Comedy Horror FRANKIE FREAKO - Comes to UK Digital, July

Lightbulb Film Distribution is pleased to announce that FRANKIE FREAKO will be released in the UK & Ireland Digitally from July 14.

Written and directed by Steven Kostanski (Psycho Goreman, The Void), the comedy-horror is a homage to classic 80’s movies like Gremlins, Ghoulies and Critters.

After calling a late-night party hotline, Conor must battle the pint-sized forces of evil – led by Frankie Freako – unleashed through his phone line.

The film stars Conor Sweeney (Psycho Goreman), Adam Brooks (Dark Harvest) and Kristy Wordsworth (States of Mind). 

Kostanski recently served as prosthetic makeup and effects lead on In A Violent Nature.

YouTuber Rich Evans (RedLetterMedia) voices Frankie’s nemesis, President Munch.

The World Premiere took place at Fantasia International Film Festival.

Watch the Trailer on YouTube.

FRANKIE FREAKO will be released in the UK & Ireland Digitally, July 14.

Horror compilation BRINGING IN THE CREEPS - Available in Paperback and Kindle

From the morbid mind of Ray Van Horn, Jr. comes the sequel to his horror compilation, Behind the Shadows.  

Van Horn dares you to step inside the degenerate crevices and chasms of BRINGING IN THE CREEPS. 11 more tales of decade-spanning delirium housing monstrosities, murder and assorted depravity.  

Where the unholy returns from the dead for another run, where murder is raised beneath the neon glow of an 80s arcade, where the Evil Dead raids a punk rock show, where an unimaginable abomination rises from a reservoir and where a persecuted teenager finds gory revenge delivered him from the stars. Witness a vehicular game of death from beyond circa the 1950s.  

These are the grotesque misdeeds of ghouls, monsters, freaks, werewolves and repulsive death dealers.  Ray Van Horn, Jr. is BRINGING IN THE CREEPS.  Going forth with the weeping and the sowing of carnage on high.

“Are you old enough to remember the gloriously insane cover art for all of those super low-budget, B-grade action and horror flicks you found at your local video rental store back in the day?  Ray Van Horn, Jr. makes sure the outrageous gore, sweat-slick sleaze, and unchecked mayhem of 1980s-inspired horror soaks every page of Bringing in the Creeps. Wear a poncho.”
-- Dayton Ward, New York Times best selling author

Buy the book from Amazon.co.uk

Buy the book from Amazon.com

 

Gory Pre-orders available from TetroVideo and Goredrome.

TetroVideo is back with a rich pre-order (from June 4 to June 23 on the official TetroVideo and Goredrome websites) dedicated to the new Ultralimited Mediabooks, available in two Covers, with numbered and personalized Blu-rays, Booklet, 4 Cards, Certificate and Slipcover (the T-Shirt and film magnet can also be purchased).

The Mediabook editions of this pre-order will be shipped in July and will no longer be available after June 23.

Now the TetroVideo catalog also includes: the erotic film Kinbaku: Flower; the horror/splatter anthology film Herschell Gordon Lewis' BloodMania; the necrophilia horror/extreme film eROTik 2; and the necrophilia documentary film Eros&ARThanatos.

Memoria, on the other hand, is the newest installment in the Goredrome Pictures' Extreme Abomination Collection series.

KINBAKU: FLOWER

KINBAKU: FLOWER (Kinbaku: Hana no Shô) is an erotic film written and directed by Naoyuki Tomomatsu in 2016.

Kinbaku deals with the ancient Japanese form of artistic bondage that involves tying a person up, making them unable to move, with ropes made of burlap or linen.

In Naoyuki Tomomatsu's film, this technique will be used by an angry husband who will turn to a BDSM expert to take revenge on his wife and her lover.

The cast includes Yume Aihara, Ryô Asagiri, Iku Haruka, Mai Miori, and Yoshitaka Mizuno.

 

Herschell Gordon Lewis' BLOODMANIA

Herschell Gordon Lewis' BLOODMANIA (2017) is the latest effort by Herschell Gordon Lewis (Blood Feast, 2000 Maniacs), the “Godfather of Gore” who also appears here as narrator.

Consisting of four segments, Herschell Gordon Lewis' BLOODMANIA is a horror/splatter anthology film directed by Herschell Gordon Lewis, Kevin Littlelight and Melanie Reinboldt.

It is the last film to be directed by the famous U.S. film director and producer, who passed away on September 26, 2017.

The film was released after his death.

Faith Amantea, Stuart Bentley, Carl Bishop, Caroline Buzanko, Peter Cameron, Donovan Cerminara, and Jewelle Colwell star.

EROTIK 2

The necrophilia extreme film EROTIK 2 is the sequel/reboot to TetroManiac: eROTik (2019), a film loosely based on the story of Jeffrey Dahmer (1960 - 1994), the U.S. serial killer known as “The Milwaukee Cannibal.”

EROTIK 2 is directed by Slade Wilson (6 Songs, XXX Darknet: Red Lips) under the supervision of Domiziano Cristopharo (House of Flesh Mannequins, Doll Syndrome), the director of the first chapter (2019).

The story of EROTIK 2 is linked to that of the 2019 film by taking up its situations and characters but, above all, by delving into the sick mind of the protagonist who, thanks to his rituals, manages to bring back to life one of the corpses he hides in his house but the consequences will be devastating.

The film stars Ahmet Karthal, Angela del Regno (TetroManiac: Confessions of a Necrophiliac), William Connor, Antonio Mocciola, Patrizia De Rosa and Carmin Gregor.

The special effects are by Kevin Capurro (6 Songs, XXX Darknet: Red Lips).

 

EROS&ARTHANATOS

EROS&ARTHANATOS is a documentary film about necrophilia in art and film. Directed by Domiziano Cristopharo (House of Flesh Mannequins) in collaboration with University Doctor and necrophilia expert Cristo Gil, Eros&ARThanatos is supported by the CUCRA (Cultura Urbana y Creación Audiovisual) investigation center at the University of La Laguna (Tenerife) and the SUI GENERIS cultural platform in Madrid.

The documentary features some exclusive interviews with Nicolas Claux (murderer known as "The Vampire of Paris" for digging up, mutilating, and eating a corpse in the 1990s); the directors Nacho Cerdà (Aftermath), Kiyotaka Tsurisaki (Orozco the Embalmer), Johan Vandewoestijne (Lucker The Necrophagous), Wesley Remory (Walging), Günther Brandl (the leading actor in Necrophile Passion) and the psychologist David Aboussafy (producer of Atroz).

View the Trailer on YouTube.


MEMORIA

 

MEMORIA (2023) is a black-and-white horror film with dramatic overtones, written and directed by Günther Brandl (Station 0, Tanz der Toten), the star of Necrophile Passion.

The film is the seventh installment in the Abomination Collection, an extreme series from Goredrome Pictures and will be released in the standard amaray edition (DVD + 12-page booklet).

Plot: in the midst of a battlefield in Flanders during the First World War, British soldier Eddie finds himself facing a mysterious figure who reveals himself to be the god of the dead, Thanatos. He offers him a game - a game for his life. But Eddie is already tormented by the memories of his fallen comrades and the woman who was torn from his life shortly after their wedding. The demons won’t let him go. And the game begins…

The cast of Memoria features the director himself along with Helmut Brandl, Yvette Costeau, Monika Brandl, Matthias Sigl, Timur Güler, Markus Pauli, Thomas Schäffler, and Melody Bayer. 

For more info and to order these and other titles, visit the TetroVideo and Goredrome websites.

 

Tense survival drama ROW - Set for Raindance Film Festival

Kaleidoscope Entertainment is delighted to announce that ROW, their upcoming oceanic survival-thriller, will celebrate its World Premiere at the 33rd Raindance Film Festival on 21st June.

Directed by Matt Losasso, ROW stars Bella Dayne (Humans), Sophie Skelton (Outlander), Akshey Khanna, Nick Skaugen, David O'Hara and Mark Strepan.

ROW has been nominated for four awards at the festival; Best Performance in a UK Feature (Bella Dayne), Best UK Feature, Best Director of a UK Feature (Matthew Losasso) and Best UK Cinematography. 

Washed ashore in Scotland on a blood stained rowing boat, a young woman suffering from severe memory loss appears to be the sole survivor of a doomed trans-Atlantic World Record attempt. With all of her crew mates missing, presumed dead, she must try and piece together her fractured memories in order to prove her innocence. 

Filming was shot over five weeks in Caithness, Scotland, with interior filming primarily taking place at the House of the Northern Gate, near John O'Groats. Aquatic scenes were shot using a specially created water tank and shooting at sea, while also using a sound stage.

ROW will have its World Premiere at Raindance Film Festival on 21st June

Check out the Trailer on YouTube.

Get your tickets HERE!  

 

  

Vicious Vampire Horror BOGIEVILLE - Out now on UK Digital

Take a one-way journey to BOGIEVILLE if you dare… as actor-director Sean Cronin (Drained, Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation) brings his bloodcurdling vampire feature to our screens. Following its premieres at Cannes Film Festival and FrightFest, the monstrous movie is set to make its UK digital debut 9 June courtesy of Reel 2 Reel Films. 
 
Deep in the American South, a young couple on the run, Ham (Arifin Putra – The Raid 2) and Jody (Eloise Lovell Anderson – Villian), get more than they bargained for when they stumble upon the abandoned Bogieville trailer park. They bump into creepy caretaker Crawford (Jonathan Hansler – Axed) who convinces the pair to stay, but under strict instructions to not leave the property, especially at night… 
 
Unfortunately, the couple don’t heed the advice and inadvertently make a terrifying discovery… Bogieville is inhabited by a pack of bloodthirsty vampires lead by the formidable, Madison (Cronin), who is embroiled in an eternal war with a rival vampire who will stop at nothing to take over the park. 
 
With the pair caught in the crossfire of a deadly turf war and with a suspicious detective following a trail of dead bodies leading straight to Bogieville, the couple are desperate to leave. But when the fearsome fanged creatures latch onto Jody’s scent, there may be no escape. 
 

You’ll be sucked in to the bloodthirsty BOGIEVILLE – a vicious vampire tale of twisted terror.  

View the Trailer on YouTube. 

BOGIEVILLE is available now from Digital Outlets courtesy of Reel2Reel films. 

 

Horror & Sci-Fi features at 33rd Raindance Film Festival

With the 33rd Raindance film festival just a couple of weeks away (running 18-27 June at Vue Piccadilly), The organisers got in touch to tell us about their dedicated "Raindance Horror" strand, showcasing cutting-edge genre films and celebrating emerging voices in independent horror cinema. 

Commencing with US slasher DEFORMELODY: AN AMERICAN NIGHTMARE on Thursday 19 June, horror will continue to reign over Raindance throughout the whole weekend with films such as British horror thriller DIRTY BOY, interactive audience-choice film THE RUN, and international entries such as Bangladesh's DUI SHAW, Kazakhstan's ZHAZA, Japans's THE INVISIBLE HALF, and Slovenia's THE HOLE. The selection underscores Raindance's embrace of diverse and daring storytelling.

As it's quite an abundant list, Raindance is selling a "All The Horror Films" weekend pass for £75 which gives access to every horror film screening at Raindance. Conveniently, all the "Raindance Horror" films will screen over the weekend of Thursday 19 - Sunday 22 June, so horror-fans can spend a full weekend at Raindance. More details and buy the pass: ALL the Horror films – Just £75 – HERE

THURSDAY 19 JUNE 2025

8:30 PM – DEFORMELODY: AN AMERICAN NIGHTMARE (dir: Joshua Rivera, USA) International Premiere. Debut feature. Shot by a crew of two over 3 years for $4,000 on a mobile phone, this horror satire follows a pop-culture-obsessed serial killer who terrorizes L.A.

FRIDAY 20 JUNE 2025

10:30 AM – THE INVISIBLE HALF (dir: Masaki Nishiyama, Japan) World Premiere. A “half” Japanese high school girl struggles with the feeling she’s not Japanese. She discovers she is being watched by a monster that can only be seen through her smartphone.

1:00 PM – THINESTRA (dir: Nathan Hertz, USA) World Premiere. Having taken a mysterious Ozempic-like drug, a woman violently expels masses of fat. But the flesh returns, twisted and ravenous as her doppelgänger, and wreaks bloody havoc.

3:30 PM – OUR HAPPY PLACE (dir: Paul Bickel, USA) International Premiere. A woman repeatedly awakes in a shallow grave on the forest floor – shivering, disoriented and alone. She has no memory of how she got there, and each time the grave deepens. Back at her cabin, the supernatural torment intensifies.

6:45 PM – THE RUN (dir: Paul Raschid, USA/Italy) World Premiere. A famous fitness influencer’s morning run turns into a fight for survival in this interactive film, where the audience gets to vote on her choices. With cameos from horror icons Dario Argento and Franco Nero.

9.30 PM – SATURNALIA (dir: Daniel Lerch, USA) World Premiere. After the mysterious death of both her parents, a newcomer to a prestigious boarding school realizes that it is a front for something evil. The film is scored by Claudio Simonetti, composer of Suspiria, Deep Red, and Dawn of the Dead.

SATURDAY 21 JUNE 2025

10:30 AM – LONER (dir: Charlie Robb, Douglas Tawn, UK) World Premiere. Debut feature. This raw, found-footage folk horror follows an aspiring vlogger who embarks on a wilderness retreat to make videos about nature and disconnecting from city life. But he is held at the mercy of a higher natural order.

1:00 PM – SHAMAN (dir: Daniel Negret, Ecuador/UK/USA) European Premiere. While working to convert an Indigenous community in Ecuador, a devout missionary’s son falls mysteriously ill. As tensions rise, she uncovers a darker truth: her son is possessed by a malevolent, ancient force.

3:30 PM – HOLE (dir: Dejan Babosek, Slovenia) UK Premiere. A couple of con artists seduce and rob wealthy women. One robbery goes awry. Believing they have killed her, they drive to a remote forest to bury her body. She wakes up and escapes, and a lethal game of cat-and-mouse ensues. (+ short film THE FIRST)

6:00 PM – SRISHTI (dir: Paul Antar, India) World Premiere. The story of a photographer, haunted by childhood guilt, who travels to remote Himalayan Sector K to investigate a mysterious phenomenon – this mystery/drama highlights the plight of children forced to work trawling through giant rubbish heaps in search of things that can be monetised.

8:30 PM – SNATCHERS (dir: Craig Alexander & Shelly Higgs, Australia) World Premiere. A pair of old friends try to make a quick buck selling the organs of a fresh corpse – but get thrown a curveball when she wakes up on the operating table.

SUNDAY 22 JUNE 2025

10:30 AM – DUI SHAW (dir: Nuhash Humayun, Bangladesh) UK Premiere. A portmanteau of unsettling tales from Bangladesh, including a deadly curse, a magic village, and a morbid marriage. A sequel to Pett Kata Shaw, winner of Raindance’s Best International Feature in 2023.

2:00 PM – ZHAZA (dir: Darkhan Tulegenov, Kazakhstan). UK Premiere. In this action thriller, a corrupt mayor learns that his daughter has been raped by the chief-of-police. He takes him hostage and fights off the rape squads, while trying to save his daughter and establish a relationship with her.

4:30 PM – WHITE GUILT (dir: Marcus Flemmings, UK) World Premiere. Set on a US plantation, affluent white individuals sample an ‘inverted slavery experience’ through a pay-to-play service. (+ the short HOOVES)

6:45 PM – DIRTY BOY (dir: Doug Rao, UK) UK Premiere. Debut feature. Graham McTavish (Outlander, The Hobbit trilogy) stars in this tale of a reclusive schizophrenic raised in an oppressive cult, who discovers he’s being framed by cult leaders for a series of ritualistic murders.

9:30 PM – THE LOST EPISODE (dir: Nick Wernham, Canada) European Premiere. Utilising supposedly found footage, we follow two police officers as they navigate the streets of a sleepy town on Halloween in 2004, uncovering a chain of horrifying events.

You'll find even more details plus trailers for these films on Raindance's horror-focused blog post  

If you also appreciate the Sci-Fi/fantasy genre, you may be interested in the following features and documentaries from the broader festival programme (although these are NOT a part of the "All The Horrors" Film Pass):

ABDUCTED FILES (dir: Filippo Capuzzi Lapietra, Brazil) World Premiere. In this mocumentary, a crew of ufologists revisit lost UFO footage from 2016. When shocking evidence resurfaces, they uncover a government conspiracy – and must decide whether to expose the truth or vanish into silence.

BEAM ME UP, SULU (dir: Timour Gregory, Sasha Schneider, USA) World Premiere. Debut feature. The search for a lost fan film made by young Trekkies in 1985 opens a window into the extraordinary life of Star Trek star George Takei and the ongoing fight for equality and representation.

SHAKESPEARE’S THE TEMPEST (dir: Garret Replogle, USA) European Premiere. Star Trek meets Shakespeare in this tale of a spaceship captain marooned on a desert planet who orchestrates a series of events to confront the crew who betrayed him.

THE RENDLESHAM UFO: THE BRITISH ROSWELL (dir: Roderick Godman, Mark Christopher Lee, UK) World Premiere. Narrated by William B. Davis of X-Files fame, this thrilling and sometimes hilarious investigation delves into the 1980 Rendlesham UFO incident where a mysterious craft was reportedly seen landing near a U.S. airbase.

More info and tickets HERE

Interview with POPEYE THE SLAYER MAN actor Jason Robert Stephens,

To mark the UK digital release of POPEYE THE SLAYER MAN, our spinach munching slayer, Jason Robert Stephens, reflects on the challenges of portraying the iconic cartoon hero, being compared to Jason Statham and hints at a ‘Popeye’ sequel.   

Q) This version of Popeye is definitely not your grandpa’s sailor—how did you prepare to embody such a gritty, slayer-style version of this iconic character?  

Mentally, it was pretty easy to get into the character. Once you have all that makeup on, the costume, etc., you kind of have to become that character. It was actually really fun to play.    

Q) What drew you to this project in the first place? Did you have any connection to the classic Popeye cartoons growing up?

I’ve known the director Robert Michael Ryan since we were 11 years old. We started out making short horror movies with a home video camera and our love for cinema grew from there. One day he told me that the Popeye character was going into the public domain, and he wanted to direct a Popeye horror movie. He asked me to play Popeye, knowing that it was going to be pretty physical and I'm all about that. So I told him as long as he didn’t skimp on the gore, I’m game.

As far as the original iconic character, I did watch the cartoons as a kid and I even went and saw the Robin Williams version of Popeye in the theatre. So, it was definitely part of my childhood.

 

Q) The physicality of Popeye is that of a mutated monster. How intense were the make-up transformation demands on you?

 

It depended on the scene. For example, if it was a far-away shot, or I was in the shadows, getting into the character makeup wasn't all that terrible. If I was doing a close up with dialogue, then it was a little bit more tedious, but all in all, I knew it was going to be worth it in the end.

 

Q) How did you balance the over-the-top, badass elements of this Popeye with the heart of the original character?

 

As the movie progresses, you realise that Popeye isn't really 100% bad. He's actually taking out the bad guys.

 

Maintaining the heart of the original character played itself out in the script. And luckily, Robert let me improvise a couple of things that I think helped with that heart element. For example in the Popeye’s "layer" you get to see his softer side. A lot of that scene I improvised. I just had to hit my marks and eat the spinach.

 

Q) What was your favourite scene to shoot—and was there one that totally pushed your limits as an actor?

 

My favourite scene as far as the kills are concerned, is the arm scene but I won't give it away. You'll know which one I'm talking about. That one was super physical, totally over the top and fun plus you really want to see that guy get what’s coming to him. My favourite scene of the movie is when I'm in the layer and you get to see my softer side.

 

Q) Popeye traditionally relies on his fists and forearms—how did the kill scenes choreography evolve for The Slayer Man? Were you involved in any of it?

 

Most of the kills were pretty much written and filmed as in the original script. We did have to improvise a few things due to time constraints and some other location limitations. I've worked on a lot of movies and directed several of them and utilised stunt coordinators before. So the stunt choreography actually came pretty easily.

 

Q) If you could face off against any classic cartoon character in slayer form—who would you choose, and who’d win?

 

If I had to face off against any cartoon character, I think I'd have to take care of that Winnie the Poo guy...... And if not him, maybe the grinch in "Popeye Slays Christmas".

 

Q) You were a cop for thirty years, and a fugitive hunter for five. So, who do you prefer to play – good guys or bad guys?

 

Yeah, for thirty years, I chased the bad guys and I prefer playing the good guy or the good guy with an edge. I'm told I looked a little bit like Jason Statham, probably because of our physical build and similar hairline..... some of the fugitives I brought back even called me the Transporter. Lol.

 

Q) What’s next for you?

 

Watch this space but you never know, maybe part two of Popeye the Slayer Man.

 

POPEYE THE SLAYER MAN is currently available to scream in the UK on Amazon and Apple.

 

View the Trailer on YouTube.