely confident mash-up of MISERY, SAW and
CARRIE. Cute young Brent is still traumatized over the death of his
father when he’s picked out by classmate Lola to attend her
gore-soaked private prom. Kidnapped by her devoted father who will do
absolutely anything Lola requests, Brent soon finds himself in the
company of the deadliest pair since Burke and Hare. Slick, quick and
sick Byrne’s stylish twist on teen horror provides fresh jolts,
graphic gasps and superior scream ‘n’ squeal shocks.

VIDEO NASTIES (World Premiere)
Director: Jake West, UK 2010
From director Jake West and producer Marc Morris, a brand new feature
length documentary charting the Video Nasties phenomenon and shedding
light on one of the most important and scandalous eras in British film
history. Featuring archive material of James Ferman, Mary Whitehouse,
plus a wealth of authoritative cult film experts, journalists and
academics and contemporary UK horror film directors including Neil
Marshall and Christopher Smith. The doc is a companion piece to the
Nucleus Films release ‘Video Nasties: The Definitive Guide’, which
features every single trailer to the films that fell foul of the
Director of Public Prosecutions.

THE DEAD (World Premiere)
Directors: Howard J. Ford & Jon Ford, UK 2010
The Ford Brothers have burst on the scare scene as a fresh force in
the horror fantasy arena. In the very near future most of the world
has succumbed to a living dead virus. After crashing off the coast of
Africa in a plane, Lt. Brian Murphy battles for survival across
inhospitable parched terrain in search of a way to get back to his
beloved family in America. Saved by local military man Sgt. Daniel
Dembele, who is also searching for his son, both men join forces to
fight the ever-present flesh-eating threat stalking the bush. THE DEAD
features stunningly shot burnished landscapes, brilliant special
make-up and visual effects and terrific dust devil zombies.

3.30pm BEDEVILLED (UK Premiere)
Director: Jang Cheol-soo, South Korea 2010
From director Jang Cheol-soo, the new South Korean name to watch, the
tale of two women living on the idyllic island of Moodo. Seoul banker
Hae-won once visited Moodo to see her grandparents and had befriended
Bok-nam, a local girl. Back on the island again to regain balance to
her life, Hae-won is shocked to see everyone treating Bok-nam like a
slave – a plaything for the men and a workhorse for the women. Hae-won
remains indifferent to Bok-nam’s pleas for help, not wanting to become
involved in complicated situations. Then Bok-nam loses the only thing
that had kept her going and finally snaps, a sickle in hand to mete
out the bloodiest of revenge.

RED, WHITE & BLUE (UK Premiere)
Director: Simon Rumley, USA 2010
FrightFest launched director Simon Rumley’s THE LIVING AND THE DEAD in
2006. Now we present his latest harrowing masterpiece built around the
universal horror of that ever-encroaching shadow of mortality. In
Austin, Texas, Erica spends her nights trawling local bars and beds.
Damaged emotionally, never really connecting with anyone until she
meets the older, mysterious Iraq war veteran Nate. Despite his quiet
air of danger, Nate’s the only guy who doesn’t want to get her into
pants and the two form a hesitant bond. But one of Erica’s casual
sexual encounters is about to frighteningly rebound on the whole
community…

THE LAST EXORCISM (UK Premiere)
Director: Daniel Stamm, USA 2010
From producer Eli Roth and visionary director Daniel Stamm comes a
possession nightmare of epic proportions. Disillusioned by years of
defrauding poor believers out of their hard-earned cash, evangelist
preacher Cotton Marcus has decided to put the record straight by
starring in a fly-on-the-wall documentary exposing the con tricks of
his demon-busting trade. A letter from a poor southern farmer begging
for help in driving evil off his land seems to give Cotton the perfect
opportunity to expose the phoniness of his satanic ministry. But then
he meets the farmer’s disturbed young daughter, Nell, and everything
changes…

BURNING BRIGHT (UK Premiere)
Director: Carlos Brooks, USA 2010
High tension and jolting suspense percolate the most unusual and
sneakiest thriller of the year. Johnny Gavenau’s latest get-quick-rich
scheme is to turn his Florida ranch into a Safari Park. As the main
attraction he buys a dangerous Bengal tiger from an unscrupulous
circus trader. But the ravenous beast gets loose, its’ only refuge the
ranch house interior where stepdaughter Kelly and her autistic little
brother Tom reside… Nature runs amok but human nature proves to be
the real villain in director Carlos Brooks’ taut twist on the home
invasion chiller.

THE CLINIC (UK Premiere)
Director: James Rabbitts, Australia 2009
While travelling across Australia in 1979, heavily pregnant Beth
Church is abducted. Waking up in an abandoned abattoir, she’s
horrified to find her baby has been removed. Searching the isolated
prison for a way out she finds three other women in exactly the same
terrifying predicament. And so their deadly game of survival begins
Raw psychological horror as SAW meets THE VANISHING with a gripping
hereditary twist in director James Rabbitts’ feature debut.

FINALE (UK Premiere)
Director: John Michael Elfers, USA 2009
A bereaved family descends into a vortex of paranoia after the
supposed suicide of the oldest son in director John Michael Elfers’
shocker styled after classic 60s and 70s Italian horrors. Saturated in
a dark, rich and creepy gothic atmosphere, seeping with dread and
anxiety, Elfers’ keen eye for startling visuals imbues his gripping
supernatural cult shocker with eerie carnality, forbidden desire and
erotic imagery.

WOUND (European Premiere)
Director: David Blyth, New Zealand 2010
David Blyth makes a welcome return to the genre he pioneered in 1984
with a fantasy chiller exploring the dark worlds of mental illness,
incest, revenge and death. Blyth’s supernatural horror follows Tanya
as she searches for Susan – the mother she has never met, who gave her
up for dead after being abused by her own father. Tanya has ‘returned
from the dead’ to confront and possess Susan with all her deepest
fears and desires, sending her into a state of madness and gore-filled
retribution. A controversial cult film in the making, WOUND explores
the wicked ties that bind.

OUTCAST (Preview)
Director: Colm McCarthy, UK/Ireland 2010
A gripping, shockingly visceral portrait of the sidhe – Celtic fairy
people – whose wild magic is steeped in blood, pain and ritual and
director Colm McCarthy captures it all in his tale of strange
emotional ties. A female member of a nomadic tribe harbours a secret
shame that forces her into housing estate exile with her young son.
There she hones her skills in a dark, ancient breed of enchantment.
An unusual horror mash-up that’s equal parts intelligent, engaging,
and unexpectedly creepy.

HIGANJIMA: ESCAPE FROM VAMPIRE ISLAND (UK Premiere)
Director: Kim Tae-kyun, Japan 2010
Based on the Japanese manga that has captivated readers worldwide, an
Asian sensation arrives in the United Kingdom. No one has ever
returned from the island of Higanjima, especially Akira’s older
brother who went missing two years ago. Desperate to see his brother
again, Akira talks his friends into joining him to search the island.
Once there they realize it’s ruled by vampires. Then Akira makes a
startling discovery – his brother is still alive and has become a
vampire hunter…

CHRISTOPHER ROTH (UK Premiere)
Director: Max Sender/Maxime Alexandre, Belgium/Italy 2010
Maxime Alexandre’s ace cinematography highlighted the work of his best
friend Alexandre Aja (SWITCHBLADE ROMANCE, THE HILLS HAVE EYES and
MIRRORS). Now, as Max Sender, he has directed this unique horror
chiller about a thriller writer, Christopher Roth, who has arrived in
Umbria, Italy, to get his creative juices flowing. However, the Roths’
arrival coincides with a gruesome murder carried out by The Boar, an
elusive serial killer holding the locals in a grip of terror. Soon
Roth finds it’s hard to resist that little thrill you feel right
before you go beyond the imaginary and flirt with reality.

FANBOYS (UK Premiere)
Director: Kyle Newman, USA 2008
It’s Halloween night 1998 and STAR WARS fanboys across the globe
eagerly await the release of EPISODE 1 – THE PHANTOM MENACE. But for
Eric, Linus, Hutch and Windows, the term fanboy is a badge of honour
and the former high school friends undertake an audacious plan. To go
to director George Lucas’ Skywalker Ranch, break in, steal an early
copy of the movie and stake their claim as the first fans in history
to watch it. But to secure their place in the fanboy hall of fame
they’ll have to contend with a bizarre group of Hell’s Angels, a crazy
pimp, a deranged cluster of trekkies and William Shatner, Billy Dee
Williams and Carrie Fisher.

AFTER.LIFE (UK Premiere)
Director: Agnieszka Wojtowicz-Vosloo, USA 2009
After a horrific car accident, Anna wakes up to find the local funeral
director Eliot Deacon preparing her body for burial. Confused,
terrified and still feeling very much alive, Anna doesn’t believe
she’s dead, Trapped inside the funeral parlour, she is forced to face
her deepest fears and accept her death. With an unrelenting edge of
menace, this stylish and erotic chiller provocatively questions the
line between life and death.

AMER (BITTER) (Preview)
Directors: Helene Cattet and Bruno Forzani, France/Belgium 2009
A huge hit at FrightFest Glasgow earlier this year we are showing AMER
in London for those who couldn’t see this artful masterpiece. For
gialli fans will absolutely not want to miss co-directors Helene
Cattet and Bruno Forzani’s immaculately executed flawless valentine to
the 70s thriller genre. Recreating the motifs, clichés and visual
codes from the vintage Italian back catalogue, the Belgian-based duo
unfold a virtually dialogue free tale of frightening obsession, sexual
sensation and stunning black-gloved murder.

Tickets for the first H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival in Los Angeles are
now on sale. The festival, which takes place September 11, 2010, at
the Warner Grand Theater (478 West 6th Street, San Pedro, CA 90731),
will screen six of the best movies that have played at the original
HPLFF in Portland, Oregon, from the past 14 years.

Doors open at 2 PM, after party at 10 PM at the Whale & Ale Pub (327
West 7th Street, two blocks from theater).

Films scheduled to appear:

Lovecraft: Fear of the Unknown (2008) – An award-winning documentary
about the man who created the Cthulhu Mythos, H.P. Lovecraft. Directed
by Frank H. Woodward. (90 minutes)

Cool Air (1999) – “Never underestimate the power of the human will.”
Jack Donner (Transformers 3, ST:TOS) stars in this powerful period
adaptation of the classic Lovecraft tale about a man who will do
ANYTHING to survive. Masterfully filmed in Los Angeles on a shoestring
budget, directed by and also starring Bryan Moore. (50 minutes)

AM 1200 (2008) – Eric Lange (Lost), John Billingsley (True Blood), and
Ray Wise (Reaper, Twin Peaks) star in this taut supernatural thriller
about a man on the run who flees into a far worse Hell than the one he
left. A modern Lovecraft-inspired tale directed by David Prior. (40
minutes)

The Music of Erich Zann (1980) – One of the earliest versions of one
of Lovecraft’s most popular stories. A boarder is drawn into the web
of his mysterious old musician neighbor, who plays haunting music for
an unseen audience. Directed by John Strysik. (17 minutes)

The Call of Cthulhu (2005) – Filmed in Mythoscope, this black and
white film was made as if it were produced in 1926, the year Lovecraft
wrote his definitive tale about a worldwide cult bent on raising their
obscene god from the depths of the ocean floor. Expertly crafted by
the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society, this is the most faithful
Lovecraft story adaption to date. Winner of many awards. Directed by
Andrew Leman. (47 minutes)

Re-Animator (1985) – This extreme 80′s horror movie spawned many
filmmakers to follow in its footsteps. Starring Jeffrey Combs (Star
Trek, The Frighteners) as Herbert West, a scientist obsessed with
curing death. 2010 is the 25th anniversary of this outrageous
horror-comedy. Directed by Stuart Gordon. (86 minutes)

For ticket information, visit
http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/117721

(Thanks to Unfilmable.com and Aaron Vanek.)

Here’s the latest from the B-Movie Celebration, coming up September
24th-26th, 2010, in Franklin, Indiana. See more details at
http://ominous-events.com/index.php?title=B_Movie_Celebration

***

B-Movie Celebration Salutes 3 Midwestern B-Movie Pioneers: William
Girdler, K. Gordon Murray and Kroger Babb

This year, the B-Movie Celebration, located in Franklin, Indiana,
shines the spotlight on three B-movie mavericks from the Midwest:
William Girdler, K. Gordon Murray and Kroger Babb. Several works from
these pioneers will be shown and there will be tributes and other
surprises.

William Girdler was the Kentucky-based director of 9 feature films
including “Three on a Meathook,” “Grizzly,” “Day of the Animals” and
“The Manitou.” His brief career, cut short by his death in 1978, saw
him working with name actors such as Tony Curtis, Susan Strassberg,
Leslie Nielsen, Pam Grier, Christopher George and Lynda Day George.
Long considered a local legend, his films run the gamut from horror to
blaxploitation to even political thrillers.

K. Gordon Murray was a film presenter, dubbing films from Mexico and
presenting them to delighted audiences everywhere. His biggest success
was with a 1959 film from Mexico called “Santa Claus.” Murray
re-released this film every holiday season for nearly 20 years,
calling it a children’s classic. He always made a bundle of money with
it everytime. Although he was primarily known for children’s films,
Murray was also a producer of sleaze films like 1967’s “Shanty Tramp”
and action films like 1972’s “The Daredevil.”

Kroger Babb always presented himself as “America’s fearless showman,”
taking exploitative B-pictures like “Mom and Dad” and making with vast
promotions. His methods, including calling newspapers to protest the
film before it appears, selling sex manuals and allowing only
segregated showings, made him notorious among exhibitors, but always
massively profitable. His motto: “You gotta tell ‘em to sell ‘em.”

It’s the spirit of these showmen that we honor at this year’s B-Movie
Celebration. In addition, over 50 films will be shown. Plus, there are
special guests, seminars and the Golden Cob Awards.

Sometimes it’s good to live in Rochester. Those genuinely cool folks
over at Fright Rags (not to mention cult movie fan Jim Healy at the
Eastman House) are bringing in Tom “Thrill Me” Atkins and director
Fred Dekker for two days of double features in July. I actually had
trouble keeping this under my hat, and almost let the cat out of the
bag too early. I’m so excited, I’m mixing my metaphors!

Anyway, here’s the details:

***

FRIGHT-RAGS and The Dryden Theatre
proudly present

AN EVENING WITH TOM ATKINS
featuring screenings of
THE FOG and HALLOWEEN III : SEASON OF THE WITCH
Friday, July 16 at 7:00pm

In the first of these early ’80s horror cult classics, a Northern
California coastal town is besieged by vengeful ghosts 100 years after
a legendary shipwreck. For his first theatrical feature after
Halloween, director John Carpenter assembled a great cast that
includes Jamie Lee Curtis and her real-life mom Janet Leigh, Hal
Holbrook, Adrienne Barbeau, and Tom Atkins. In the second half of this
double bill, a cadaverous toy manufacturer (Dan O’Herlihy) hatches an
evil plot to destroy trick-or-treating children through the
manufacturing of diabolical rubber masks. It’s up to our divorced
doctor hero (Tom Atkins) to stop the madman’s plan. The one entry in
the Halloween series that has nothing to do with mass murderer Michael
Meyers, Season of the Witch is a fun and memorably creepy film.
Veteran character actor Atkins will join us in person to introduce and
discuss these two genre gems.

Two films for one admission price.

***

FRIGHT-RAGS and The Dryden Theatre
proudly present

AN EVENING WITH FRED DEKKER & TOM ATKINS
featuring screenings of
MONSTER SQUAD and NIGHT OF THE CREEPS (director’s cut)
Saturday, July 17 at 7:00pm

“The Monster Squad” is a group of pre-teen kids who worship classic
horror movies. Through a set of coincidences, the youngsters find
themselves squaring off against Dracula, the Wolfman, the Mummy, the
Gil Man, and Frankenstein’s Monster. Then, in Night of the Creeps,
“The good news is your dates are here. The bad news is they’re dead!”
World-weary Detective Cameron (Tom Atkins in his quintessential role)
tries to solve a series of college campus murders involving walking
corpses, wormlike alien creatures that take over your body, and a
resurrected ax murderer. These two wildly imaginative action-horror
movies from the mid-’80s pay affectionate homage to numerous other
classics of the genre, thanks to their creator: writer, director, and
cinephile Fred Dekker. He, along with veteran character actor Atkins,
will appear in person to introduce and discuss his fondly remembered
films.

Two films for one admission price.

For more information on the Dryden Theatre and these events, please
visit dryden.eastmanhouse.org

For more from Fright Rags: http://www.fright-rags.com/page.html?id=35

Here’s some screening news for our Scottish film fans (via Adele at
Dead By Dawn). The original The Vanishing will be playing Edinburgh’s
Filmhouse in July.

http://www.filmhousecinema.com/showing/the-vanishing/

***

George Sluizer’s fabulous THE VANISHING is playing on Thursday 8 &
Sunday 11 July (check the site for times)

Netherlands/France 1988 / 1h46m / 35mm / Dutch, French and English
with English subtitles / Cert 12
Cast: Bernard-Pierre Donnadieu, Gene Bervoets, Johanna ter Steege,
Gwen Eckhaus, Bernadette Le Saché.

From the catalogue:

“A superb psychodrama which twists the slenderest of plots into a
hellish exploration of human potential. On a driving holiday in
France, a young Dutch couple, Saskia and Rex, stop at a service
station to refuel; as Rex waits, Saskia walks to a nearby toilet, and
vanishes without trace. Three years later, an embittered Rex finds
himself drawn into a nightmarish relationship with Saskia’s awesomely
mundane abductor, Raymond Lemorne, who, via taunting postcards,
promises to reveal the fate of his lost love… A beautifully
understated study of obsession that investigates the edges of
rationality and the destructive capacity of idealistic devotion. At
the heart of its icy spell is Donnadieu’s utterly plausible evocation
of everyday madness, a resolutely banal picture of evil. Sluizer’s
direction is seamless throughout, effortlessly juggling domesticity
and damnation as it ploughs inexorably towards an appalling
dénouement.  This is a rarer-than-rare screening of George Sluizer’s
unforgettably chilling Dutch original (he remade it less successfully
in the US).

Mark Kermode called it “An enticing, terrifying vision, superbly
conceived and masterfully executed”

*

Tickets are available direct from Filmhouse: www.filmhousecinema.com
or 0131 228 2688

If I was anywhere near Tulsa, you know I’d be attending this one… a program of H.P. Lovecraft inspired shorts is just too good to pass up.

So if you attend, make sure to say “hey” to Unfilmable.com’s Craig Mullins for me!

-M

***

Get ready to face fear head on from some of the best in horror!

If you think you’ve seen the most terrifying films of all time think again…

From the Art Sunday Artist Agency™ comes the “Underground Horror Filmfest™” on July 10, 2010 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. This “scream fest” features film makers, sideshows, DJ’s, writers, special FX artists, vendors (films, shorts, music videos) and much more coming soon…

The show runs from 3:00 PM – 2:00 AM, at The Marquee

Unfilmable.com presents H.P. Lovecraft Cinema:

- The Silver Key a film by Gary Fierro and Conor Timmis (CT)
- H.P. Lovecraft’s The Book a film by James Raynor (United Kingdom)
- The Other Gods a film by Mike Boas (NY)
- At the Reefers of Madness a film by Brian Clement (Toronto, ON)
- From Beyond a film by Michael Granberry (CA)
- Frank DanCoolo: Paranormal Drug Dealer a film by Andrew Jones
- The Crimson Robe a by Russell Welch
- Elder Sign a film by Joseph Nanni
- plus clips (House of Black Wings, Pickman‘s Muse), trailers (Lovecraft Paragraphs, Colour from the Dark, Dirt Dauber, The Terrible Old Tran) and teasers (The Seventh Shadow)…

For more information, visit the Underground Horror Filmfest on Facebook, MySpace and Twitter…

Jeff Ross of San Francisco’s Another Hole in the Head is doing a push
for this year’s fest, starting in just a few weeks. If you’re on the
west coast, be sure to check it out!

Ominous listing:
http://ominous-events.com/index.php?title=Another_Hole_in_the_Head

Official site:
http://www.sfindie.com/

-M

***

The 8th Another Hole in the Head festival is right around the corner.
This year the fest grows to 40 films from 10 countries spread out over
three weeks. Three weeks of midnight movies, not everyone’s cup of
tea, but for fans of the far out, extreme, bizarre, unusual, grotesque
and hilarious, this is the Fest for you. PLUS we’ve added some live
music to your already busy weekend. The Summer Music Fest kicks off
with a choice of two awesome shows at BOTH and Thee Parkside. Can’t
decide what to see? Buy a pass and run back and forth! Its gonna be a
blast!

This year’s film fest has films from HoleHead regulars, classic trash
from the past, a couple of documentaries, films by local Bay Area folk
plus a great program put together by the one and only Will the Thrill!

Check the site for film descriptions, trailers and advance tix and
passes. Tickets and passes are starting to sell quickly, so be sure
to get yours soon!

Se you at the fest!

Jeff, George, Eric, Tia, Kelda @ SF IndieFest

I just got word that Buffalo filmmakers Greg Lamberson and Emil Novak are launching a new horror film festival for October 2010. I had a good time when Lamberson organized the horror/sci-fi program with the Buffalo/Niagara fest a couple years ago, so I’m looking forward to this.

From their website at http://www.buffaloscreams.com …

“Buffalo rocks. Buffalo Bleeds. Buffalo SCREAMS.”

Buffalo, New York – Two independent filmmakers, Emil J. Novak and Gregory Lamberson, are organizing a new horror film festival, Buffalo Screams, which will run for four days at The Screening Room in Amherst, New York, a suburb of Buffalo, from Wednesday, October 21st – Sunday, October 24th. They are calling for entries and seeking sponsors through their website, www.buffaloscreams.com

Both men have lived in New York State their entire lives, and Novak, a lifelong resident of Buffalo, is the owner of Queen City Bookstore, the Main Street comic book store his father started in 1969. In recent years he wrote and directed the feature films Tesla the Accumulator and Banshee, and is currently shooting the zombie anthology, Decayed.

Lamberson, who grew up in Fredonia and now lives in Cheektowaga, is the award-winning author of Johnny Gruesome, Personal Demons, and the just released werewolf novel The Frenzy Way. He also wrote and directed the 1988 cult film Slime City, and last year he directed a sequel, Slime City Massacre, around Buffalo’s Central Terminal Station. Slime City Massacre recently won the Best Film and Best Actor categories at the PollyGrind Film Festival in Las Vegas.

“We have similar interests and influences,” says Lamberson of their partnership. “We know each other’s strengths and complement each other well. Emil is a graphic artist with deep ties to the community, and the comic store is a great base of operations; I know a lot of filmmakers from around the world and have a track record for promotion. We’re both actively involved in the Buffalo filmmaking scene, love horror films, and want to create a festival that will draw attention to this region. We decided to start with a four-day festival, rather than a one or two day event, to show how serious our commitment is.”

Novak explains why the duo chose to hold Buffalo Screams at The Screening Room: “Bob Golibersush, owner of the Screening Room, is one of Western New York’s biggest supporters of indie filmmakers and indie theater. Bob has been involved in the movie business for 1over 17 years. He also hosts the BM-VM (Buffalo Movie-Video Makers) society, established in 1934. The venue is attractive and inviting; it also serves, wine, beer and soft drinks.”

According to the pair, Buffalo has a large population of horror film fans due to its long history with the genre: Harvey Weinstein of Miramax and the Weinstein Company wrote and produced The Burning here in 1981; Local cinematographer James Gribbins directed Shadow Creature in 1995; and Lloyd Kaufman made Troma Entertainment’s Poultrygeist here in 2006. In addition, the area has seen a groundswell in grassroots productions such as Gore, The Pigman, House of Horrors: The Movie, and the currently lensing productions Dusk, The Perfect House, and The Final Night and Day.

“The audience is here,” Lamberson says. “Our job is to use our contacts in the industry attract films that people here may not see otherwise, and to create a unique atmosphere that will grow the event each year. I was a guest at the Beloit International Film Festival in Wisconsin for two years, and the visiting filmmakers unanimously proclaimed it the best festival they’d ever attended because of the generous support shown to them by the festival volunteers and community. We want to generate that same buzz here, with regards to our chosen genre.”

Buffalo Screams is a joint presentation by Novak’s production company, Buffalo Nickel Productions http://www.buffnickelproductions.com , and Lamberson’s website, http://www.slimeguy.com.

CONTACT: Greg Lamberson – glamberson@verizon.net

Here’s info from the Toronto After Dark festival about a special screening this week…

-M

===

SPANISH ZOMBIES INVADE THE BLOOR CINEMA IN [REC2], SCREENING THIS THURS, JUNE 17 (ENTER TO WIN TIX!)

One of our favourite zombie outbreak films of the past few years is the terrifying Spanish movie [REC] set in a sealed off apartment building. Fans can get a chance to see the just-as-scary sequel [REC2] at a special screening this Thursday night, June 17, 9.30pm at Toronto’s Bloor Cinema, 506 Bloor St. West, being hosted by our good friends at Rue Morgue Cinemcabre. Tickets just $10 available at the door, from 9pm.  Find out more about the screening and watch the trailer here:
http://www.rue-morgue.com/rmp_cinemacabre.php

WIN TICKETS!
Thanks to Rue Morgue, we have 5 Pairs of tickets to give away to this Thursday’s screening of [REC2]. Click on the link below to enter the contest:
http://bit.ly/tadff_rec2
Contest closes this Thursday, June 17, 11AM, winners will be notified by 12PM, tickets to be collected at the door.

-M

===========

This year, the Fantasia film festival is proud to offer hotel packages
to festival-goers, guests and friends of the festival. From youth
hostels to five-star hotels, we have options that will accommodate
your budget! In order to get the special festival rate, simply mention
“Fantasia” when you call to book your room or write it in the
“Comments” section when booking online. We thank you in advance for
the support you will show to our hotel partners.

Le Nouvel Hôtel
1740 Rene-Levesque West
Montreal, QC H3H 1R3
(514) 931-8841
109$ pour la chambre standard un lit king
109$ one room with one king bed
www.lenouvelhotel.com

Opus Hotel
10 sherbrooke est coin St-Laurent
514-843-6000
169$ lit King
169$ King Bed
www.opushotel.com

Le Centre Sheraton Hôtel
1201 boul. René-Lévesque Ouest
514-878-2038
159$ par nuit occupation simple ou occupation double
159$ for one night single or double occupancy
www.starwoodhotels.com

Hotel Espresso
1005 Guy
514-938-4611
100$ Chambre deux lits double ou un lit King
100$ Rooms with two double beds or one King bed
www.daysinn.qc.ca/montreal_downtown_hotel.htm

Hôtel Champs de Mars (Vieux-Montréal)
756 rue Berri
514-844-0767
88$ Chambres un lit double + petit déjeuner américain 1 ou 2 personnes
88$ Rooms with double bed + american breakfast for one or two persons
www.hotelchampdemars.com

Auberge Jeunesse/ Hi Hostelling
1030 McKay
514-843-3317
28$ chambre dortoir + petit déjeuner
76$ chambre privée occupation simple ou double + petit déjeuner
28$ dormitory +breakfast
76$ Private room+ breakfast
www.hostellingmontreal.com/1/accueil.hostel

Le Gite du plateau Mont-Royal/ Parc Lafontaine (Plateau) :
2 Hôtels : le gite du parc Lafontaine (1250 Sherbrooke est) et le gite
du plateau (185 Sherbrooke est)
514 284-1276
25$ pour une personne : dortoir et petit déjeuner
65$ pour deux personnes : chambre privé et petit déjeuner deux lits
simples ou un lit double
25$ for one person: dormitory and breakfast
65$ for two persons: Private room and breakfast
www.hostelmontreal.com/default1.htm