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Nightmares Film Festival Announces Its 2017 “Early 13”

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This Halloween season, Nightmares Film Festival returns to Columbus, Ohio! The horror film extravaganza will once again overtake Gateway Film Center and run from Thursday, October 19th through Sunday, October 22nd. Today, the festival announced its initial round of 13 entries that ran the gamut from feature films to shorts to screenplays. How’s this year’s selection of #BetterHorror shaping up? Pretty damn good, as far as I am concerned!

Dubbed “The Early 13“, today’s announcement includes 3 feature films, 8 short films, and 2 screenplays. On the feature end of this deadly cinematic swimming pool, there’s Steve DeGennaro’s Found Footage 3D (in all its three-dimensional glory), Max Groah’s Bong of the Living Dead, and James Quinn’s Flesh of the Void. DeGennario’s festival juggernaut Found Footage 3D has been described as the “Scream of found footage horror” and is produced by filmmaker Kim Henkel (Texas Chainsaw Massacre).

Bong of the Living Dead will be making its world premiere at the festival and is a slice of homegrown horror, as director Max Groah is a Columbus-based filmmaker. Following on its heels is the world premiere of Flesh of the Void, Austrian filmmaker James Quinn’s wild experimental feature-length debut. As for the shorts? Those contain a few immediate standouts as well…

  • To My Mother and Father, the first horror short from Baskin and Housewife director Can Evrenol!
  • Blood Shed, a horror comedy short from writer/director James Moran (Cockneys vs. Zombies, Severance, “Doctor Who“).
  • The Naughty List, a horror comedy short by Paul Campion (The Devil’s Rock) that was adapted from the Brian Keene story of the same name.
  • Dickeaters, a midnight short directed by Aaron Immediato.
  • The Cure, a midnight short directed by Slamdance-winning, Columbus-based filmmaker Mike Olenick.
  • La Sirena, a thriller short from Columbian filmmaker Rosita Lama Muvdi.
  • Creswick, a thriller short from Australian-Japanese filmmaker Natalie Erika James.
  • Your Date Is Here, a horror short by director Todd Spence and Zak White.

The inaugural duo in NFF’s 2017 screenplay competition are B. Maddox’s The Wood and Ron Riekki’s The Knife Association. Riekki is a finalist for Poet Laureate of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

“We are tradition-rich at Nightmares, and this is one we’re always excited about,” said NFF Co-founder and Programmer Jason Tostevin. “Each year we unveil thirteen early selections as a way to give Nightmares attendees a taste of the program we’re building to present in October.”

“We’re particularly proud of the diversity represented by the selections,” which include women, people of color, international and homegrown filmmakers, said co-founder Chris Hamel. “The horror community is about inclusion, and for us, that means making sure we include all kinds of voices.”

Nightmares Film Festival is held every October in Columbus, Ohio at the world-renowned Gateway Film Center, named a top 20 North American art house by Sundance. There, one of the last dedicated movie projectionist teams ensures every Nightmares film looks and sounds its best as exuberant fans – affectionately called The Sleepless for marathoning the program – mingle with filmmakers from around the world.

A full list of features, shorts, and screenplays being showcased at the 2017 Nightmares Film Festival will be announced at a later date. VIP and festival passes for NFF will be available for purchase come August 13th on the Gateway Film Center site. If you live in or around the surrounding area, get ’em while you can. Also, be sure to say “hi” if you attend, as I’ll be there covering the festival!

Devourer of film and disciple of all things horror. Freelance writer at Bloody Disgusting, DVD Active, Cult Spark, AndersonVision, Forbes, Blumhouse, etc. Owner/operator at The Schlocketeer.

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“Bite Size Short: Her House of Horrors” Announce Short Grant Program!

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Her House of Horrors, the horror division of Independent Production House WOMXNOGRAPHY, has launched its Bite Size Short Grant Program, ahead of its film festival Dollhouse of Horror, which will take place in March 2025 in Los Angeles, CA.

The Bite Size Short Grant Program awards $2,000 film grants to female-identifying and queer horror filmmakers. Shorts must be able to be made for $2,000, with a minimum runtime of 8 minutes. Submissions are now open on Filmfreeway, and are being judged by a panel of horror lovers and content creators.

The 2024 Bite Size Short Grant Program judge lineup is as follows:

“James H. Carter II- A documentary director, film producer, podcaster, marketing specialist, and writer. James is the founder and co-owner of Creepy Kingdom. Creepy Kingdom was founded in 2011 and is a multimedia website, and production studio specializing in creepy content. Their primary focus lies at the intersection of childlike fantasy and the macabre, covering horror films, theme parks, haunts, and much more. Beyond their extensive media coverage, Creepy Kingdom hosts events, offers original merchandise, and engages in film production under the Creepy Kingdom Studios brand producing original films like “Foolish Mortals”, exploring Disney’s “Haunted Mansion” fan culture, and “Georgie”, featuring Tony Dakota from the original “It” miniseries.

“In addition to founding Creepy Kingdom, James has won awards for his documentary work, including the award-winning “Foolish Mortals,” which has earned him recognition. He has been featured on Freeform’s 31 Nights of Halloween special.

“Ashleeta Beauchamp is the editor-in-chief of Peek-A-Boo! Magazine, a cheeky horror magazine created to uplift marginalized writers, artists, models and other creators within the horror community. She also runs The Halloween Coalition, a community group to provide support and marketing for horror and Halloween events around the Southern California area.

“Titeanya Rodríguez is a multi-hyphenate creative, and the founder and owner of HER HOUSE OF HORRORS, home of DOLLHOUSE OF HORROR and the horror division of WOMXNOGRAPHY. As a fellow storyteller and a self-proclaimed artivist, Titeanya’s mission is to create opportunities for women of color and queer women, across film, tv, sports, music, and beyond. She is also the creator of the BITE SIZE SHORT grant program.”

Winners will have a one-night theatrical screening at Regal Cinemas. Submissions Close April 8 at Midnight. Winners will be announced on May 27, 2024. Shorts must be shot and through post-production by June 30, 2024. The screening will take place on July 8, 2024, in Los Angeles, CA.

WOMXNOGRAPHY, HER HOUSE OF HORRORS, and Rodriguez are represented by Azhar PR, Granderson Des Rochers, and Kinsella Holley Iser Kump Steinsapir.

To submit your short to the Bite Size Short Grant Program, go to the FilmFreeway link here.

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