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The 2019 Screamfest Horror Film Festival Unveils Second-Wave
The 2019 Screamfest Horror Film Festival unveils its second-wave of feature films lineup and will showcase new work from American and international independent horror filmmakers. The 2019 Screamfest Film Festival will take place October 8 – October 17, 2019, at the famed TCL Chinese 6 Theatres located in Hollywood, California.
“We are excited to bring audiences the best the genre has to offer from the independent horror film community.” — Founder & Festival Director Rachel Belofsky.
Awards are given in the categories of Best Feature, Directing, Cinematography, Editing, Acting, Makeup, Special Effects, Visual Effects, and Musical Score. In addition, there are special categories for Best Animation, Best Short, Best Documentary and Best Student Film.
The second wave of the 2019 feature film lineup is as follows:
A Good Woman Is Hard To Find (UK/Belgium) US Premiere
Directed by Abner Pastoll Written by Ronan Blaney
Produced by Guillaume Benski, Junyoung Jang
A dynamic killer thriller with its finger firmly on the pulse of stark social commentary and shattering suspense. Recently widowed mother of two Sarah is desperate to know who murdered her husband in front of her young son, rendering him mute. Coerced into helping a low-life drug dealer stash narcotics stolen from the local Mr Big, she’s forced into taking drastic action to protect her children, evolving from downtrodden submissive to take-charge vigilante.
Cast: Sarah Bolger, Edward Hogg, Andrew Simpson, Jane Brennan, Susan Ateh, Josh Bolt, Siobhan Kelly
City of Ashes (Columbia) World Premiere
Directed by Jhon Salazar
Written by Jhon Salazar
Produced by Producciones Verdebiche Sas
A Colombian farmer, faced with the sterility of his wife, wants to adopt his orphan niece, but in order to achieve this, he must destroy the demon of the town who is opposed and who, without knowing, had always intervened negativity in his life.
Cast: Catherine Escobar, Alex Adames, Luis Fernando Hoyos, Patricia Tamayo, Jorge Herrera, Patricia Castano, Isabella Garcia.
Hanna’s Homecoming (Germany)
Directed by Esther Bialas
After three years at boarding school, Hanna is returning home to her little village to help her father’s butcher’s shop during her break. Soon she learns that she is not welcome in the village. Everyone remembers the horrific news story about her mother’s death which was followed by the discovery of three dead men in the marsh. While superstition rules the village, everyone believes her mother was a witch and had lured these men into the marsh directly to their death. While struggling to make friends, she meets the extroverted city girl Eva. Thinking she has finally found a friend, scary accidents are starting to happen around her … while Hanna’s confidence and with that her “power” starts to grow.
Cast: Valerie Stoll, Milena Tscharntke, Godehard Giese
Here Comes Hell (UK) LA Premiere
Directed by Jack McHenry
Written by Jack McHenry, Alice Sidgwick Produced by Olivia Loveridge
A 1930s dinner party descends into chaos and carnage when the evening entertainment accidentally leads to the opening of Hell. Rivalries and old friendships are put to the test as the guests must battle ghosts, ghouls – and one another – before it is too late.
Cast: Margaret Clunie, Jessica Webber
Porno (USA) LA Premiere
Directed by Keola Racela
Written by Matt Black, Laurence Vannicelli, Produced by: Chris Cole, Sarah Oh
When five teen employees at the local movie theater in a small Christian town discover a mysterious old film hidden in its basement, they unleash an alluring succubus who gives them a sex education…written in blood.
Cast Evan Daves, Larry Saperstein, Jillian Mueller, Glenn Stott, Robbie Tann, Peter Reznikoff, Katelyn Pearce
RABID (USA) North American Premiere
Directed by: Jen & Sylvia Soska
Written by: Jen & Sylvia Soska, Jon Serge
Produced by: Jon Vidette, Paul Laldone, Michael Walker
Aspiring fashion designer, Rose Miller, has her dreams torn away into a nightmarish reality when a freak accident leaves her horribly disfigured. After receiving a miracle procedure involving an experimental skin graft from the mysterious Burroughs Clinic, Rose is transformed into the beauty of her dreams. But nothing comes without a cost and Rose begins to feel terrifying side effects that tear at her last threads of sanity. Still driven by her ambition she struggles to keep up appearances as the procedure reveals that something much darker than she ever could have imagined is being brought to the surface. What price will Rose have to pay to have everything she ever wanted? It may just cost her her humanity.
Cast: Laura Vandervoort, Benjamin Hollingswoth, Phil Brooks, Stephen McHattie
Red Letter Day (Canada) LA Premiere
Directed by Cameron Macgowan
Written by Cameron Macgowan
Produced by Jason Wan Lim
While adjusting to a new life in a quiet suburban community, a recently divorced mother and her two teens receive mysterious red letters instructing them to kill or be killed.
Cast: Dawn Van de Schoot, Hailey Foss, Kaeleb Zain Gartner, Roger LeBlanc
The Soul Conductor (Russia) North American Premiere
Directed by Ilya Maksimov
Written by Anna Kurbatova, Alexander Topuria
Produced by Mikhail Kurbatov, Anna Kurbatov, Grigoriy Podzemelnyy
Katya is a conduit between the world of the dead and the world of the quick, and she helps earthbound souls to regain peace. It’s difficult relationships, between Katya and her ‘guests’, for ghosts, too, like real people, have human emotions, habits and sentiments, and they long to find eternal peace.
Cast: Aleksandra Bortich, Evgeniy Tsyganov, Vladmir Yaglych, Aleksandr Robak
The Wave (USA) West Coast Premiere
Directed by Gille Klabin
Written by Carl W. Lucas
Produced by Joshua Bunting, Robert Dehn, Carl W. Lucas, Monte Young
Frank, an opportunistic insurance lawyer, thinks he’s in for the time of his life when he goes out on the town to celebrate an upcoming promotion with his co-worker, Jeff. But their night takes a turn for the bizarre when Frank is dosed with a hallucinogen that completely alters his perception of the world, taking him on a psychedelic quest through board meetings, nightclubs, shootouts, and alternate dimensions. As Frank ping-pongs between reality and fantasy, he finds himself on a mission to find a missing girl, himself… and his wallet.
Cast: Justin Long, Donald Fiason, Tommy Flanagan, Sheila Vand, Katia Winter, Sarah Minnich, Bill Sage
We Summon The Darkness (USA) West Coast Premiere (Closing Night Film)
Directed by Marc Meyers Written by Alan Trezza
Produced by Kyle Tekiela, Mark Lane, Christian Armogida
In 1988, Three best friends Alexis (Alex Daddario), Val and Beverly embark on a road trip to a heavy metal music festival where they bond with three guys in a band. After the show, the group heads off to Alexis’ parents’ secluded country home for an afterparty. What should be a night of fun and youthful debauchery instead takes a dark and deadly turn. With killers on the loose, can anyone be trusted?
Cast: Alexandra Daddario, Keean Johnson, Johnny Knoxville, Logan Miller, Maddie Hasson, Amy Forsyth, Austin Swift
Wounds (USA) West Coast Premiere
Directed by Babak Anvari.
Written by Babak Anvai
Produced by: Lucan Toh, Christopher Kopp
Will (Armie Hammer) is a bartender in New Orleans. He has a great job, great friends, and a girlfriend, Carrie (Dakota Johnson), who loves him. He skates across life’s surface, ignoring complications and concentrating on enjoying the moment. One night at the bar, a violent brawl breaks out, which injures one of his regular customers and causes some college kids to leave behind a cell phone in their haste. Will begins receiving disturbing texts and calls from the stranger’s phone. While Will hopes to not get involved, Carrie gets lost down a rabbit hole investigating this strange light.alevolence. They’ve discovered something unspeakable, and it’s crawling slowly into the
Written for the Screen and Directed By Babak Anvari the Award-Winning Director of Under the Shadow.
Wounds made its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2019 and screened at the Cannes Film Festival in the Directors Fortnight section in May 2019.
Cast: Armie Hammer, Dakota Johnson, Zazie Beetz, Karl Glusman, Brad William Henke
About the Screamfest Horror Film Festival:
Formed in August 2001 by film producer Rachel Belofsky, Screamfest Horror Film Festival is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that gives filmmakers and screenwriters in the horror and science fiction genres a venue to have their work showcased in the film industry. Among the numerous films that have been disco ered and/or premiered at the festival include “Tigers Are Not Afraid.”,“Paranormal Activity,” “30 Days of Night,” “Trick ‘r Treat” and “The Human Centipede.” For more information, visit https://screamfestla.com or email info@screamfestla.com
Passes and Tickets for the 2019 Screamfest Horror Film Festival:
Advance selection ticket packages are now on sale. All packages can be purchased online at https://screamfestla.com/festival-passes
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Movies
‘The Strangers’ Invaded Coachella in Instagramable PR Stunt
Renny Harlin’s reboot of The Strangers isn’t coming out until May 17, but those murderous home invaders are making a pit stop at Coachella first.
In the latest Instagramable PR stunt, the studio behind the film decided to have the trio of masked intruders crash Coachella, a music festival that takes place for two weekends in Southern California.
This type of publicity began when Paramount did the same thing with their horror movie Smile in 2022. Their version had seemingly ordinary people in populated places look directly into a camera with an evil grin.
Harlin’s reboot is actually a trilogy with a more expansive world than that of the original.
“When setting out to remake The Strangers, we felt there was a bigger story to be told, which could be as powerful, chilling, and terrifying as the original and could really expand that world,” said producer Courtney Solomon. “Shooting this story as a trilogy allows us to create a hyperreal and terrifying character study. We’re fortunate to be joining forces with Madelaine Petsch, an amazing talent whose character is the driving force of this story.”
The movie follows a young couple (Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez) who “after their car breaks down in an eerie small town, are forced to spend the night in a remote cabin. Panic ensues as they are terrorized by three masked strangers who strike with no mercy and seemingly no motive in The Strangers: Chapter 1 the chilling first entry of this upcoming horror feature film series.”
The Strangers: Chapter 1 opens in theaters on May 17.
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Movies
‘Alien’ Returning to Theaters For a Limited Time
It’s been 45 years since Ridley Scott’s Alien hit theaters and in celebration of that milestone, it is headed back to the big screen for a limited time. And what better day to do that than Alien Day on April 26?
It also works as a primer for the upcoming Fede Alvarez sequel Alien: Romulus opening on August 16. A special feature in which both Alvarez and Scott discuss the original sci-fi classic will be shown as a part of your theater admission. Take a look at the preview of that conversation below.
Back in 1979, the original trailer for Alien was kind of terrifying. Imagine sitting in front of a CRT TV (Cathode Ray Tube) at night and suddenly Jerry Goldsmith’s haunting score begins to play as a giant chicken egg starts to crack with beams of light bursting through the shell and the word “Alien” slowly forms in slanted all caps across the screen. To a twelve-year-old, it was a scary pre-bedtime experience, especially Goldsmith’s screaming electronic musical flourishes playing over scenes of the actual movie. Let the “Is it horror or sci-fi?” debate begin.
Alien became a pop culture phenomenon, complete with kid’s toys, a graphic novel, and an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. It also inspired dioramas in wax museums and even a frightening setpiece at Walt Disney World in the now-defunct Great Movie Ride attraction.
The film stars Sigourney Weaver, Tom Skerritt, and John Hurt. It tells the tale of a futuristic crew of blue-collar workers suddenly awakened out of stasis to investigate an undecipherable distress signal coming from a nearby moon. They investigate the source of the signal and discover it’s a warning and not a cry for help. Unbeknownst to the crew, they have brought a giant space creature back on board which they find out in one of the most iconic scenes in cinema history.
It is said that Alvarez’s sequel will pay homage to the original film’s storytelling and set design.
The Alien theatrical re-release will take place on April 26. Pre-order your tickets and find out where Alien will screen at a theater near you.
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News
Home Depot’s 12-Foot Skeleton Returns with a New Friend, Plus New Life-Size Prop from Spirit Halloween
Halloween is the greatest holiday of them all. However, every great holiday needs amazing props to go with it. Luckily for you, there are two new amazing props that have been released, which are sure to impress your neighbors and frighten any neighborhood children who are unfortunate enough to wander past your yard.
The first entry is the return of the Home Depot 12-foot skeleton prop. Home Depot has outdone themselves in the past. But this year the company is bringing bigger and better things to their Halloween prop lineup.
This year, the company unveiled its new and improved Skelly. But what is a giant skeleton without a loyal friend? Home Depot has also announced that they will release a five-foot tall skeleton dog prop to eternally keep Skelly company as he haunts your yard this spooky season.
This bony pooch will be five feet tall and seven feet long. The prop will also feature a posable mouth and LCD eyes with eight variable settings. Lance Allen, Home Depot’s merchant of decorative Holliday gear, had the following to say about this year’s lineup.
“This year we increased our realism within the animatronics category, created some impressive, licensed characters and even brought back some fan favorites. Overall, we are most proud of the quality and value we are able to bring to our customers with these pieces so they can continue to grow their collections.”
But what if giant skeletons just aren’t your thing? Well, Spirit Halloween has you covered with their giant life size Terror Dog replica. This massive prop has been ripped out of your nightmares to appear frighteningly on your lawn.
This prop weighs in at almost fifty pounds and features glowing red eyes that are sure to keep your yard safe from any toilet paper throwing hooligans. This iconic Ghostbusters nightmare is a must have for any fan of 80s horror. Or, anyone who loves all things spooky.
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