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F*UCKING GHOSTS! (USA)
SYNOPSIS: A parody film trailer about a family that buys a new home that’s haunted by horny ghosts. city.
RATINGS GUIDE: Strong Language, Adult Content
DIRECTOR: Jason Cook
GENRE: Horror, Comedy
PREMIERE STATUS: Utah Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Saturday, Oct, 30th @ 8:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Jason Cook is a writer/director from Los Angeles. With a background in advertising that started in design and animation, and transcended into commercial directing, Jason has a unique approach to storytelling. Jason’s sensibility straddles the line between the everyday banality of life and the surreal. Pretty much, he’s always down to get weird. Fucking Ghosts was one idea that just wouldn’t go away. An itch that needed scratching. A once in a lifetime opportunity to shoot a ghost orgy. 👻👻
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FACE YOUR FEARS (USA)
SYNOPSIS: A young woman terrified of the dark takes a pet sitting job and discovers a game that will cure her fears, if she faces them first.
RATINGS GUIDE: Violence, Adult Content, Intense Imagery
GENRE: Horror
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Wednesday, Nov. 3rd @ 5:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Neil Stevens is writer and director from Lynn, Massachusetts, who grew up with a healthy obsession with the films of John Carpenter and the TV series The Twilight Zone. As kids, he and his friends would often visit nearby Salem, sometimes camping out and telling ghost stories of the various witches and ghouls of local lore. His latest short, “Face Your Fears”, just finished a long festival run and won numerous awards such as the Grand Jury Prize at the Salem Horror Fest.
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FAMILIAR (UK)
SYNOPSIS: Trapped in an old mansion, the Familiar to an ancient vampire is mentally tortured into seeking victims to feed it but soon finds his duties are becoming as unbearable as the abusive monster itself.
RATINGS GUIDE: Intense Imagery
DIRECTOR: David J. Ellison
GENRE: Horror
PREMIERE STATUS: Utah Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Wednesday, Nov. 3rd @ 5:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: David J. Ellison is a writer director of horror and thriller films with a minimalist style and high visual impact. David wrote and directed the 2013 ‘I Against I’ for Stray Dogs Films and also won the 2008 San Diego Comic Con Award for best horror and Suspense short film ‘The Insane’. David’s movies focus on psychological horror with minimal locations and minimal actors for a more intimate film experience. He is strongly influenced by Silent Cinema and Asian movies as well as classic horrors such as the James Whale films, Hammer Horror and any classic film set in minimal locations.
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FEED YOUR MUSE (USA)
SYNOPSIS: An aspiring novelist purchases the “muse” of a famous dead author at a garage sale. But what does the muse want in return?
RATINGS GUIDE: Violence, Strong Language, Adult Content, Intense Imagery
DIRECTOR: Brendan Beachman
GENRE: Horror
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Sunday, Oct. 31st @ 5:30 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Brendan Beachman was born in the small mining community of Craig, Colorado. It is there where he first discovered a love for making movies. After graduating high school, he followed this passion to Montana State University, where he studied film/photography. His current main focus is on the development of several horror, thriller, and dark comedy feature films. Brendan resides in Santa Monica, CA with his wife and dog.
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FENESTRA (USA)
SYNOPSIS: A heartbroken woman must contend with a cheating boyfriend – and an incoming alien invasion.
RATINGS GUIDE: Language
DIRECTOR: Jason Sheedy
GENRE: Sci-Fi
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Thursday, Nov. 4th @ 5:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Jason Sheedy is an independent film director, screenwriter, and editor. He is a co-founder of ReturnStyle Pictures in which he has created award-winning short films, as well as the horror feature, Patient, which went on to air on Showtime. His screenplays have landed him semi-finalist and finalist awards with Screencraft, Stage 32, Film Empire, and the Finish Line Script Competition. In addition to his film work, he is also the Senior Editor for Bark Bark, a full-service commercial production company working with top brands and networks.
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FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION (USA)
SYNOPSIS: Determined to party at Sundance, three entitled young women meet up at an LA member’s only club to make a selection-worthy film. In an unholy fusion of wokeness and cluelessness, they build a narrative from atop the high perch of their privilege. And piece-by-piece, they almost, almost, almost give a voice to the voiceless — just without ever having any idea what they’re talking about. But they are perfectly positioned to make it happen.
RATINGS GUIDE: Adult Content
DIRECTOR: Poppy Gordon
GENRE: Comedy, Fantastic
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Monday, Nov. 1st @ 12:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Poppy Gordon is a NYC based director and founder of Feral, a creative studio through which she has directed commercials, new media as well as created visuals for launch events and immersive experiences. She is also represented by Hey Baby in LA. She excels at visually driven narratives that combine bold cinematic style with pop influenced VFX. Poppy has directed work for brands such as NIKE, WAV, PayPal, Nexxus, Pond’s, TRESemmé, 350Action and many more. Her most recent short film entitled For Your Consideration starring Samantha Robinson (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, The Love Witch) satirically distills the filmmaking process into a single conversation. While just beginning its festival journey, it has been already selected already by Cinequest, Chattooga and Odense FF. Poppy received her BA at the University of Washington and is currently finishing her MA thesis at the European Graduate School in Switzerland under the supervision of avant garde film director and writer Chris Kraus.
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FORGIVE US (USA)
SYNOPSIS: After years of estrangement, an embittered young man uncovers sinister threats when returning home with his boyfriend for Christmas.
RATINGS GUIDE: Strong Violence, Strong Language, Intense Imagery
DIRECTOR: D.W. Hodges
GENRE: Horror
PREMIERE STATUS: Utah Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Sunday, Oct. 31st @ 5:30 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: PINEAPPLE CUT PICTURES is a three-time Emmy Award- winning production company established in 2017, with a driving mission to shed light on underrepresented narratives. Their work includes narrative films, vignettes, and music videos whose stories aim to give a voice to those who need it, with a production that fosters a culture of equality among the crew. Led by Alex Woodruff and Abijeet Achar, PCP has produced 10 narrative films since 2019 that have achieved a number of awards and prestigious festival selections. Their next project, MYSORE MAGIC, will be their most ambitious work to date, and will enter production in Fall 2021
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FORSAKEN MANDALORIAN AND THE DRUNKEN JEDI MASTER (USA)
SYNOPSIS: A Forsaken Mandalorian hunts down a Hutt Courier to recover an asset that unexpectedly leads him to team up with an outcast Drunken Jedi Master to fulfill his sworn duty.
RATINGS GUIDE: Mild Violence
DIRECTOR: Anthony Ferraro
GENRE: Sci-Fi
PREMIERE STATUS: World Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Thursday, Nov. 4th @ 5:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Anthony Ferraro has directed two feature films, 13 short films, and two web series. He was also a producer and editor on Al Gore’s Emmy Winning Current TV team for three years. Ferraro is the writer/director of the breakout sci-fi short film “Aeranger.” The film earned over 3 million organic views across platforms, including the highly curated sci-fi YouTube channel, DUST. Ferraro’s stylized sci-fi series, Galactic Galaxy, won the Outstanding Film Award at the Berlin Sci-Fi Film Festival. He also received seven nominations for special effects and visual effects on the festival circuit. Anthony is also the creator and host of Create SciFi, a popular weekly show for independent filmmakers, with over 1.6 million views.
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GASTRAL PROJECTION (USA)
SYNOPSIS: Miles has moved into a new house. But after celebrating with an extra large pizza by himself, a bout of gastrointestinal distress brings about unfathomable terror.
RATINGS GUIDE: Intense Imagery
DIRECTOR: Zachary Eglinton
GENRE: Horror, Comedy
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Thursday, Nov. 4th @ 11:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Zachary Eglinton is a writer/director originally from Oxford Connecticut. Now residing in Fullerton California, and making films about bad friends and bad gas.
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GIANT: THE WORLD OF FILMMAKER JEFF LEROY (USA)
SYNOPSIS: On the rooftop of his apartment in Long Beach, CA, we enter the world of one-of-a-kind filmmaker, Jeff Leroy where giant women and monster Kaiju fight it out in a miniature city made from discarded trash.
RATINGS GUIDE: Language
DIRECTOR: Jason Kartalian
GENRE: Documentary, Sci-Fi
PREMIERE STATUS: Utah Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Thursday, Nov. 4th @ 5:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Jason Kartalian is an American film producer, director and writer. His father was one-of-a-kind character actor Buck Kartalian, famous for being Julius, the cigar smoking ape in Planet of the Apes.
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GOLEM (AUSTRALIA)
SYNOPSIS: Nazi-occupied Prague, 1939. A group of German soldiers search for a fugitive Rabbi in the basement of an abandoned synagogue – unaware of the horror awaiting them.
RATINGS GUIDE: Adult Content
DIRECTOR: Ryan Cauchi
GENRE: Horror, Fantasy, The Beyond
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Virtual Exclusive – Screen all dates Virtually via Horror Shorts #2 Block
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Ryan Cauchi is an award-winning filmmaker and editor based in Sydney, Australia. Since 2016, he has championed a series of microfilms – 5 minutes and under – in the horror and dark fantasy genres. Some of these include “If You’re Happy and You Know It…” (2016), “AgeMe™” (2019) and “Nikki” (2020) – all top winners in the popular 15 Second Horror Film Challenge; the multi-award-winning “Cut Off” (2017), which is soon to be distributed by leading Australian genre label Deadhouse Films; and now “Golem” (2020), which has been lauded by horror visionaries such as filmmaker Alex Proyas, writer Ramsey Campbell and the creator of “Bruce” the Shark himself, legendary production designer Joe Alves (“Jaws”, “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”).
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GUTS (USA)
SYNOPSIS: A guy with his guts on the outside of his body really wants a promotion.
RATINGS GUIDE: Mild Violence, Language
DIRECTOR: Chris McInroy
GENRE: Horror, Comedy
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Thursday, Nov. 4th @ 11:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Chris McInroy writes and directs horror-comedy movies. He made Bad Guy #2, Death Metal, We Summoned A Demon and the segment One Time In The Woods for the horror anthology, Scare Package. His next project will be his first feature film, a horror-comedy with werewolves. He loves werewolves. He also loves dipping chips in dips.
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HE COMES AT NIGHT (CANADA)
SYNOPSIS: On a stormy night, an anxious eight-year-old from a fractured home wakes up to the terrifying realization that the monster under her bed may be real.
RATINGS GUIDE: Intense Imagery
DIRECTOR: Joseph Covello
GENRE: Horror
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Sunday, Oct. 31st @ 5:30 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Joseph Covello is a Toronto based Writer and Director. He co-founded Gravitate Productions in 2020 with producer Krystle Ferdinand to house the development of independent feature films and original scripted content that highlights underrepresented voices. He has directed several award-winning short films, including Engaged to be Engaged which premiered at Canadian Film Fest and won Best Short at Short & Sweet Film Festival. His debut horror short Alpine Country won the Maximum Exposure Film Festival Highlights Prize, and he also directed the crowdfunded coming-of-age short Away From Here. His latest short psychological thriller He Comes at Night premiered at LA Shorts Fest and is a proof of concept for his upcoming feature inspired by Robert W. Chambers’ The King in Yellow.
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HELL HOLE (USA)
SYNOPSIS: A maintenance worker at state run gate to hell has a bad day.
RATINGS GUIDE: All Audiences/ Intense Imagery
DIRECTOR: Greg Shultz
GENRE: Horror, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, The Beyond
PREMIERE STATUS: Utah Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Monday, Nov.1st @ 12:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: A filmmaker of the spooky kind from the Ozarks.
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HELL IN A HANDBASKET (CANADA/USA)
SYNOPSIS: Dale, a lonely research scientist in the Arctic struggles to maintain his solitary existence. With the world failing from a global pandemic, all hopes fall on Dale’s shoulders as he represents the last stand for humanity.
RATINGS GUIDE: Strong Language
DIRECTOR: Lee Chambers
GENRE: Horror, Sci-Fi, Comedy
PREMIERE STATUS: Utah Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Friday, Nov. 5th @ 1:30 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Canadian writer & director Lee Chambers has made tons of shorts and features over the last 25 years, from The Devil Knows You’re Dead to The Pineville Heist feature currently on Amazon Prime. His work has been screened and awarded at over 100+ festivals.
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HELLS KITCHEN (AUSTRALIA)
SYNOPSIS: Hells Kitchen captures a moment in time, New York City, 1978, and explores the power struggle inside New York’s crime families..
RATINGS GUIDE: Mild Violence, Strong Language
DIRECTOR: Steve Young
GENRE: Fantastic
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Virtual Exclusive – Screens all dates Virtually via Fantastic Shorts Block
DIRECTOR’S BIO: First time writer and director, Steve Young, stars in Hells Kitchen. 17 minutes of the feature film was shot as a short proof of concept to raise awareness prior to the feature. Steve is also the author of the eBook ‘Actors Guide To Hollywood’ and the creator of www.actorsaccent.com, the American and British accent audio training programs. Steve describes Hells Kitchen as Carlitos Way meets Donnie Brasco.
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HER RELEASE (USA)
SYNOPSIS: A woman reaching for love and connection surrenders everything in this blackly comic absurdist nightmare.
RATINGS GUIDE: Sensuality, Intense Imagery
DIRECTOR: Valentine Miele
GENRE: Comedy, The Beyond
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Thursday, Nov. 4th @ 11:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Her Release is Valentine’s first film after two decades of professional acting, sound design and video art. He’s currently at work on his second film, an expressionistic exploration of the urban myth of adrenochrome.
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HIT OR MISS (USA)
SYNOPSIS: When a perpetual casanova believes that his closest friend has begun finding men on a dating app, he is forced to come clean about his secret feelings for her. But she has a secret of her own…
RATINGS GUIDE: Mild Violence, Language, Brief Nudity
DIRECTOR: Matt Toronto
GENRE: Comedy, Fantastic
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Saturday, Oct. 30th @ 11:00 AM
DIRECTOR’SBIO: MATT TORONTO – writer/producer/director. After a two-year stint on Netflix, Matt’s coming-of-age feature, FACE 2 FACE, continues to inspire audiences on Paramount +, Epix and several other platforms. His first feature, THE PACT, won top awards and official selection in 22 film festivals around the world. Matt has written, directed and produced an array of features, pilots, web series and award-winning short films while nurturing a successful career directing at top-notch theatres in New York City and across the country. Along with many other projects Matt is currently developing his award winning short, HIT OR MISS, into a feature film. Matt earned his MFA in directing from Penn State University and later joined the faculty where he taught acting, directing and musical theatre for eight years.
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HOSPITAL DUMPSTER DIVERS (NORWAY)
SYNOPSIS: Chaos breaks out at the hospital, when a mutant dumpster troll is accidentally brought to life, as a result of sloppy waste management, by the shuffle dancing young man Rasmus..
RATINGS GUIDE: Strong Violence, Language, Intense Imagery
DIRECTOR: Anders Elsrud Hultgreen
GENRE: Horror, Comedy, The Beyond
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Virtual Exclusive – Screens all dates Virtually via Comedy Shorts Block
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Anders Elsrud Hultgreen (1986) is a filmmaker and visual artist based in Bergen, Norway. His monster-splatter short film HOSPITAL DUMPSTER DIVERS (2020) and his 2014-debut sci-fi feature film MORGENRØDE (DAWN) has been screened and awarded on film festivals all around the world. Anders Elsrud Hultgreen is a former student from Werner Herzog’s Rogue Film School.
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HOUSEHOLD DEMONS (USA)
SYNOPSIS: A young boy must confront the demon who possesses his mother.
RATINGS GUIDE: Intense Imagery
DIRECTOR: John Gray
GENRE: Horror
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Wednesday, Nov. 3rd @ 5:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Created CBS Television Series GHOST WHISPERER. Writer-Director of many award winning movies for TV and feature films.
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HUNTERS CABIN (CANADA)
SYNOPSIS: A young father withdraws to a remote cabin to face his curse alone, but he’s not the only one with a dark past in the woods tonight.
RATINGS GUIDE: Violence, Mild Language, Intense Imagery
DIRECTOR: N’cee van Heerden
GENRE: Horror, Fantasy
PREMIERE STATUS: Regional Premiere
SCREENING DATE: Saturday, Nov. 6th @ 2:00 PM
DIRECTOR’S BIO: Born and raised in South Africa, N’cee started his career in theatre, writing, directing and managing productions. His focus was Berkoff inspired minimalist plays. This was where N’cee honed his skill and passion for directing and character driven stories. In 2005 he transitioned into film. He started at the bottom working in various departments. He worked his way up to field producing and filming EPK content. He has worked on major productions including District 9, Avatar, Elysium, Chappie as well as many shorts, music videos and commercials. N’cee’s award winning directorial debut short film ‘O.I.’ had a very successful festival run with over 120 festivals and is also available only on OMELETO and ALTER with over 1million views jointly. It can also be found on Amazon Prime! N’cee’s new short film ‘Hunter’s Cabin’ will begin its festival run in fall 2021. N’cee is also currently writing and developing various feature film projects.
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