From the press release: “This year, the jury panel, comprised of national media figures and local filmmakers, selected J.T. Mollner’s terrifying cat-and-mouse thriller Strange Darling for the Jury Prize for Best Feature Film. In accepting the award, J.T. Mollner stated, ‘Wow. This is such an honor. Sincere thanks to Popcorn Frights, the jury, and all the horror fans we made this film for who came out to support. Getting this news was such a pleasant surprise.’

“The Scariest Feature Film Prize was awarded to Cody Ashford’s chilling tale Drive Back, an inventive twist on the slasher genre that had its world premiere at the festival. To further highlight emerging talent, Popcorn Frights introduced the New Nightmare Prize, honoring filmmakers making their feature film debuts. This year’s recipient was Steven Hugh Nelson for his found footage thriller Old Wounds, which also world premiered at the festival to widespread acclaim. In accepting the award, Steven shared: ‘We’re so incredibly grateful to receive the New Nightmare Prize for our micro-budget debut feature. The team behind Popcorn Frights truly champions independent horror filmmaking, and we couldn’t be more excited for their love and support. We hope that our film inspires other creatives and proves that you don’t need many resources to express yourself.’

“The Jury Prize for Best Short Film was awarded to The Sound of Fear by Aidan Rea Payne, selected from 83 films competing across nine shorts blocks. The Scariest Short Film Prize was claimed by Will Lee for Her House, a sinister haunted house tale that turns a simple story into something truly special. Claiming the title of Popcorn Frights’ Audience Award for Best Feature Film was Ross Partridge’s Birthrite, a timely maternal horror tale. The Audience Award for Best Short Film went to PJ Magerko-Liquorice animated horror delight Brim Broome Boulevard.”

The full list of the festival’s award winners can be found below:

Jury Prize for Best Feature Film: STRANGE DARLING, dir. J.T. Mollner

Jury Prize for Best Short Film: THE SOUND OF FEAR, dir. Aidan Rea Payne

Scariest Feature Film Prize: DRIVE BACK, dir. Cody Ashford

Scariest Short Film Prize: HER HOUSE, dir. Will Lee

New Nightmare Prize for Best Debut Film: OLD WOUNDS, dir. Steven Hugh Nelson

Best Florida Short Film: THIS EDIBLE AIN’T SHIT, dir. Frank Volk

Audience Award for Feature Film: BIRTHRITE, dir. Ross Partridge

Audience Award for Short Film: BRIM BROOME BOULEVARD, dir. PJ Magerko-Liquorice

The post Popcorn Frights 2024 Award Winners: ‘Strange Darling’ Wins Best Feature Prize, ‘Old Wounds’ Earns Inaugural Award appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Our first roundup of Popcorn Frights 2024 capsule reviews included found footage fright Chateau, along with fest darlings and new discoveries. The found footage didn’t stop there, though, with the fest’s back half unleashing even more found footage world premieres.

Here’s a round-up of some of Popcorn Frights 2024’s found footage feature offerings…

The Ceremony Is About to Begin

Writer/Director Sean Nichols Lynch employs a well-trodden found footage setup in The Ceremony Is About to Begin. A documentary filmmaker, Keith (John Laird), makes an ancient Egypt-obsessed cult his subject, exploring their inner workings. Of course, there’s an ulterior motive at play for Keith beyond simple documentary aspirations. It yields an unnerving push and pull between Keith and the cult’s youthful, irreverent current leader, Anubis (Chad Westbrook Hinds).

Nichols spends the bulk of his zippy short runtime digging into the discomfort of Anubis’ behavior, drawing clear inspiration from Mark Duplass’s Creep. It’s also where the film becomes more visually interesting, with Lynch breaking free from the early talking heads documentary format that delivers the bulk of the exposition.

The Ceremony Is About to Begin wears its influences on its sleeves while leaning into the gnarlier aspects of Egyptian rituals and mythology. It presents a fresh angle for the cult itself, though the found footage rules constrain it. Instead of running wild, the film faithfully follows Creep to a fault, falling into the predictable path that culminates in the expected outcome.

Livescreamers

Writer/Director Michelle Iannantuono’s Livescreamers gets inventive with screenlife horror, delivering a unique Twitch-style horror entry that calls video game horror movies like Stay Alive to mind. The setup assembles a group of games from popular video creators Janus Gaming, along with a dedicated fan tagging along as a guest, to record their playthrough of the elusive horror game “House of Souls.” It doesn’t take long for the game’s quirks to reveal itself, growing more lethal the further into the game they get. As it bleeds over into the real world, picking the players off one by one, they’ll have to work together to survive. If only the game would stop exposing their darkest secrets to the group.

Iannantuono impresses with visual worldbuilding, using the video game realm to deliver sprawling medieval mansions with uncanny contemporary flourishes and puzzle games to offset the minimal backdrop of the tiny Janus studio. It’s a great contrast and an innovative means of stretching production value on a minimal budget. Livescreamers struggles to blend the real world with in-game happenings, though; what’s happening in the studio is always less engaging than the avatars evading death in-game.

Even still, Iannantuono effectively captures the pitfalls of the online gaming world and the overwhelming pressures of being a public figure. Pointed GamerGate commentary aside, the filmmaker brings a satisfying level of bloodshed and fun game lore. For all its commentary on content creation, Livescreamers has fun foremost on its mind. It’s a scrappy new twist to screenlife horror that keeps you guessing on its kill order, each bloodier than the last. The precise type of effort that makes you wonder why we don’t get more original video game horror movies.

Old Wounds

Frogman actor Chelsey Grant co-writes and stars alongside director Steven Hugh Nelson and Brian Villalobos in this deceptive found footage feature, produced by Frogman helmed Anthony Cousins. Like Frogman, Old Wounds centers around a trio of unlikely friends embarking on a final hoorah together before life pulls them into a new chapter. In this case, Ashley (Grant) and Steve (Nelson) road trip out to the country for an important step in their relationship: meeting the family. The lovebirds decide to document their trip, and they eventually notice they’re not the only ones recording their journey. Things get even weirder when Steve’s quirky pal Graham (Villalobos) shows up.

Olds Wounds plays like a mumblecore riff on The Blair Witch Project, with the central trio getting lost in their own personal drama and hang-ups that they can miss things lurking behind them in the distance. That means that the horror elements fall into the background as character relationships take center stage. That’s by design here, with this team taking an audacious approach to the found footage finale that’s guaranteed to be divisive. It’s a commendable experiment, but there’s no denying it’s the type of bold ending guaranteed to ruffle a few feathers.

Old Wounds won’t induce much in the way of fright; approach this one like a hangout movie that tests the found footage format’s boundaries.

The post Popcorn Frights 2024 Found Footage Capsule Reviews: ‘Livescreamers’, ‘Old Wounds’ and More appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Opening weekend kicked off with a variety of repertory screenings of Psycho Cop Returns, Maniac Cop 2, Maniac, Society, the “lost” cut of Return of the Living Dead 3, and more with the filmmakers in attendance. It also came with a slew of brand new premieres from emerging filmmakers.

Here’s a round-up of some of Popcorn Frights 2024’s feature offerings so far…

Beezel

Director Aaron Fradkin explores the enduring, grisly horrors lurking within the bowels of a New England home via an experimental triptych. Co-written with Victoria Fratz, Beezel begins with an appropriately gnarly child death in the ’60s, shot on Super 8, kicking off three different experiences with witchy terror stretched over six decades. Fradkin puts heavy emphasis on scare-crafting, ensuring every second of screen time is dedicated to the build-up or release of a scare, including all the familiar tactics you’d expect. The magic in Beezel isn’t in its bid to induce chills, though that’s commendable, but rather in its unique narrative structure.

Fradkin connects three distinct perspectives and stories through technology in a seamless way. Super 8 grit fades into VHS static as the ’60s jump to the ’80s to close out an era of witchy torment. The transition from analog to digital is particularly inspired, though it heralds in the longest and most unfulfilling story of the three, which sees Fratz step in front of the camera as the unlikeable wife of the home’s latest heir. While Fradkin packs this segment full of lore and nightmarish freak-outs, it’s not enough to mask the narrative and budgetary constraints, further unhelped by the central couple’s lack of chemistry or logic.

Beezel wisely keeps its mythology shrouded in mystery, never overexplaining its hand. Early teases never pan out in the obvious or expected path, and the deaths can be delightfully gory. The rough acting and jump scare tactics can distract, but it’s the innovative narrative structure that sets this gory witch tale apart.

Chateau

Writer/Director Luke Genton‘s screenlife influencer horror movie calls found footage hits like Hell House LLC and Deadstream to mind. Cathy Marks stars as James, an aspiring YouTuber who rents a haunted French chateau on the advice of her best pal Dash (Coltron Tran) in the hopes of going viral. James covertly gets hired as Chateau’s housekeeper, planning to vlog her time there in secret from the homeowner. Of course, the longer James stays, the more she uncovers the truth behind the place: those who die on the property are doomed to linger there in the afterlife.

The friendship between James and Dash is endearing, offsetting some of the pitfalls that come with influencer horror. Specifically, it goes far in humanizing a self-serving protagonist. Genton attempts to further overcome that hurdle by introducing familial trauma, something that factors into James’ arc in the back half, though it’s handled in a familiar, superficial way. Of course, Genton’s aim is simply to deliver a fun, frightful, good time, not reinvent the found footage format. Those who come looking for just that may find it here, largely thanks to the beguiling Chateau itself and the inventive camera setups Genton employs to make this haunted house a character itself. But those tired of the subgenre won’t be moved by the familiar trappings of the found footage format, motion sickness inducing shaky cam in parts and all.

Strange Darling

One of the best genre films of the year, writer/director JT Mollner’s Strange Darling screened in-person at the fest ahead of its release next week on August 23. It’s the type of film that’s best going in blind, packed with narrative turns and unexpected detours, so just know this: the plot follows the exploits of a serial killer who may have met their match. Mollner boldly tells their story nonlinearly, a risky move that pays off in spades thanks to a tremendous pair of lead performances, stunning 35mm cinematography by Giovanni Ribisi (yes, that one), and endless style.

Willa Fitzgerald and Kyle Gallner embark on a violent, thrilling cat-and-mouse game that takes no prisoners- including the audience. Told in six chapters and presented out of order, Strange Darling is a surprising crowd-pleaser that’s meticulously plotted and richly acted. Mollner was recently announced as the screenwriter behind The Long Walk, and it’s not hard to see why with Strange Darling. It’s violent, twisty, and thrilling, so don’t miss it when it releases next week.

There’s a Zombie Outside

Multihyphenate writer/director/producer Michael Varrati goes meta with hyper specificity in There’s a Zombie Outside. Ben Bauer takes on a dual role, sort of, as the star of a cult zombie movie and the actor who plays him. When the film’s horny zombie bleeds over into the real world and begins invading Ben’s LA life, fact and fiction blur and Ben is thrown into an existential nightmare. Varrati explores the crossroads of identity through his lead actor, torn between the distinctly separate worlds of horror and the Los Angeles gay community, deepening the meta layers further by appearing in a voiceover capacity as the cult film’s director.

There’s a Zombie Outside stacks the horror side of the equation full of notable stalwarts, including Tiffany Shepis as Officer Findlay, Peaches Christ, and the voices of Lori Cardille (George Romero’s Day of the Dead) and Elizabeth Coffey (John Waters’ Pink Flamingos and Female Trouble). The stalking zombie is also appropriately great, with a particular make out scene that makes you eager to see the original cult feature nestled within the overarching meta-story. But There’s a Zombie Outside, for all its dizzying bending of reality, is less a horror movie and more an inward meditation on identity. That it spends more time grappling with the industry side of filmmaking and Ben’s Los Angeles friend group diminishes its accessibility to a wider audience. It’s a personal story told with hyperspecificity and an eroding grip on reality, which makes it all the more disorienting for Ben and the viewer.

Stay tuned for additional dispatches from Popcorn Frights.

The post Popcorn Frights 2024 Capsule Reviews: From Found Footage ‘Chateau’ to Meta Horror ‘There’s a Zombie Outside’ appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Check out the new poster below from artists Kaitlin Ronduen and Travis Neal.

About Lizzie Lazarus: “Summer Solstice, 1990, two strangers carry a corpse through the woods looking for a mythical zone they believe will bring the dead body back to life. But what secrets will come back with it?”

It’s the type of setup that instantly calls Jud Crandall’s warning from Pet Sematary to mind: Sometimes dead is better.

The film stars Omar Maskati and Lianne O’Shea.

Filmmaker Aviv Rubinstien said in a statement, “This film was a labor of love born out of getting a little ‘cabin fever’ in covid and reevaluating all of my life decisions. What Lianne (O’Shea, who plays Bethany) and I developed was a story about grief, loss, and guilt, cults and witches, and the question of how far you’d go to bring someone you loved back from the dead. We set it in 1990, not just because that was the year of a real occult disappearance on the summer solstice, but we wanted to pay homage to 90s independent films that take place all in one night, like Before Sunrise, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, and Gerry (which is 2002 but you get the picture!) with a Wicker Man twist.”

Lizzie Lazarus is set to premiere at the festival in person on August 11 and virtually.

The post ‘Lizzie Lazarus’ Poster Teases An Eerie Resurrection appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Watch the exclusive teaser below, highlighting the blood-sucking perils of finding love, ahead of the film’s world premiere at Popcorn Frights next month.

The Night Is Young follows “the story of Nora (Sarah McGuire), an influencer, who along with her brother are filming her failed dates for a video blog. Through a turn of events, she ends up on a date with a female vampire. Soon they find themselves in the crosshairs of a group of murderous vampire hunters.”

Shawn Eric Jones and Dan Daly star alongside Sarah McGuire.

The found footage horror film is directed by Patrick Rea, who co-wrote the screenplay with Sarah McGuire.

Rea said in a statement, “I had always wanted to make a found footage feature but wanted to do something that felt different.  We put a wonderful group of people together and had a blast filming on location in Kansas City, Missouri.  Hopefully we made a film that successfully mixes heart and comedy with the vampire elements.   We are very excited and honored to have the film screen at Popcorn Frights, since we had a fantastic experience premiering They Wait In The Dark there in 2022.”

The Night Is Young will be having its World Premiere virtually nationwide at the 10th Annual Popcorn Frights Film Festival on Saturday, August 10.

The post ‘The Night Is Young’ Teaser Trailer – Dating Sucks in Vampire Found Footage Horror Movie appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

From the press release: “To commemorate its awesome milestone, Popcorn Frights introduces the Golden Skull Award, honoring a master of horror whose made an everlasting impact on the genre and our darkest dreams. The inaugural recipient is legendary actor Tony Todd, the haunting star of over 200 films, including the iconic CANDYMAN. At a special presentation of Candyman, Todd will receive this honor, accompanied by the screening of two new films featuring him: the unsettling tale The Activated Man and the previously announced world premiere of The Bunker.

But the horror doesn’t end there! Just when you thought it was safe to go back into bed, Popcorn Frights unleashes its grand finale: an Up All Night With Freddy marathon hosted over one single night, made possible by the generous support of FlickDirect. Kicking off with the 40th anniversary presentation of Wes Craven’s A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET, the event will feature all seven ELM STREET films with the Man of Your Dreams, culminating with the Florida Premiere of the brazenly outrageous, Elm Street-inspired Bollywood horror musical Mahakaal, complete with its own horrifically disfigured dream-stalker with a razor-clawed glove.”

“The excitement doesn’t end with the films — before the opening night curtains rise, prepare for Horror Movie Trivia Presented by Paramount Scares and hosted by horror legends Brian Yuzna and William Lustig! Expect some mind-benders and maybe some bone breakers, as your wits and horror knowledge are tested to the limits for a chance to win special prizes from Paramount Scares.”

Popcorn Frights 2024 has also unveiled its virtual lineup for those across the country, including over twenty films to sink your fangs into.

Read on for the packed second wave of Popcorn Frights 2024 programming:

FEATURE FILM LINEUP

The Activated Man

Special Presentation

United States | 2023 | 115 Min. | Dir. Nicholas Gyeney

In-Theater Exclusive

*Director Nicholas Gyeney and actor Tony Todd expected in person

After a man loses his beloved dog to cancer, the shock from the trauma produces strange vision projections that forces him to wrestle with the possibility that his mind has fractured, or that it’s actually real.

All Alone Together

East Coast Premiere

United States | 2023 | 105 Min. | Dir. Maximus Jenkins

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

As a tormented filmmaker reaches new levels of success, the horrors of his film start to creep into his life.

Booger

South Florida Premiere

United States | 2023 | 78 Min. | Dir. Mary Dauterman

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

After the death of her best friend, a woman focuses all her attention on Booger, the stray cat which she and her friend took in. When Booger bites her, she begins to undergo a strange transformation.

The Buildout

Florida Premiere

United States | 2023 | 70 Min. | Dir. Zeshaan Younus

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

A friendship is tested as two women experience something strange in the desert.

The Ceremony Is About to Begin

Florida Premiere

United States | 2024 | 70 Min. | Dir. Sean Nichols Lynch

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

Madness, mayhem, and mummification rites ensue when a documentary filmmaker visits the rural commune of an Ancient Egyptian inspired cult to interview its enigmatic leader.

Haunted Ulster Live

East Coast Premiere

United Kingdom | 2023 | 80 Min. | Dir. Dominic O’Neill

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

On Halloween night in 1988, a TV veteran teams up with a popular children’s presenter to investigate poltergeist activity in a haunted house in Belfast.

I Will Never Leave You Alone

Florida Premiere

United States | 2023 | 93 Min. | Dir. DW Medoff

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

After his release from prison, a brooding man with a dark past must stay in a haunted house to clear it of spirits, facing a witch-ghost that may be worse than prison.

Livescreamers

Florida Premiere

United States | 2023 | 90 Min. | Dir. Michelle Iannantuono

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

A popular group of content creators face the ultimate lesson in teamwork when a haunted video game begins killing them one by one.

The Lonely Man with the Ghost Machine

Florida Premiere

United States | 2024 | 90 Min. | Dir. Graham Skipper

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

After a global catastrophe, the last man on Earth questions his purpose and sanity as his deceased wife and a mysterious stranger confront him with his past, present, and the future in the wastes of a dead world.

Mysterious Ways

East Coast Premiere

United States | 2024 | 92 Min. | Dir. Tyler Eaton

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

Two sibling youth pastors who accidentally possess a member of their youth group with a demonic spirit must stop her rampage on Halloween night, before Satanic forces usher in the End of Days.

Old Wounds

World Premiere

United States | 2024 | 109 Min. | Dir. Steven Hugh Nelson

In-Theater Exclusive

*Director Steven Hugh Nelson and producers Erica Nelson and Anthony Cousins expected in person

An aspiring filmmaker documents a road trip with his girlfriend to meet her family. As he learns more about her past, they discover he’s not the only one filming them.

Sheryl

Southeast US Premiere

United States | 2023 | 71 Min. | Dir. Justin Best

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

After being dumped by her serial killer boyfriend, a beauty-obsessed woman goes on a blood-soaked quest to create the perfect female face, while navigating her new relationship with the cop investigating the murders.

Sigil

Southeast US Premiere

United States | 2024 | 111 Min. | Dir. Jacob Perrett

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

Two girls unknowingly conjure a witch while celebrating their anniversary in the countryside.

Video Vision

Florida Premiere

United States | 2024 | 84 Min. | Dir. Michael Turney

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

A RetroTech Romance about a woman who unlocks the dark dimension of Dr. Analog through an old VCR.

The Wheel of Heaven

South Florida Premiere

United States | 2023 | 103 Min. | Dir. Joe Badon

Virtual Exclusive (Available in the US)

A woman caught up in predatory relationships is thrown into a multi-layered world of choices after she discovers a mystical book in a thrift store.

IN THEATER RETRO LINEUP

A Nightmare on Elm Street

40th Anniversary Presentation, “Up All Night with Freddy” Marathon

United States | 1984 | 91 Min. | Dir. Wes Craven

Teenager Nancy Thompson must uncover the dark truth concealed by her parents after she and her friends become targets of the spirit of a serial killer with a bladed glove in their dreams, in which if they die, it kills them in real life.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge

“Up All Night with Freddy” Marathon

United States | 1985 | 87 Min. | Dir. Jack Sholder

A teenage boy is haunted in his dreams by deceased child murderer Freddy Krueger, who is out to possess him in order to continue his reign of terror in the real world.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors

“Up All Night with Freddy” Marathon
United States | 1987 | 87 Min. | Dir. Chuck Russell

 A psychiatrist, familiar with knife-wielding dream demon, Freddy Krueger, helps teens at a mental hospital battle the killer who is invading their dreams.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: Dream Master

“Up All Night with Freddy” Marathon
United States | 1988 | 93 Min. | Dir. Renny Harlin

 Freddy Krueger returns once again to terrorize the dreams of the remaining Dream Warriors, as well as those of a young woman who may be able to defeat him for good.

A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child

35th Anniversary Presentation, “Up All Night with Freddy” Marathon
United States | 1989 | 89 Min. | Dir. Stephen Hopkins

 Through the dreams of an unborn child, Freddy has resurrected himself, hoping to be reborn into the real world.

Candyman

Special Presentation
United States | 1992 | 99 Min. | Dir. Bernard Rose

*Actor Tony Todd expected in person

 The Candyman, a murderous soul with a hook for a hand, is accidentally summoned to reality by a skeptic grad student researching the monster’s myth.

Freddy’s Dead: The Final Nightmare

“Up All Night with Freddy” Marathon
United States | 1991 | 89 Min. | Dir. Rachel Talalay

 Dream-haunting Freddy Krueger returns once again to prowl the nightmares of Springwood’s last surviving teenager, and of a woman whose personal connection to Krueger may mean his doom.

Mahakaal

30th Anniversary Presentation, “Up All Night with Freddy” Marathon
India | 1994 | 132 Min. | Dirs. Shyam Ramsay & Tulsi Ramsay

 A dream demon torments the family and friends of a young woman in order to take revenge on his death, which was caused by her police-officer father.

Wes Craven’s New Nightmare

30th Anniversary Presentation, “Up All Night with Freddy” Marathon
United States | 1994 | 112 Min. | Dir. Wes Craven

 A demonic force has chosen Freddy Krueger as its portal to the real world. Can Heather Langenkamp play the part of Nancy one last time and trap the evil trying to enter our world?

Access to the in-theater experience is free and open to the public on a first come first served basis, but a limited number of In-Theater All-Access VIP Badges will be available for guests who would like an all-inclusive experience with reserved seating for all films and special events hosted at the Savor Cinema Fort Lauderdale and Paradigm Cinema’s Gateway Theater, Popcorn Frights’ official host venues. Separate virtual passes are also available and will provide access to every film streaming in the festival’s virtual program. To order an In-Theater All-Access VIP Badge, click here, to order a Virtual All-Access Pass, click here.

The post Popcorn Frights 2024’s Second Wave Unleashes All Night Freddy Krueger Marathon, Tony Todd Tribute, and More appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Watch the exclusive new trailer and poster reveal below.

About Lizzie Lazarus: “Summer Solstice, 1990, two strangers carry a corpse through the woods looking for a mythical zone they believe will bring the dead body back to life. But what secrets will come back with it?”

The film stars Omar Maskati and Lianne O’Shea.

Filmmaker Aviv Rubinstien said in a statement, “This film was a labor of love born out of getting a little ‘cabin fever’ in covid and reevaluating all of my life decisions. What Lianne (O’Shea, who plays Bethany) and I developed was a story about grief, loss, and guilt, cults and witches, and the question of how far you’d go to bring someone you loved back from the dead. We set it in 1990, not just because that was the year of a real occult disappearance on the summer solstice, but we wanted to pay homage to 90s independent films that take place all in one night, like Before Sunrise, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, and Gerry (which is 2002 but you get the picture!) with a Wicker Man twist. 

The film was self-funded, and I got the opportunity to collaborate with some of my best friends (and my now wife), who all busted their asses for this film. And we made a great new friend in Omar Maskati, who plays Eli. We shot it over the course of ten overnights, and everyone was super game, living together in Airbnbs in Reno, NV. The whole thing felt like summer camp, and it was an experience I’ll never forget. Premiering at Popcorn Frights is an incredible honor. It’s one of the best genre festivals, and we’re super grateful to Marc and all the folks at the festival for working so hard to program amazing films that I’m excited to see and for giving us the once in a lifetime opportunity to premiere our truly grassroots movie and talk about our experiences.” 

Lizzie Lazarus is set to premiere at the festival in person on August 11 and virtually.

The post ‘Lizzie Lazarus’ Exclusive Trailer Resurrects the Dead in New Witchy Tale appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

To add to the pure mayhem of its anniversary celebration, Popcorn Frights 2024’s in-theater experience will be offered free and open to the public, as a gift back to the community for ten years of their dedicated support and moviegoing love. Popcorn Frights’ free festival is made possible by the generous support of Nightmare Weekend Miami.

Highlights include the 35th anniversary presentation of Brian Yuzna’s spectacularly insane masterpiece Society, one of the ickiest, sweatiest, gloopiest, horniest, and most original body horror shockers of all time. The master of horror will also attend the first screening of the “Lost First Cut” of Return of the Living Dead 3, featuring ten minutes of uncovered footage that Brian Yuzna himself hasn’t seen! This exclusive screening event is made possible by filmmakers Dustin Ferguson and Chris MacGibbon, who unearthed this previously unknown cut of the film — a testament to their efforts in uncovering this hidden gem of horror cinema. Legendary directors William Lustig and Adam Rifkin are set to join Popcorn Frights for two special double-bill events.

Brimming with encroaching dread, the festival is also unleashing the supernatural horror film The Grudge with a special 20th anniversary screening attended by writer Stephen Susco. Before the screening, a Masters of Horror Panel will be moderated by Bloody Disgusting and will feature Brian Yuzna, William Lustig, Adam Rifkin, and Stephen Susco. That doesn’t even touch on the brand new premieres and virtual screenings, including a special presentation of IFC Films’ beauty revenge thriller Skincare starring Elizabeth Banks.

The fun doesn’t stop there; a second wave of Popcorn Frights 2024 titles with more than two dozen additional feature film premieres for in-theater and virtual programming will be announced next week.

In the meantime, read on for the packed first wave of Popcorn Frights 2024 programming:

IN THEATER FEATURE FILM LINEUP

OPENING NIGHT DOUBLE-BILL

Beezel

World Premiere

United States | 2024 | 81 Min. | Dir. Aaron Fradkin

A horrifying incident involving a child reveals the malevolent presence of an ancient witch residing within the basement walls.

OPENING NIGHT DOUBLE-BILL

Strange Darling

Florida Premiere

United States | 2023 | 96 Min. | Dir. JT Mollner

Willa Fitzgerald, Kyle Gallner, and Barbara Hershey star in this acclaimed cat-and-mouse thriller where nothing is what it seems when a twisted one-night stand spirals into a serial killer’s vicious murder spree.

Birthrite

World Premiere

United States | 2024 | 100 Min. | Dir. Ross Partridge

*Director Ross Partridge and actress Jennifer Lafleur expected in person

When a pregnant woman inherits a home from an estranged aunt, she and her girlfriend leave the city to start anew, only to face a karmic debt that endangers their unborn child and reveals their link to the town’s cursed history.

The Bunker

World Premiere
United States | 2024 | 91 Min. | Dir. Brian Hanson

*Director Brian Hanson expected in person

 When mysterious alien ships appear in the sky, a scientist is sealed in an underground bunker and must create a bio-weapon to stop the unknown visitors, but paranoia and isolation cause her to question the true intention of her mission. Starring Chelsea Edmundson, Tony Todd, and Tobin Bell.

The Demon Disorder

International Premiere

Australia | 2024 | 85 Min. | Dir. Steven Boyle

Three estranged brothers discover a family secret that transforms their deceased father’s garage into a site of supernatural revenge.

Drive Back

World Premiere

United States | 2024 | 94 Min. | Dir. Cody Ashford

*Director Cody Ashford, actors Whit Kunschik and Madonna Magee, producer Orlando J. Gomez, and composer Richard Breakspear expected in person

A couple returning from their engagement party must escape a sinister and seemingly endless road.

The Funeral

East Coast Premiere

Turkey | 2023 | 109 Min. | Dir. Orcun Behram

A hearse driver is secretly tasked with transporting a young girl’s body, only to hear eerie groans from the back of the truck despite her lack of a pulse.

Lizzie Lazarus

World Premiere

United States | 2024 | 91 Min. | Dir. Aviv Rubinstien

*Director Aviv Rubinstien and actors Omar Maskati and Lianne O’Shea expected in person

On the Summer Solstice in 1990, two strangers carry a corpse through the woods in search of a mythical zone they believe can resurrect the dead, only to uncover hidden secrets.

Scared to Death

World Premiere

United States | 2024 | 98 Min. | Dir. Paul Boyd

*Director Paul Boyd, producer Eric Barrett, and actor Kurt Deimer expected in person

A group of filmmakers attend a seance at an abandoned children’s orphanage in order to do research for a movie… that’s their first mistake. Starring Lin Shaye, Bill Moseley, and Kurt Deimer.

Skincare

Special Presentation

United States | 2024 | 97 Min. | Dir. Austin Peters

Famed aesthetician Hope Goldman’s skincare business faces sabotage when rival Angel Vergara opens a boutique across the street. Aided by friend Jordan, Hope seeks to uncover who’s trying to ruin her reputation. Starring Elizabeth Banks and Nathan Fillion.

Voidcaller

World Premiere

Sweden | 2024 | 85 Min. | Dir. Nils Alatalo

A woman waking up with amnesia realizes she may have been involved in something sinister on a cosmic scale.

VIRTUAL FEATURE FILM LINEUP

Chateau

World Premiere

United States | 2024 | 83 Min. | Dir. Luke Genton

While on a French vacation funded by odd jobs, an aspiring influencer covertly films a vlog in a reportedly haunted chateau she’s been hired to clean.

The Darkside of Society

North American Premiere

United States | 2023 | 85 Min. | Dir. Larry Wade Carrell

Screenwriter Zeph E. Daniel, formerly known as Woody Keith, steps out of his closet-of-dark-secrets and tells the incredible story behind the subversive oddity of his cult film, SOCIETY.

The Night Is Young

World Premiere

United States | 2024 | 76 Min. | Dir. Patrick Rea

An influencer filming her failed dates with her brother finds herself on a date with a vampire, leading them to become targets of murderous vampire hunters.

There’s A Zombie Outside

World Premiere

United States | 2024 | 74 Min. | Dir. Michael Varrati

A struggling artist becomes entangled in the world of cult cinema, blurring his identity with his dark creations as the monster from his films invades his reality, leaving him unable to distinguish fact from fiction.

Videoteka

World Premiere

United States | 2024 | 112 Min. | Dir. Luka Bursac

Running from the police, a small-time thief finds refuge in an abandoned video store and, forced to spend the night there, decides to watch three horror films.

IN THEATER RETRO LINEUP

Bringing Out the Dead

25th Anniversary Presentation

United States | 1999 | 121 Min. | Dir. Martin Scorsese

Haunted by the patients he failed to save, a monumentally burned-out Manhattan ambulance paramedic fights to maintain his sanity over three increasingly turbulent nights.

The Grudge

20th Anniversary Presentation

United States | 2004 | 91 Min. | Dir. Takashi Shimizu

*Writer Stephen Susco expected in person

An American nurse living and working in Tokyo is exposed to a mysterious supernatural curse, one that locks a person in a powerful rage before claiming their life and spreading to another victim.

The Invisible Maniac

The Big Sleaze Double-Bill Event

United States | 1990 | 86 Min. | Dir. Adam Rifkin

*Director Adam Rifkin expected in person

An invisible scientist escapes from an asylum and teaches high-school physics to nubile teens.

Maniac

The Big Sleaze Double-Bill Event

United States | 1980 | 87 Min. | Dir. William Lustig

*Director William Lustig expected in person

A psychopathic man goes on a killing and mutilation spree in New York City.

Maniac Cop 2

Right “2” Remain Silent Double-Bill Event

United States | 1990 | 90 Min. | Dir. William Lustig

*Director William Lustig expected in person

A supernatural, maniac killer cop teams up with a Times Square serial killer.

Psycho Cop Returns

Right “2” Remain Silent Double-Bill Event

United States | 1993 | 80 Min. | Dir. Adam Rifkin

*Director Adam Rifkin expected in person

A psychopath cop decides to kill everyone who he thinks has broken the law.

Return of the Living Dead 3

“Lost First Cut”

United States | 1993 | 105 Min. | Dir. Brian Yuzna

*Director Brian Yuzna expected in person

 Having recently witnessed the horrific results of a top secret project to bring the dead back to life, a distraught youth performs the operation on his girlfriend after she’s killed in a motorcycle accident.

Society

35th Anniversary Presentation

United States | 1989 | 99 Min. | Dir. Brian Yuzna

*Director Brian Yuzna expected in person

 An ordinary teenage boy discovers his family is part of a gruesome orgy cult for the social elite.

Access to the in-theater experience is free and open to the public on a first come first served basis, but a limited number of In-Theater All-Access VIP Badges will be available for guests who would like an all-inclusive experience with reserved seating for all films and special events hosted at the Savor Cinema Fort Lauderdale and Paradigm Cinema’s Gateway Theater, Popcorn Frights’ official host venues. Separate virtual passes are also available and will provide access to every film streaming in the festival’s virtual program. To order an In-Theater All-Access VIP Badge, click here, to order a Virtual All-Access Pass, click here.

The post Popcorn Frights Film Festival 2024’s First Wave Includes “Lost First Cut” of ‘Return of the Living Dead 3’ and More appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.