The Popcorn Frights Film Festival returns this August for its eighth edition, which will be taking place in Fort Lauderdale, South Beach and virtually nationwide, and today the festival has revealed its first wave of films.
This year's Popcorn Frights Film Festival will be a hybrid experience presenting both in-theater and virtual film offerings from August 11th through 21st, 2022.
Highlights include the World Premiere of Butt Boy filmmaker Tyler Cornack’s Tiny Cinema on Opening Night, six feature film World Premieres including the documentary Living with Chucky with Don Mancini and Jennifer Tilly, the psycho slasher Final Summer, which will play with She Came from the Woods as part of a special Night at Camp Frights double-bill presented by Slasher Energy, the Tim Burton-esque fairy tale with zombies The Loneliest Boy in the World, and a live score performance composed by Miami artist Richard Vergez for the silent cinema masterpiece Nosferatu celebrating its centennial anniversary!
Also featured in the festival program is Carter Smith’s riveting queer body horror tale Swallowed starring Jena Malone and Nightmare on Elm Street 2’s Mark Patton, which will be complemented by a special free presentation of Carter Smith’s cult classic creature feature The Ruins.
Worldwide, weird, and wonderful genre films return with a selection of titles that refuse to be categorized. Highlights include the North American Premiere of Florida-based filmmaker Sylvia Caminer’s stylish psycho-sexual thriller Follow Her, the Argentinean gore-fest PussyCake, and the indigenous Canadian Slash/Back, a genre-bending alien invasion story about a group of Inuk teenagers from the Arctic who defend their town from malevolent extraterrestrials.
Recognized as the largest genre film event in the Southeast U.S. and one of "The World’s 50 Best Genre Festivals" by MovieMaker Magazine, Popcorn Frights will complement its in-theater festival program with an online virtual component available to stream throughout the United States for those unable to travel to the festival in South Florida.
Notable features exclusively playing in Popcorn Frights’ virtual program include the World Premieres of the striking supernatural nail-biter They Wait in the Dark and the gut-wrenching survival thriller Distress Signals, as well as the riotously cathartic #metoo-tinged revenger Compulsus, the grisly humorous The Leech, the eerie ghost story The Creeping, the revealing documentary about one of the most influential comic book creators of all time Mike Mignola: Drawing Monsters, the retro-styled slasher parodies The Third Saturday in October and its sequel The Third Saturday in October Part V, and the dreamy, psychedelic love letter to horror movies Honeycomb.
Rounding off Popcorn Frights’ first wave program is its Virtual Reality experience created in partnership with the O Cinema, an independent non-profit based in Miami. Hosted on AltSpaceVR, the Virtual Reality environment features live events and an exclusive selection of short films premiering in this one-of-a-kind digital experience. Visitors have the opportunity to fully explore the VR world, walk the red carpet and even fly through the space before entering each designated portal to view the short films. The AltSpaceVR platform is free to access and available through Quest, Steam headsets, or on PCs.
IN-THEATER FEATURE FILM LINEUP
OPENING NIGHT
Tiny Cinema
World Premiere
United States | 2022 | 90 Min. | Dir. Tyler Cornack
*Director Tyler Cornack expected in person
A mysterious stranger tells the twisted tale of seemingly unconnected strangers whose lives will change in incredible and bizarre ways forever.
Final Summer
World Premiere
United States | 2022 | 90 Min. | Dir. John Isberg
*Director John Isberg expected in person *Available in-theater and virtually
In the wake of a tragedy during the summer of 1991, a group of camp counselors find themselves fighting for their lives against a masked killer.
Follow Her
North American Premiere
United States | 2022 | 95 Min. | Dir. Sylvia Caminer
*Director Sylvia Caminer expected in person
*Available in-theater and virtually
An aspiring actress responds to a mysterious classified ad and finds herself trapped in her new boss’ twisted revenge fantasy.
Living with Chucky
World Premiere
United States | 2022 | 95 Min. | Dir. Kyra Gardner
*Director Kyra Gardner and special effects designer Tony Gardner expected in person *Available in-theater and virtually
A filmmaker who grew up alongside the Chucky doll, and whose father helped bring it to life, finally meets the other families surrounding the Chucky franchise.
The Loneliest Boy in the World
World Premiere
United Kingdom | 2022 | 95 Min. | Dir. Martin Owen
After the tragic loss of his mother, a boy is threatened with state custody unless he can find a new family. And he does just that… He digs one up at the local cemetery.
Nosferatu, A Symphony of Horrors
Centennial Anniversary Presentation
Germany | 1922 | 84 Min. | Dir. F. W. Murnau
*Live Score Performance
Celebrating 100 years since the release of F. W. Murnau’s thrilling silent expressionist masterpiece – featuring a live original scored by Miami artist Richard Vergez.
PussyCake
Florida Premiere
Argentina | 2022 | 95 Min. | Dir. Pablo Parés
*Available in-theater and virtually
A struggling all-girl rock band kicks off a new tour, hoping to rekindle their popularity. But when they catch the attention of horrors from beyond our reality, the band realizes that being forgotten by their fans is the least of their problems.
The Ruins
Special Presentation
United States | 2008 | 95 Min. | Dir. Carter Smith
*Director Carter Smith expected in person
A leisurely Mexican holiday takes a turn for the worse when a group of friends and a fellow tourist embark on a remote archaeological dig in the jungle, where something evil lives among the ruins.
She Came from the Woods
WIP Presentation
United States | 2022 | 101 Min. | Dir. Erik Bloomquist
*Director Erik Bloomquist and writer/actor Carson Bloomquist expected in person
In this contemporary ode to ‘80s summer horror, a group of counselors accidentally unleash a decades-old evil on the last night of camp. As the mayhem and madness turn bloody, the staff of Camp Briarbrook is forced to confront what stories are worth telling and what secrets worth keeping.
Slash/Back
Florida Premiere
Canada | 2022 | 86 Min. | Dir. Nyla Innuksuk
Something sinister from outer space lands a stone’s throw from the Arctic Circle, and humanity’s first line of defense proves to be a group of Inuit girls armed with nothing but their wits and a bunch of traditional hunting and fishing tools, and strategies they picked up from their favorite horror movies.
Swallowed
Florida Premiere
United States | 2022 | 92 Min. | Dir. Carter Smith
*Director Carter Smith expected in person
Two best friends on their final night together suddenly find themselves in an unsettling situation that spirals into a backwoods nightmare of drugs, bugs, and horrific intimacy.
VIRTUAL FEATURE FILM LINEUP
Compulsus
Florida Premiere
Canada | 2022 | 80 Min. | Dir. Tara Thorne
A woman's safety is key in a community where known assailants receive their just desserts from an unlikely vigilante.
The Creeping
Southeast US Premiere
UK | 2022 | 94 Min. | Dir. Jamie Hooper
A concerned young woman moves home to look after her ailing grandmother and soon finds herself fighting a malevolent presence with a dark secret.
Distress Signals
World Premiere
United States | 2022 | 80 Min. | Dirs. Terence Krey, Christine Nyland
When a fall down a steep rock face separates her from her friends, a woman finds herself stranded. Now, alone and with a dislocated shoulder, she must make her way out of the woods — and contend with how she got there.
Honeycomb
Florida Premiere
Canada | 2022 | 84 Min. | Dir. Avalon Fast
Five small-town girls abandon their mundane lives and move into an abandoned cabin. Growing increasingly isolated, their world becomes filled with imagined rituals and rules but the events of one summer night threaten to abruptly end their age of innocence forever.
The Leech
Florida Premiere
United States | 2022 | 82 Min. | Dir. Eric Pennycoff
A devout priest welcomes a struggling couple into his house at Christmas time. What begins as a simple act of kindness quickly becomes the ultimate test of faith once the sanctity of his home is jeopardized.
Mike Mignola: Drawing Monsters
Florida Premiere
United States | 2022 | 98 Min. | Dirs. Jim Demonakos, Kevin Konrad Hanna
The definitive story of one of the most influential and important comic book creators of all time features interviews with Guillermo del Toro, Neil Gaiman, Patton Oswalt, and Doug Jones, among others.
The Third Saturday in October
Florida Premiere
United States | 2022 | 102 Min. | Dir. Jay Burleson
When a psycho goes on a murderous rampage after surviving a botched execution, only two survivors of his initial attack can stop him.
The Third Saturday in October Part V
Florida Premiere
United States | 2022 | 89 Min. | Dir. Jay Burleson
In this sequel, an unstoppable killer stalks and butchers the occupants of multiple homes across the stretch of one lone country road as the residents prepare to watch the yearly college football game.
They Wait in the Dark
World Premiere
United States | 2022 | 84 Min. | Dir. Patrick Rea
A young woman and her adopted son are on the run from her abusive ex until a supernatural force from her dark past begins haunting them.
VIRTUAL REALITY EXPERIENCE
Popcorn Frights’ Virtual Reality world experience is created in partnership with the O Cinema, an independent non-profit based in Miami. Hosted on AltSpaceVR, the Virtual Reality environment will feature live events and an exclusive selection of short films that will receive their premieres in this unique digital space. The AltSpaceVR platform will be free to all audiences and available through Quest or STEAM headsets or on PCs.
A second wave of Popcorn Frights 2022 titles will be announced in the coming weeks featuring additional in-theater and virtual programming.
Access to the in-theater experience will be available through individual tickets or an all-access badge, which will provide an all-inclusive experience for films and special events hosted at the Savor Cinema Fort Lauderdale and O Cinema South Beach ("The Alter Screening Room"), Popcorn Frights official host venues this year. 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 Badge, click here, to order a Virtual All-Access Pass, click here.
This year’s Popcorn Frights official poster (seen below) was created by South Florida artist Kent Hernandez, who previously crafted imagery for the event in 2021, and has designed a new original poster for the festival.
For all further details, visit www.popcornfrights.com.
