EXCLUSIVE : The L.A.-based Screamfest Horror Film Festival has unveiled the first wave lineup for its 24th edition, taking place at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood from October 8-17.
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Among the films to look out for at this year’s festival are two produced for Hulu by WorthenBrooks (formerly 20th Digital Studio), on which we were first to report: Screamfest alum Brandon Espy’s Mr. Crocket and Justin Harding’s Carved , both of which will premiere on Hulu later this year.
A supernatural horror film starring Jerrika Hinton and Elvis Nolasco, Mr. Crocket follows Summer Beverly (Hinton) as she embarks on a chilling journey to rescue her son from a sinister children’s show host with otherworldly powers. Starring Peyton Elizabeth Lee, Carved is a fun romp centered on a group of survivors trapped in a Halloween village battle with a sentient, vengeful pumpkin.
In addition to Carved , world premieres at this year’s fest will include Drained , from filmmakers Sean Patrick Cronin and Peter Stylianous, and Dario Germani’s ALO – Antropophagus Legacy . Among other films to see is Joe DeBoer and Kyle McConaghy’s SXSW title Dead Mail , in which an ominous help note finds its way to a 1980s post office, connecting a dead letter investigator to a kidnapped keyboard technician.
Highlights from this year’s shorts program include filmmaker Felipe Vargas’s Hive starring Xochitl Gomez; Dakota Daulby and Harrison Houde’s Adjoining starring Brenna D’Amico; Jake Bradbury and Toni Blando’s Disfigura , featuring Hellboy ‘s Doug Jones; Fresh Blood starring Clara Mcgregor ( American Horror Story ) and directed by Emma Westenberg; and The Underground from director Rachel Talalay. Tickets will be on sale soon at the link.
Stated Rachel Belofsky, who founded Screamfest in 2001, “We’re excited to offer horror fans a diverse selection of terrifying films from across the globe.”
For Screamfest’s full feature line-up, read on.
1978 (Argentina, 2024) – North American Premiere
Directed by Nicolás Onetti and Luciano Onetti
Written by Luciano Onetti, Nicolás Onetti , Camilo Zaffora
Produced by Michael Kraetzer, Sayf Aram, Carlos Goitia, Nicolás Onetti
Cast: Agustin Pardella, Mario Alarcón, Carlos Portaluppi
During the World Cup final between Argentina and Holland, in times of military dictatorship, a group of torturers violently breaks into a home and kidnaps a group of young people to take them to a clandestine detention center. What begins as an inhumane interrogation turns into a true martyrdom: the wrong group of people have been kidnapped. They turn out to be part of a macabre cult guided by an unknown supernatural force. The clandestine detention center will become hell itself…
The A-Frame (US, 2024) – West Coast Premiere
Directed by Calvin Lee Reeder
Written by Calvin Lee Reeder
Produced by Angelia Adzic, Vincent Grashaw, Ran Maerode, Cole Payne
Cast: Johnny Whitworth, Dana Namerode, Nik Dodani, Laketa Caston
A quantum physicist develops a machine that creates a tunnel to a subatomic universe. In his quest to prove the machine’s efficacy, he inadvertently discovers a radical treatment for cancer.
ALO – Antropophagus Legacy (Italy, 2024) – World Premiere
Directed by Dario Germani
Written by Pierpaolo Marcelli, Dario Germani
Produced by Pierpaolo Marcelli, Marco Gaudenzi
Cast: Valentina Corti, Salvatore Licausi, Akos Horvath
Everything in Hanna’s life suddenly seems to fall apart. Accused of the brutal murder of her husband, she is forced to flee to Hungary to defend the only reason for living she has left; the child she is carrying. In Budapest, she will ask for help from her cousin Hugo, who will drag her into a spiral of violence involving a dark past and a bloodline to be dealt with.
Animale (France, 2024) – West Coast Premiere
Directed by Emma Benestan
Written by Emma Benestan
Produced by Julie Billy, Naomi Denamur, Cassandre Warnauts, Jean-Yves Roubin
Cast: Oulaya Amamra, Claude Chaballierm, Elies-Morgan Admi-Bensellam, Vivien Rodriguez, Damien Rebattel
Camargue, France – Infamous for its traditional bull race, an exhilarating and graceful challenge of agility and respect between man and beast. Surrounded by men, 22-year-old Nejma trains hard to fulfill her dream of winning the upcoming annual competition, but news of a rogue and violent bull on the loose terrifies the community. Young men are being murdered everywhere, and the beast is nowhere to be seen.
BA (US, 2024) – LA Premiere
Directed by Ben Wong
Written by Ben Wong
Produced by Elizabeth Ai
Cast: Lawrence Kao, Kai Cech, Brian Thompson, Michael Paul Chan
When a struggling father makes a Faustian bargain and becomes the incarnation of Death, he must fight to unwind his fate while keeping his predicament hidden from his daughter. A dark fantasy drama.
Beacon (US, 2024) – LA Premiere
Directed by Roxy Shih
Written by Julio Rojas
Produced by Neil Elman, Taralee Gerhard, Andrew C. Erin
Cast: Demián Bichir, Julia Goldani Telles
An ambitious solo trip leads to a young sailor’s shipwreck on a remote island, where she’s rescued by the lone inhabitant, a lighthouse keeper. As reality twists and their trust fractures, survival becomes a grueling trial.
Carved (US, 2024) – World Premiere
Directed by Justin Harding
Written by Justin Harding, Cheryl Meyer
Produced by David Brooks, Jenna Cavelle, Arbi Pedrossian, Deborah Liebling
Cast: DJ Qualls, Chris Elliot, Matty Cardarople, Corey Fogelmanis, Peyton Elizabeth Lee
A group of survivors get trapped in a reenactment village on Halloween and must fight against a vengeful pumpkin creature. Rephrased: Survivors trapped in a Halloween village battle a sentient, vengeful pumpkin.
The Complex Forms (Italy, 2024) – LA Premiere
Directed by Fabio D’Orta
Written by Fabio D’Orta
Produced by Fabio D’Orta
Cast: David Richard White, Michele Venni, Cesare Bonomelli, Enzo Solazzi
There is an ancient villa where desperate people have the opportunity to revive their fortunes by selling their bodies to mysterious entities in exchange for money. When huge and age-old creatures emerge from the deep woods surrounding the villa, a series of strange and sinister events prompt three unlikely guests to band together in a desperate escape.
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Dead Mail (USA, 2024) – LA Premiere
Directed by Joe DeBoer and Kyle McConaghy
Written by Joe DeBoer, Kyle McConaghy
Produced by Zachary Weil, Brett Arndy
Cast: Sterling Macer Jr., John Fleck, Tomas Boykin, Susan Priver, Micki Jackson
An ominous help note finds its way to a 1980s post office, connecting a dead letter investigator to a kidnapped keyboard technician.
Drained (UK, 2024) – World Premiere
Directed by Sean Patrick Cronin and Peter Stylianous
Written by Peter Stylianous
Produced by Sean Patrick Cronin
Cast: Madalina Bellariu Bellariu Ion, Ruaridh Aldington, Angela Dixon, Craig Conway
In the neon-soaked streets of London, Thomas, a jobless post-graduate concept artist, falls in love with Rhea, a mysterious woman who turns out to be a vampire. Drawn into a codependent relationship, Thomas willingly offers his blood to Rhea in exchange for her companionship. As their twisted romance unfolds, Thomas’s health deteriorates, and he spirals out of control. ‘Drained’ explores the theme of codependency, reflecting the addictive nature of modern life while delivering a dark and alluring vampire horror experience.
Else (France, Belgium, 2024) – West Coast Premiere
Directed by Thibault Emin
Written by Thibault Emin, Alice Butaud, Emma Sandona
Produced by Damien Lagogué; Benoit Roland (co-producer)
Cast: Matthieu Sampeur, Edith Proust, Lika Minamoto
Anx has just met Cass when a mysterious virus breaks out: everywhere, people’s bodies are merging with objects. Stuck in their apartment, the couple must face this dreadful threat.
In Our Blood (US, 2024)- US Premiere
Directed by Pedro Kos
Written by Mallory Westfall
Produced by Aaron Kogan, Steven Klein, Gary Lucchesi, Michael McKay, and Stuart Fenegan
Cast: Brittany O’Grady, E. J. Bonilla, Alanna Ubach, Krisha Fairchild, Steven Klein and Bianca Comparato
Nothing is as it seems when filmmaker Emily Wyland (Brittany O’Grady) teams up with cinematographer Danny (E. J. Bonilla) to shoot an intimate documentary about reuniting with Emily’s estranged mother after a decade apart. When her mother suddenly goes missing, possibly succumbing to the addictions that first tore her family apart, Emily and Danny must piece together increasingly sinister clues to find her before it’s too late. Directed by Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker Pedro Kos ( Rebel Hearts, Lead Me Home ) in his first narrative feature, IN OUR BLOOD masterfully blends psychological mystery with chilling horror. The film weaves a twisted tale of reconciling with the ghosts of our past and confronting the complicity we share in creating a world that preys on the most vulnerable.
Mr. Crocket (US, 2024) – West Coast Premiere
Directed by Brandon Espy
Written by Carl Reid and Brandon Espy
Produced by David Brooks, Arbi Pedrossian, Jenna Cavelle, Josh Feldman
Cast: Jerrika Hinton, Ayden Gavin, Elvis Nolasco, Kristolyn Lloyd, Alex Akpobome
The year is 1993. SUMMER BEVERLY’S world is turned upside down when the love of her life, her husband, JERREL, succumbs to cancer. On her own, struggling to support herself and her nine-year-old son, MAJOR, things couldn’t possibly get any worse for Summer. Or so she believes, until the trauma of his father’s death sends Major into an emotional tailspin, making him impossible to control. Summer believes she’s been granted a miracle when a VHS tape of an old kids TV show, MR. CROCKET’S WORLD, appears on her doorstep. She plays it for Major, and it works like a charm in finally getting him to calm down and behave. But soon, Major’s love for the show and its relentlessly cheery host, MR. CROCKET, devolves into an obsession. To keep her sanity, Summer has to pull the plug on Major’s endless TV marathon. When Major goes on a tirade in response, smashing some of his late father’s most treasured items, Summer lashes out and says some harsh words. Later that night, Mr. Crocket himself violently emerges from the television and kidnaps Major through a mysterious portal. The police don’t believe a word Summer says, so she launches into a search all through the neighborhood for clues about Mr. Crocket and all of the other kids he’s taken over the years. What Summer uncovers about where they’ve all vanished to send her on a journey deep into Mr. Crocket’s dark and twisted world.
Scared Shitless (Canada, 2024) – US Premiere
Directed by Vivieno Caldinelli
Written by Brandon Cohen
Produced by Lewis Spring
Cast: Chelsea Clark, Daniel Doheny, Mark McKinney, Steven Ogg
A plumber and his germophobic son are forced to get their hands dirty to save the residents of an apartment building, when a genetically engineered, blood-thirsty creature escapes into the plumbing system.
Test Screening (USA, 2024) – North American Premiere
Directed by Clark Baker
Written by Clark Baker, Stephen Susco
Produced by Stephen Susco, Michael Mobley, Warren Kohler
Cast: Sean Bridgers, James Urbaniak, Amy Hargreaves, Rain Spencer, Johnny Berchtold, Drew Scheid
Summer, 1982: four lifelong best friends find their lives upended when a Hollywood film decides to hold a secret test screening in their small, declining Oregon town.
The Witch. Revenge (Ukraine, 2024) – North American Premiere
Directed by Andriy Kolesnyk
Written by Yaroslav Voitseshek
Produced by Iryna Kostyuk
Cast: Tetiana Malkova, Taras Tsymbaliuk
An ancient witch from the Ukrainian town of Konotop (always believed to be a place where witches are born) has renounced her powers after falling in love with a mortal guy, but when the war starts and russian soldiers occupy the city and brutally murder her beloved, she decides to exact revenge on them, so she restores her powers and subjects her fiancé’s killers to some horrifying and bloody acts of retribution.
The Weekend (Nigeria, 2024) – West Coast Premiere
Directed by Daniel Oriahi
Written by Egbewamei Sammy
Produced by Uche Okocha
Cast: Uzoamaka Aniunoh, Bucci Franklin, Meg Otanwa, Gloria Young, Keppy Ekpenyong, Damilola Ogunsi, James Gardiner
Gripping Nigerian thriller exploring in-law dynamics through unpredictable twists and turns, keeping viewers hooked until the riveting conclusion.
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