THE SHELTER released worldwide

The critically acclaimed psychological thriller “The Shelter”, starring iconic actor Michael Paré (“Streets of Fire”), is now available for viewing around the world, thanks to its newfound home on Vimeo On Demand: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/thesheltermovie.

The film, which the L.A. TIMES said was “remarkably ambitious” and was “a concise genre piece that doubles as a heavily metaphorical character sketch”, had previously been released on DVD and VOD in the United States, and was also sold in various countries around the world including Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Netherlands, South Africa, Sweden and South East Asia.

But now the rest of the world gets their chance to watch the psychological suspense film which critics loved at the London Frightfest, as well as the Sitges Film Festival.

The film is about a homeless man named Thomas (Michael Pare) who finds shelter for the night within a lavish abandoned two-story house. He eventually discovers that he is not alone and the premises won't let him leave.

“The Shelter” marked ArrowintheHead.com founder John Fallon’s directorial debut, a renaissance man who had previously written 12 films and acted in over 20 movies before directing his own. The first-time director said that “Since The Shelter’s domestic release, we’ve done all that we could do in terms of the classic distribution routes, but now it’s time for us to splash the film around the world, so that fans from anywhere can watch it whenever they want, from wherever they are!”

The film was shot entirely in Louisiana and provided lead actor Michael Pare with some of the best reviews of his career including kudos from WeAreIndieHorror which said that he gave “one of the best performances of his long career” and AintItCool.com which said “Pare really gives it his all here, plunging to emotional depths I never thought he was able to do and doing them with a real sense of soul.”

Watch The Shelter on Vimeo on Demand here: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/thesheltermovie
 

TRAILER
https://youtu.be/JKiULqBVY4k

 

Twisted New Web Series NETFL!X AND KILL coming soon

Hex Studios YouTube channel to premiere director Kate Shenton's latest darkly hilarious offering, this Saturday, 4th August.

NETFL!X AND KILL tells the unlikely story of a psychopath and his victim... who spend all day sitting around watching television. Pitched as 'Gogglebox with a horror twist,' the web series is the first production under the Bubble Wrap Creations mantle, a partnership between Shenton and producer Baptiste Charles.

The series reunites the award-winning director with Adam Rhys-Davies and Nic Lamont, stars of her hugely popular horror feature EGOMANIAC. 

According to Kate, “NETFL!X AND KILL is inspired by my love for British TV comedy, shows like The Royle Family, Fawlty Towers, Extras, Blackadder, and basically anything by Victoria Wood. For NETFL!X AND KILL, I wanted to make something that had that classic British television comedy feel – but adding a horror twist to it!”

The first two episodes of the 8-part series will drop on Hex Studios' YouTube channel on Saturday the 4th of August, with a new episode screening each week. With more than 200,000 subscribers, the Hex Studios YouTube channel is fast becoming the go-to channel for indie horror, from their viral Owlman prank videos to creepypasta tales, original web-series and even feature films. 

Hex Studios head Lawrie Brewster sees an exciting future for the channel as a “massive and still growing platform for unique, independent voices in the horror genre. We believe 100% in Kate Shenton's talent and vision, and we're excited to be able to share her twisted creations with as wide an audience as possible!”

Tune in this Saturday (Aug 4th) to catch the first two episodes!

To view these and other videos, visit Hex Studios YouTube channel

 

Horror Channel unleashes monstrous FrightFest Season

To celebrate FrightFest 2018, taking place in London during the August Bank Holiday, Horror Channel is dedicating thirteen nights to past festival hits.

Amongst the twenty-six fear-filled favourites, the channel will air four UK TV premieres: Simeon Halligan’s ‘terror-torial’ home invasion shocker WHITE SETTLERS; Jeff Maher’s crowd-pleasingly ghoulish orgy of sex and gore BED OF THE DEAD; Chad Archibald’s breath-choking supernatural thriller THE DROWNSMAN; and the hauntingly sinister NIGHTWORLD, directed by Patricio Valladares and starring horror icon Robert Englund.

Plus, the channel is broadcasting three network premieres; Alberto Marini’s sly and witty scaremonger SUMMER CAMP; Bernard Rose’s FRANKENSTEIN, a stylishly smart update of the classic myth, starring Xavier Samuel, Danny Huston, Carrie-Anne Moss and Tony Todd, plus RUPTURE, a surreally spooky sci-fi horror from Steven Shainberg (Secretary), starring Noomi Rapace.

The double bills airing every night from 9pm from August 17th – 29th also feature FrightFest crowd-pleasing classics such as the pulsating, blood-soaked ‘80s homage TURBO KID; Kevin Kölsch and Dennis Widmyer’s stunning contemporary occult tale of Hollywood ambition, STARRY EYES; the terrifying anthology V/H/S, which pushes the genre in a fresh direction; Lowell Dean’s rage-fuelled WOLFCOP; Franck Khalfoun’s superior psychological horror MANIAC starring Elijah Wood; and Paul Hyett’s hairy horror and bloody action adventure HOWL, starring Ed Speleers, Shauna Macdonald and Sean Pertwee.

Full film details in transmission order:

Fri 17 Aug @ 21:00 - SUMMER CAMP (2015) *Network Premiere

Looking for fun experiences as counsellors at a European summer camp for children, four Americans never suspect their first experience abroad might be their last. For the rapid-fire spread of an extreme rage-inducing infection plunges the group into a dark vortex of horror and madness catapulting them into a race against time – and each other – to find the source of the mystery contagion and make it out alive.

Sat 18 Aug @ 21:00 - FRANKENSTEIN (2015) *Network Premier

Adam (Xavier Samuel) is artificially created with a revolutionary 3D printer by married research scientists. But when bodily malfunctions relegate him to the scrapheap, Adam faces nothing but aggression and violence from the world around him as he discovers the true nature of humanity. Told from the Monster’s perspective and showcasing a stunning performance by Twilight’s Xavier Samuel, this brilliant adaptation gives horror icon Tony Todd his best role in years as blind hobo Eddie.

Sat 18 Aug @ 22.50 - RADIUS (2017

Sun 19 Aug @ 21:00 - WHITE SETTLERS (2014) *UK TV Premiere

It's Ed and Sarah's first night at their new home, an isolated farmhouse on the Scottish borders. This should be a new beginning away from their stressful London lives, and at first it is. But as darkness falls, Sarah suspects they're not alone. Ed goes to investigate, and the evening quickly becomes a nightmare. It suddenly dawns on them they do not belong here, and they certainly aren't welcome, either. A terrifying suspense thriller starring Pollyanna McIntosh.

Sun 19 Aug @ 22:40 - THE LESSON (2015)

Mon 20 Aug @ 21:00 - CHERRY TREE (2015)

Mon 20 Aug @ 22:45 - MANIAC (2012)

Tues 21 Aug @ 21:00 - THE POSSESSION (2012)

Tues 21 Aug @ 22:55 - SOME KIND OF HATE (2015)

Wed 22 Aug @ 21:00 - CURSE OF CHUCKY (2013)

Wed 22 Aug @ 22:55 - TURBO KID (2015)

Thurs 23 Aug @ 21:00 - THE STRANGERS (2008)

Thurs 23 Aug @ 22:40 - HONEYMOON (2014)

Fri 24 Aug @ 21:00 - BED OF THE DEAD (2016) *UK TV Premiere

Out celebrating a birthday, two couples decide to party in a foursome at a sex club. Finding all the fantasy dungeons already booked, they are offered the mysterious Room 18. But Room 18 has a dark history; the bed is haunted and once between the sheets, you can’t leave the mattress or you die. Plagued with frightening hallucinations across multi-dimensions, they must figure out the bed's secrets before they are all doomed. A race against time begins in a gloriously gruesome gore-fest from the Let Her Out terror team. 

Fri 24 Aug @ 22:40 - THE DIVIDE (2011)

Sat 25 Aug @ 21:00 - RUPTURE (2016) * Network Premiere

Single mother Renee Morgan (Noomi Rapace) tries to keep her life together when she’s suddenly kidnapped by a mysterious organisation and held against her will in a sinister facility. Her captors insist they’re just conducting medical research, but to Renee and her fellow prisoners, it’s torture! Why are they pushing her to an extreme limit, way beyond being scared to death, and into another frightening realm altogether?

Sat 25 Aug @ 23:00 - I SPIT ON YOUR GRAVE 2 (2013)

Sun 26 Aug @ 21:00 - THE DROWNSMAN (2014) *UK TV Premiere

After almost drowning in a lake, Madison (Michelle Mylett) finds herself crippled for life by the trauma. Her dread intensifies when she’s continually haunted by a rancid ghostly entity trying to pull her into his dark aqua world. After watching her struggle for a year with the debilitating hydrophobia, Madison’s four best girlfriends attempt an unconventional intervention in which they accidentally open a floodgate to a sodden universe that puts all their lives in danger…

Sun 26 Aug @ 22:45 - LATE PHASES (2014)

Mon 27 Aug @ 21:00 - NIGHTWORLD (2017) *UK TV Premiere

When former LAPD officer Brett Anderson takes a job as head of security at an old apartment building, he experiences a series of bizarre and terrifying events. Once he delves deeper into the building's sinister history and investigates its shadowy owners and past employees, Brett soon uncovers a malevolent force nestled deep in its bowels that will do anything to be set free into our world. Starring horror icon Robert Englund.

Mon 27 Aug @ 22:55 - STARRY EYES (2014)

Tues 28 Aug @ 21:00 - THE EVIL IN US (2016)

Tues 28 Aug @ 22:50 - WOLF COP (2014)

Wed 29 Aug @ 21:00 - KNUCKLEBONES (2016)

Wed 29 Aug @ 22:40 - V/H/S (2012)

Horror Channel: Be Afraid

TV: Sky 317 / Virgin 149 / Freeview 70 / Freesat 138

Website: http://www.horrorchannel.co.uk

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/horrorchannel

Twitter: https://twitter.com/horror_channel
 

 

VIDEOMAN - World Premiere at Arrow Video FrightFest 2018

If there’s one film you catch at this year’s FrightFest, make sure it’s VIDEOMAN, a searing crossover between the horror genre and social realism that will move you even as it freaks you out. Combining witty dialogue with haunting imagery, the feature film debut from award-winning  Swedish director Kristian A. Söderström celebrates the golden days of VHS, the Italian giallo and the films of Mike Leigh.

Ennio (Stefan Sauk), a giallo-obsessed VHS collector with a drinking problem finds a highly collectable video tape that could solve his money problems and save him from eviction. He makes a deal with a shady, anonymous collector before realising the video has been stolen.So begins Ennio’s desperate hunt for the black-gloved perpetrator while, along the way, he meets Simone (Lena Nilsson), an alcoholic woman obsessed with the 80s. As Ennio searches for the tape and begins to lose a grip on reality, his and Simone’s mutual love of nostalgia draws them together. Can they find redemption in each other?

On paper, Videoman just shouldn’t work but Söderström has a vision for the film and he carries it out so masterfully you would swear this couldn’t be his first feature film. Videoman is sure to surprise and delight audiences when it has its world premiere at FrightFest in August, and it’s certain to mark out Söderström as a director to watch closely.

For full Frightfest programme details visit: http://www.frightfest.co.uk/

Faceook: /FrightFestreal 

Twitter: @frightfest

Instagram: @frightfestUK

THEY LIVE & GARBAGE PAIL KIDS Merchandise from Fright-Rags

John Carpenter's They Live turns 30 this year, but its social commentary remains as relevant as ever. Fright-Rags released a new collection of merchandise dedicated to the cult classic, plus it has turned several horror favorites into Garbage Pail Kids for a new line of shirts.

You don't need special sunglasses to see Fright-Rags' They Live collection. Consume five T-shirts, a pair of socks, and two enamel pins - include one that flips open to reveal an alien face behind its human visage.

Friday the 13th, The Lost Boys, House of 1000 Corpses, and Halloween III: Season of the Witch have received Garbage Pail Kids makeovers by GPK artist Brent Engstrom. Each design is printed on Fright-Rags' super soft 4.5oz poly/cotton blend shirts.

Fright-Rags also has its own Garbage Pail Kids character, Fright Rag Freddy. It's available on a ringer tee, a pair of socks, and in a "wax pack" featuring a T-shirt, enamel pin, and trading card. The wax pack is limited to 200 and moving fast.

Obey Fright-Rags and buy They Live and Garbage Pail Kids apparel now at Fright-Rags.com.

Flesh and Blood - The Hammer Heritage of Horror - UK DVD review

Vintage Hammer films Documentary "Flesh and Blood - The Hammer Heritage of Horror" is finally getting a release onto UK DVD this month.

Filmed in 1994, Flesh and Blood chronicles Hammer films humble beginnings as a distribution company, operating out of offices in Wardour Street, London. To its rise as the foremost producer of gothic horror films and its eventual decline due to changing tastes in horror.

Narrated by Hammer veterans Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, the documentary is packed full of specially filmed and archival interviews with Hammer legends Roy Ward Baker, Jimmy Sangster and Freddie Francis, along with Martine Beswick, Ingridd Pitt, Val Guest Hazel Court, Raquel Welch, Andrew Kier, Anthony Hinds  and Caroline Monroe to name but a few, along with Cushing and Lee themselves. With clips from all their films and behind the scenes footage, which hadn't been seen before.

Fellow directors John Carpenter (Halloween), Joe Dante (Gremlins) and Martin Scorcese (Taxi Driver) also appear, talking about how Hammer influenced their careers, along with special effects legend Ray Harry Hausen, who talks about his work on "1 Million Years BC".
 

Made to celebrate Hammer films 60th anniversary and originally shown as a 2x one hour specials on the BBC back in 1994, the documenary has pretty much languished in obscurity since its original showing.  Now thankfully, Flesh and Blood is finally getting a disc release courtesy of Wienerworld distribution and this version includes an additional 40mins of extra and extended interviews and behind the scenes footage, including the original uncut death from Dracula (1958) which only resurfaced in 2011 .

This revised and updated release also includes new material, acknowledging Hammer films newer productions from recent years, such as "Woman in Black" and "Let the Right One In"
With this originally being filmed for TV back in the 90s, obviously picture quality is not hi-definition hence the lack of Blu-Ray release and is presented in it's originally screened 4:3 aspect ratio, but don't be dettered by that.

This documentary is a must for all Hammer Horror fans and is also notable for being Peter Cushing's last recorded works, who sadly died 3 months after recording his dialoguefor this production.

"Flesh and Blood - The Hammer Heritage of Horror" comes to UK DVD July 30th from Wienerworld distribution.

View the trailer on YouTube

Pre-order the UK DVD from Amazon.co.uk 

 

HABIT - On UK DVD and Digital NOW!!!!

From director Simeon Halligan (White Settlers, Splintered) and based on the cult novel by Stephen McGeagh, HABIT is a blood-drenched and intense claustrophobic film set in the underbelly of Manchester starring Jessica Barden from the hit Netflix show The End of the F***ing World and Showtime’s horror drama series Penny Dreadful.

HABIT centres around Michael (Elliot James Langridge - Northern Soul) who as a young boy, along with his sister, witnessed the suicide of his mother. Now an adult and trying to find his place in the world, Michael divides his time between the job centre and the pub. A chance meeting with Lee (Jessica Barden), an introduction to her Uncle Ian (William Ash - The Tunnel) and a heavy night on the streets of Manchester, lead to a job working the door at Cloud 9, a seedy massage parlour. 

After witnessing the violent death of one of the punters, Michael starts having increasingly blood soaked nightmares. Are they flashbacks or fantasies? Little by little, he finds himself being sucked into a dangerous twilight world that he doesn’t understand – but which he finds irresistibly attractive. Addictive even.

After receiving its World Premiere at Manchester’s GRIMMFEST 2017 and winning Best Feature and Best Screenplay at the New York City Horror Film Festival the same year, this highly anticipated horror is available for digital download and DVD now.

Sally Carman (Shameless, Coronation Street), Joanne Mitchell (Attack of the Adult Babies, Emmerdale), Roxanne Pallett (Wrong Turn 6, Emmerdale) and Louis Emerick (Layer Cake, Brookside, Coronation Street) also star.

Buy the UK DVD from Amazon.co.uk

 

 

10 Questions with Jenn Wexler, director of THE RANGER

Director Jenn Wexler talks about her new film THE RANGER ahead of it's Frightfest Premiere this august...

What is it about the Punk movement you like so much? It informs so much of THE RANGER…

I’m incredibly drawn to punk’s spirit of rebellion and its embracing of individuality.  Growing up in the suburbs, there was so much pressure to fit in, to be seen as “normal,” and going to punk shows was thrilling for me because it helped me realize it was okay to want other things. I went to college in Philadelphia at the University of the Arts and studied screenwriting, where my classmate, Giaco, wrote a script that would eventually become THE RANGER. I fell in love with the concept of a group of punks going up against this figure of authority, someone who deems them less than, because they don’t conform to what he values as worthy.  I find personality types like this terrifying-- ones that say you have to fit into some cookie-cutter mould or else you’re living your life wrong. Punk is all about fighting that.

You started out at Larry Fessenden’s Glass Eye Pix in the marketing department and moved on to producing. But was it always your ambition to direct?

I’ve always wanted to direct and was directing shorts while working in marketing, but to direct a feature, I wanted to first understand as much as possible about filmmaking. Producing films like DARLING, LIKE ME and MOST BEAUTIFUL ISLAND was invaluable, it taught me so much. When you’re a hands-on producer, you’re in the trenches with directors, helping them realize their visions, weathering the pitfalls and celebrating in the triumphs through every stage of the process.

THE RANGER is your feature debut so what was important for it to be about and what did you want it to achieve artistically? 

I wanted to combine the outrageous, absurd humor of 80s punk movies with the thrill of the slasher, all circling around a girl who’s trying to figure herself out in the face of others telling her who she should be. Throughout the film, Chelsea is trying to unravel memories about her childhood, which informed the bubblegum, candy colored aesthetic — sweet on the outside but getting sour the more her memories are revealed. Overall I wanted the film to have an EC Comics vibe, to feel larger than life, with the world of the punks and the world of the Ranger colliding, both visually and musically. We start the film in the punk club, with all these insane colors, and when the punks escape to the woods they bring those colors with them, invading The Ranger’s rustic, Smokey-the-Bear parkland.

Should we make something relevant out of SCREAM being the first horror film you ever saw?

I’ve been drawn to scary stuff since I was a kid. I was obsessed with the television show ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE DARK and would try to get my friends to hang out with me in graveyards after school. I was 10 years old when SCREAM came out, and I remember overhearing a conversation between my mom and one of her friends about how utterly horrible this new movie was, my mother completely disturbed by the description of the sweet little girl from ET hanging from a tree with her insides out.  My curiosity was more than piqued. At a sleepover party soon after, someone had the VHS. I felt a supreme sense of rebellion watching the movie, knowing how much it would freak out my mom. It became more than rebelling against my parents, though. It was like an entirely new world had been revealed to me. SCREAM ushered me into adolescence, and I became obsessed with the teen horror movies of the time, including THE CRAFT, I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER, URBAN LEGEND, DISTURBING BEHAVIOR, THE FACULTY, with BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER my favorite TV show. As with my discovery of punk, they offered me a sense of adventure and an emotional escape from the tedium of being a kid in suburbia. Eventually they gave way to my discovery of the rich history of the genre. I think a lot of what you see when you’re in your early adolescence informs your development as an artist and as a human, and I can say the 90s teen slasher craze informed mine.

Why did you choose Chloë Levine as Chelsea and Jeremy Holm as the Ranger?

  
Jeremy is a friend of co-writer Giaco Furino, so we wrote the part with Jeremy in mind. I was a fan, watching him in HOUSE OF CARDS and MR ROBOT. When at long last we showed him the script, we were very happy to find out that he loved it! We had a meeting and we all clicked. He was the first person we cast.

We worked with casting director Lois Drabkin who suggested, while I was at SXSW 2017, I check out Chloë Levine in THE TRANSFIGURATION. Her performance was mesmerizing, and we ended up having a meeting at the festival. We bonded over the character, and I could tell she would bring so much nuance to the role.

Does Larry Fessenden always insist being in every production, or does he actually wait to be asked?

Larry is the last person who would ever ask for a role. It’s just all of us filmmakers who love and admire him who keep asking him to be in our movies.

Did you worry that there’s been quite a few other 80s slasher homages recently?

No, if a concept speaks to me—and THE RANGER is one that wouldn’t let me go—I’ll follow it through. Projects may have similarities on the surface, but when film is being made from a sincere place, each one will be so informed by the specifics of the people who make it.

You used the term ‘80s Dreamland’ during shooting on the Hunter’s Mountain locations, what did you mean exactly?

As we were prepping for production, a few of the actors and crew members asked what year the film takes place in; the kids have no cell phones and there’s a boombox, so they guessed sometime in the 80s. I expressed that the film doesn’t take place in the actual 80s, but just to the left of reality, in a comic-book, fairy-tale-esque world that I dubbed 80s Dreamland. In my mind’s eye, it was a world where 80s punk movies like RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD, Smokey-the-Bear PSAs, and Lisa Frank colors collide.

What was the biggest lesson you learned from your first time behind the horror camera?

Anytime I make a film I feel like someone has drilled a hole into my skull and poured information into it. THE RANGER was exciting because, while I’ve certainly worked across departments before as a producer, it was my first time working with department heads from a creative perspective. Collaborating with our DP, production designer, costume designer, composers, and more to realize the film was such an incredible experience. At the end of the day I learned that directing was just as intense and also just as rewarding as I hoped it would be.

All that Punk music but Charlie Rich’s 1973 hit ‘The Most Beautiful Girl’ makes the biggest impression. WTF?

I really wanted the music in the movie to feel like a mix-tape. When the punks are in control, the soundtrack is primarily punk music, but as they get deeper into the woods and lose control, The Ranger’s music of choice takes over. Jeremy would use ‘The Most Beautiful Girl’ to get into character, and he was always singing it on set. Our on-set editor, Kyle Mumford, dropped the song into the cut just to see how it would feel, and immediately we were all obsessed!  But my personal favorite song on the soundtrack is “The Good The Bad and The Kowalskis” by The Avengers, which plays over the closing credits. I feel The Avengers are Chelsea’s spirit band.

THE RANGER opens Arrow Video FrightFest on Thurs 23rd August, Cineworld Leicester SQ.

Tickets: http://www.frightfest.co.uk/2018Films/the-ranger.html

Shower Sharks - Short Film released

Director Noah Robertson got in touch to tell us about his new, short film "Shower Sharks" which he's just released on YouTube.

"Shower Sharks: It's like Hitchcock's Psycho, got drunk with Jaws, had a one night stand and gave birth to a shark baby." - Sam Qualiana, Director of Snow Shark: Ancient Snow Beast. 

Check it out below.

Mayhem Film Festival announces first three films of it's 2018 edition

With its 14th edition now just a few of months away, Mayhem Film Festival is proud to announce the first three titles from its 2018 programme. 

Mayhem will host the UK Premiere of Shinsuke Sato’s Inuyashiki. A turbo-charged live action adaptation of the best-selling sci-fi manga series, Inuyashiki follows a downtrodden middle-aged man and an isolated teenager reborn as indestructible cyborgs after an apparent alien encounter. But whilst one uses his powers for good, the other seeks to wreak murderous havoc on humanity.

Also in this year’s line-up is the British zombie musical taking international horror film festivals by storm, Anna and the Apocalypse. When the zombie apocalypse hits the sleepy town of Little Haven, Anna and her friends must brutally battle - as well as sing and dance - their way to safety with an ever-growing horde of the undead in relentless pursuit. It’s a ‘High School Musical Of The Living Dead’ - yes really.

Concluding Mayhem’s first round of announcements, the festival will screen the folklore-inspired horror anthology The Field Guide to Evil. From the creators of the cult classic The ABCs of Death, the film sees eight of the finest international directors – including Agnieszka Smoczyńska (The Lure) and Peter Strickland (Berberian Sound Studio) – explore the universal nature of human fear with stories inspired by myths, legends, and strange tales from around the world.

More films and guests will be announced later in the summer but we hope this announcement will whet your appetite.

Mayhem Film Festival will take place at Broadway, Nottingham on 11–14 October 2018. Early Bird Passes are still available for just £65. For more information, please visit www.mayhemfilmfestival.com

Also follow the Mayhem festival on Facebook and Twitter

 

Arrow Video FrightFest 2018 announces guest line-up, additional films & List for Rising Star Award

Two extra films have been added to the record-breaking 2018 line-up: PIMPED is director David Barker’s modern transgressive erotic thriller, an Hitchcocktail of elevated suspense and shock in the revered style of Brian De Palma, And If you’ve never seen John Carpenter’s HALLOWEEN on the big screen, now’s your best chance. The inclusion of this 4K restoration needs no explanation in anticipation of a new Michael Myers slasher being released in October.  Check screening details on the FrightFest website.

Ahead of single tickets going on sale from Sat 21st July, we’re thrilled to announce our current slate of guests, which includes Poldark star Aidan Turner, who will be with his co-star Caitlin Fitzgerald, director Robert Krzykowski and composer Joe Kraemer for THE MAN WHO KILLED HITLER AND THEN THE BIGFOOT.

Leading ladies shine this year. Joining THE RANGER director Jenn Wexler on opening night is The Transfiguration star Chloe Levine. Also delighting audiences are Brittany Allan (It Stains The Sands Red and Jigsaw), attending with director Colin Minihan to support WHAT KEEPS YOU ALIVE. Shauna McDonald joins director Paul Aviary for WHITE CHAMBER, HERETIKS star Hannah Arterton is in the house to support director Paul Hyett, Imitation Girl Lauren Ashley Carter and action heroine Angela Dixon accompany director Tom Paton for BLACK SITE and director Issa Lopez flies over from Mexico with her sensational TIGERS ARE NOT AFRAID,

Plus, The First Lady of FrightFest, Barbara Crampton is back!. The beloved Re-Animator legend will be introducing her new movies PUPPET MASTER: THE LITTLEST REICH and DEAD NIGHT. With the former she will be united with Italian composer extraordinaire Fabio Frizzi and with the latter by her Heroes co-star Brea Grant. Also returning is THE CLEANING LADY producer and Goddess of Love star Alexis Kendra.

This year there are more International directors attending than ever before. Acclaimed music video and film director Joseph Kahn (Detention, Torque) joins us for BODIED, RKSS personnel François Simard, Anouk Whissell and Yoann-Karl Whissell will be rocking in for SUMMER OF 84 and UPGRADE director Leigh Whannell, the creator of SAW and INSIDIOUS, will light up FrightFest’s Saturday night.

Also guaranteed to liven up proceedings are THE GOLEM helmers the Paz Brothers, alongside producer Shaked Berenson, CULT OF TERROR director Gustavo Leonel Mendoza, DEMENTIA PART II director Matt Mercer with stars Graham Skipper (SEQUENCE BREAK), Suzanne Voss and Najarra Townsend, HELL IS WHERE THE HOME IS director Orson Oblowitz, MEGA TIME SQUAD director Tim van Dammen, OPEN 24 HOURS director Padraig Reynolds, HAMMER HORROR: THE WARNER BROS. YEARS director and Dr. Who author Marcus Hearn, LIFECHANGER director Justin McConnell, SECRET SANTA director Adam Marcus, SEEDS director Owen Long, THE MOST ASSASSINATED WOMAN IN THE WORLD writer/producer David Murdoch, VIDEOMAN director Kristian A. Söderström, CRYSTAL EYES directors Ezequiel Endelman and Leondro Montejano, and WOLFMAN’S GOT NARDS director Andre Gower (THE MONSTER SQUAD).

Also attending is writer/director Axelle Carolyn (Soulmate, Tales of Halloween), author of THE FRIGHTFEST GUIDE TO GHOST MOVIES, who will be signing copies exclusively at the event.

Homegrown talent will be present in abundance this year. Actor and director Matthew Holness brings us his much-awaited POSSUM, AWAIT FURTHER INSTRUCTIONS will spring director Johnny Kervorkian, his producer Jack Tarling (God’s Own Country) with stars Holly Weston, Sam Gittins, Neerja Naik, Grant Masters and Kris Saddler. And a warm welcome for BOOK OF MONSTERS director Stewart Sparke, CHUCK STEEL: NIGHT OF THE TRAMPIRES director Mike Mort, FRANKENSTEIN’S CREATURE director Sam Ashurst and RAVERS director Bernhard Pucher, who will be attending alongside the cast including Vikings star Georgia Hirst.

The FIRST BLOOD strand goes from strength to strength and all the helmers will be around, supported by their cast and crews. CTRL director Harry Lindley, F.U.B.A.R. director Ben Kent, PERFECT SKIN director Kevin Chicken (with Games of Thrones star Richard Brake) and THE DEVIL’S DOORWAY director Aislinn Clark.

Also present will be writer/director Roxanne Benjamin (XX, SOUTHBOUND, V/H/S), presenting an exclusive screening of FINAL STOP, a must-hear horror short produced by Sennheiser and Soapbox Films. Shot entirely on smart phone, and recorded in full binaural audio using the AMBEO Smart Headset, the film is designed to be watched with headphones (which will be supplied), so audiences can immerse themselves in the story and its terrifying 3D soundscape.

Equally terrifying is GHOST STORIES and we have co-directors/co-writers Andy Nyman and Jeremy Dyson hosting a live commentary on their mega-successful stage show-turned-major movie. Get ready for sly humour, fun facts and plenty of behind-the-scenes secrets!

Established in 2016 to celebrate the work of emerging UK genre talent, FrightFest is proud to team up for the third year running with Screen International to present the ‘Screen Genre Rising Star Award’. This year’s long list salutes the work of Kevin Chicken, director of PERFECT SKIN, actresses Hannah Arterton and Ella Hunt, Aislinn Clarke, director of THE DEVIL’S DOORWAY, Mike Mort, director of CHUCK STEEL: NIGHT OF THE TRAMPIRES, actress/producer Marcia Do Vales and actor Sam Gittins, The short list will be announced prior to the event. Previous winners include Alice Lowe Danny Morgan.

Keep watching the official twitter @frightfest for even more guest announcements in the coming weeks…

Arrow Video FrightFest runs from 23rd -27th August 2018 at Cineworld Leicester Square and The Prince Charles Cinema.

Single tickets go on sale Sat 21 July at noon and, alongside the few remaining Festival and day pass sales are available to buy online: http://www.frightfest.co.uk/tickets.html

For full programme details: http://www.frightfest.co.uk/

Faceook: /FrightFestreal 

Twitter: @frightfest

Instagram: @frightfestUK

Psychological thriller DISCREET comes to UK DVD and Digital July 23

Coming to UK DVD this month, from the acclaimed director of I Want Your Love and Interior Leather Bar. DISCREET is a powerful contemporary psychological thriller that explores both the allure of YouTube gurus and the cyclic nature of trauma and abuse. 

Filmmaker and recluse Alex lives in a van. He sets up his camera in rural areas in the US, in the no-man’s land near highways. During a rare visit to his distant mother, she reveals a dark truth hidden since his childhood that threatens to unravel him. Confused and unstable, Alex sets out to confront the looming shadow he has been running from all his life. But as he delves deeper in search of answers, 

Alex’s grip on reality becomes increasingly more tenuous and before long he finds himself unable to determine right from wrong. DISCREET stars Johnny Man (A Ghost Story), Joy Cunningham, Atsuko Okatsuka, and Jordan Elsass, and offers a disturbing insight into the dark heart of Trump’s America. 

DISCREET arrives on UK DVD and Digital July 23

View the trailer here: https://youtu.be/4yywcr9UX7Y

Pre-order the UK DVD at Amazon.co.uk

 

Official UK poster for horror comedy FANGED UP released

Altitude Home Entertainment have just releaed the new poster for forthcoming horror comedy "Fanged Up" which hits UK DVD and Digital later this month.

Daniel O’Reilly, best known for his Dapper Laughs persona, fights for his life in a thrilling yet fun horror comedy bursting with British blood and banter alike.

When self-styled absolute lad Jimmy Ragsdale (Daniel O’Reilly) makes a pass at his boss’ wife, the ensuing brawl seals the deal on a night he’ll never forget - locked in the halls of a hellish prison! Jimmy will have more on his plate than just tough Russian cellmate Victor (Stu Bennett), however. When the wardens unleash their true vampyric colours, the inmates find themselves caught in a bloody battle that is sure to prove just how “hard” Jimmy really is.

Daniel O’Reilly has come a long way since his humble beginnings on Vine, drawing audiences’ attention in his feature film debut as a wise-cracking lad, whose lack of self-awareness creates a likeable lead echoing a modern, more endearing Ali G. O’Reilly finds on-screen support with similarly strong character acting from co-stars Stu Bennett and Vas Blackwood in particular.

The cast’s eccentric flavours become succulent ingredients in the horror film stew, providing relatable hooks for us to anchor on, before tearing us apart when the bloody madness kicks in. With the horror and comedy elements in perfect harmony, the creative team have mastered the delicate balance of knowing when to pull a joke, our heartstrings, or just delight us in the blood-splattered spectacle. Ensnaring and entertaining in equal measure, the result is a delicious horror comedy worth sinking your teeth into.

On DVD & Digital Download 30th July 2018 from Altitude Film Entertainment 

Pre-order the UK DVD from  Amazon.co.uk

 

FrightFest and FAB Press launch THE FRIGHTFEST GUIDE TO GHOST MOVIES

Following the success of The FrightFest Guide to Exploitation Movies, and The FrightFest Guide to Monster Movies, FrightFest and FAB Press once again join forces to launch THE FRIGHTFEST GUIDE TO GHOST MOVIES, which goes on sale during Arrow Video FrightFest 2018, Aug 23 – Aug 27.

This is the third in an on-going series of wide appeal books for both the curious spectator and the cult connoisseur.

This year’s FrightFest Guide is written by horror genre writer and award-winning filmmaker Axelle Carolyn, who has helmed an atmospheric bone-chiller herself – Soulmate, Axelle is well-versed in all things weird, wicked and witchy and her book surveys the last 120 years of the genre, reviewing 200 of the most memorable titles from across the globe. From timeless classics to recent blockbusters, quirky indies to international sensations, each of these movies has contributed to the development of the ghost movie as we know it.

Axelle remarked: “Ghosts have haunted me my whole life. Everything I've ever directed, from short films, to Soulmate and Tales of Halloween, has featured ghosts -- they're simply my favourite supernatural creatures. Ghost stories have been told for as long as humans have gathered around campfires, and their evolution on screen, from comedies to horror, is fascinating to look at”.

Lavishly illustrated, and enriched with anecdotes and critical analyses, this guide also features a foreword by Andy Nyman: the star, co-writer and co-director (with Jeremy Dyson) of acclaimed British chiller Ghost Stories, a love letter to the genre adapted from Nyman’s popular West End stage play.

The official book launch takes place 23 to 27 August 2018 at FrightFest, Cineworld, Leicester Square, London. The FrightFest exclusive hardcover will be on sale for just £20. The book's international street date is 26 October 2018. Paperback price: £16.99 (UK) $24.95 (US).

Arrow Video FrightFest 2018 takes place Thurs Aug 23 – Mon Aug 28 at the Cineworld Leicester Sq and The Prince Charles Cinema. It is sponsored by and partnered with: Horror Channel, Sennheiser, Screen International, Entertainment Focus, Splice Media, Fandom, Dread Central, Den of Geek,  Radisson Group & Queensbury Pictures.

More info visit https://www.fabpress.com/ 

For more info on this years Frightfest visit http://www.frightfest.co.uk/

Chucky & Jaws merchandise on sale now at Fright-Rags

News of a Child's Play reboot broke last week, but Chucky remains one of the most iconic modern horror villains. Fright-Rags embraces the legacy with a new collection of Chucky merchandise. The company also rings in the summer with fresh Jaws apparel.

Available in single wax packs, factory boxes, and seal boxes, Fright-Rags' Chucky trading cards include movie photo cards, stickers, art parallel cards, rainbow foil cards, and one-of-a-kind sketch cards. They span the franchise, featuring everyone from Chucky and Andy to Tiffany and Glen/Glenda.

Fright-Rags' Chucky collection also includes a "Friends 'Til the End" design (previously available as a kids shirt) on adult ringer tees and a reprint of Justin Osbourn's fan-favorite Child's Play 2 T-shirt.

Just when you thought it was safe to go to Fright-Rags, the company has new Jaws merchandise for sale. The great white shark swims onto three new T-shirts, reprints of two popular designs, and a pair of socks with the iconic poster artwork.

Wanna play? Chucky and Jaws collections are on sale now at Fright-Rags.com.

Fright-Rags will celebrate Friday the 13th by re-releasing Jason Edmiston's "G.I. Jason" design on T-shirts and tank tops for three days only beginning Friday at 10am EST.

 

Disturbing Horror Short Films UMBILICHORD and UNDERTAKER Released

Composer/Producer John Whitaker (AKA "1i2c") and Cinematographer/Director Nicolai Kornum have partnered up to create two disturbing horror short films - UMBILICHORD and UNDERTAKER.

UMBILICHORD sees prolific indie Filmmaker and Actress Emma Dark taking the lead role, strutting around a park pushing an old-fashioned pram while onlookers and passers by become curious by the sight of Miss Dark and her so-called offspring. In the midst of all this a strange lab experiment is happening elsewhere, which leads to a bizarre and unsettling conclusion...

UNDERTAKER sees a young woman dressed in black mourning in a graveyard, and as the funeral guests leave we see the undertaker himself (played by John Whitaker) begin to exhume the grave. The rest of the short plays out in a Jeepers Creepers style to conclusion.

Composer/Producer John Whitaker had this to say about releasing the films: “My work has often been inspired over time by dark imagery. As a musician I wanted to bring something more to the table than a standard music video. Hence the two short films were born, written and produced by me, and shot and directed by friend and multi award-winning director Nicolai Kornum. Nicolai describes himself as "Tall, cynical and gorgeous hair", but I think he's forgetting he has a heap of talent to go with that!”

The films can be viewed here:

UMBILICHORD https://youtu.be/YXmhq51aSDM
UNDERTAKER https://youtu.be/HV8KSwJnGxM

The release of both films coincides with the album release of "It Should Be You" by Composer John Whitaker (1i2c). For more information or to purchase the album please visit 1i2c.bandcamp.com. To view the other works of director Nicolai Kornum please visit nicolaikornum.com.

 

MAYHEM arrives on UK DVD this month!!!

Fresh from raucous, sold-out festival screenings across the globe, Kaleidoscope and SHUDDER are excited to announce the UK digital and DVD release of the stylish and savage MAYHEM – the brilliantly executed action-horror-comedy which sticks two fingers up at office politics and then proceeds to rip out the charred heart of humdrum 9 to 5 society today.

Derek Cho (Steven Yeun -The Walking Dead) is having a really bad day. After being unjustly fired from his job, he discovers that the law firm’s building is under quarantine for a mysterious and dangerous virus. Chaos erupts throughout the office as the victims of the disease begin acting out their wildest impulses. Joining forces with a former client (Samara Weaving, Ash vs Evil Dead) who has a grudge of her own, Derek savagely fights tooth and nail to get to the executives on the top floor and settle the score once and for all.

Delivering buckets of inventive blood-drenched splatter and barbed, witty social commentary, director Joe Lynch’s frenetic thriller asks how far you would go to get ahead at work if your darkest impulses ran unchecked

MAYHEM received its World Premiere at the 2017 South by Southwest Film Festival to critical praise followed by sold-out international screenings including Fright Fest  and the aptly named Mayhem festival in 2017.

The film is already available on Digital Download and is released to UK DVD July 16. The film will also be available to stream on SHUDDER TV in the Autumn.

Buy the UK DVD from Amazon.co.uk