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Horror Fuel

Scare-A-Con 2019 Ready to Unleash Horror in New York!

Scare-A-Con is coming to the Rochester Riverside Hotel, Rochester, NY on October 18 thru the 20th, and to shed Lucifer’s light on the whole arcane affair your’s cruelly recently had a chance to chat with the show’s promoter JV Johnson! Dan XIII: Please tell my revoltin’ readers how you came to be involved in that creepiest of conventions Scare-A-Con! JV: Once I discovered the world of horror conventions, I realized that there were many people who shared the same passions as I did. That revelation made me decide to bring a similar event to my town of Syracuse, NY. I owned & operated a group of radio stations there and I used those resources to have the first SCARE-A-CON in 2011. After a couple venue changes and the addition of the New England show, we have become one of the biggest horror conventions in the Northeast. DXIII: What can all of your faithful n’ fearsome fiends expect to experience at

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Sep 19, 2019
Horror Fuel

Movie Review (FilmQuest Film Festival): The Black String (2019)

Life goes from boring and lonely to maddening and terrifying for twentysomething Jonathan, the protagonist of director Brian Hanson’s The Black String, a terrific supernatural/body horror film with paranoia thriller and film noir elements. Jonathan, superbly portrayed by Frankie Muniz of Agent Cody Banks (2003) and the TV series Malcolm in the Middle (2000–2006), is a loner who lets life pass him by while working at what he calls a “lifestyle convenience boutique,” but what most of us refer to as a liquor store. His outgoing boss and friend Eric (Blake Webb of the American Horror Story [2011] TV series and Alienate [2016]) coaxes him into living life a bit more, which leads Jonathan to call a singles hotline number after seeing its seemingly personalized commercial on television. As a result, Jonathan winds up on a date with the fetching Dena (Chelsea Edmunson of 14 Cameras and Howlers, both 2018) and contracting a horrid looking rash from having unprotected sex

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Sep 18, 2019
Horror Fuel

Shudder Acquires Supernatural Horror ‘The Cleansing Hour’ Ahead of Sitges

Shudder, AMC Networks’ premium streaming service for horror, thriller and the supernatural, has acquired all rights in the US, Canada, the UK and Ireland to the supernatural horror feature The Cleansing Hour, starring Ryan Guzman (The Boy Next Door, Everybody Wants Some!), Kyle Gallner (American Sniper, The Haunting in Connecticut), and Alix Angelis (The Magnificent Seven, Love’s Last Resort). The film centers around millennial entrepreneurs, Max (Guzman) and Drew (Gallner), who run a popular webcast that streams “live exorcisms” that are, in fact, elaborately staged hoaxes watched by millions. However, their fortunes take a turn when during one of their webcasts, Drew’s fiancée becomes mysteriously possessed by a real demon that takes the crew hostage. In front of a rapidly growing global audience, the demon subjects the crew to a series of violent and humiliating challenges that expose dark secrets they have been hiding from each other. Fun, fresh, scary, THE CLEANSING HOUR grabs you and takes you on the

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Sep 16, 2019
Horror Fuel

History And A&E Announce Ghost Hunters And More To Host Panels At AlienCon

AlienCon®, the world’s first convention dedicated to seeking the truth about extraterrestrial existence and solving the mysteries of the universe, has announced new program details for the October 4-6 event in Dallas, Texas. A+E Networks previously announced celebrity guests at AlienCon Dallas will include HISTORY’s “Ancient Aliens” contributors Giorgio A. Tsoukalos, David Childress, Nick Pope, Caroline Cory, Jason Martell, John Brandenburg, Travis Taylor, and Jonathan Young. Now adding to the captivating line-up of expert voices are cast members from HISTORY’s upcoming nonfiction series, “The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch” (working title), who will be featured on two panels over the three-day event. “The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch” is executive produced by Kevin Burns, the creator and producer of HISTORY’s most popular series, including “Ancient Aliens” and cable’s #1 nonfiction series “The Curse of Oak Island”and will give viewers full, unprecedented access to one of the most infamous and secretive hotspots of paranormal and UFO-related activities on earth. The series will feature

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Sep 7, 2019
Horror Fuel

Movie Review (GenreBlast Film Festival): Bloodsucker’s Planet (2019)

Bloodsucker’s Planet screened at GenreBlast, which ran at the Alamo Drafthouse in Winchester, Virginia, from August 29– September 1. Fans of space opera creature features such as The Green Slime (1968) and Mario Bava’s Planet of The Vampires (1965; an obvious influence here) are sure to find loads to love about writer/director/cinematographer/editor/producer Mark Beal’s outrageously fun new film Bloodsucker’s Planet. In the distant future, the spaceship Argosy picks up a distress signal from the planet Mara. Captain McDermott (Allen Menefee) decides to have his crew investigate, with everyone heading down to Mara except second-in-command Clarissa (Leni Mex), who remains aboard the ship. Doc (Joel Jeremy Herrera), Paulina (Adrienne Dobson), and Danvers (Logan Hooks) have a look-see, during which time Danvers comes into contact with a small creature that looks like a tentacled bat. The planet’s sole human resident, Bartlett (Joe Grisaffi), has chosen to remain on Mara as caretaker for a large corporation that abandoned its mud farming industry years

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Sep 2, 2019
Horror Fuel

A Serial Killer Spills Blood In The First Batch Of Images From ‘ARTIK’

Award-winning filmmaker, Tom Botchii, is gearing up for the World Premiere of his horror-thriller, ARTIK. With Popcorn Frights just weeks away, we have an exclusive look at brutal stills from the film to share with you. In the film, “a comic book obsessed serial killer teaches his son how to get away with a series of brutal murders until the boy befriends a mysterious man who threatens to expose everything.” It sounds funny but making ARTIK, a film about a murderer, was actually, kind of healing. Truth is, the character himself is loosely based on my dad and the character of Holton was based around an ex-girlfriend,” says Botchii. “So from the moment that I started writing, it felt like the story was just pouring out of me and releasing a lot of pent up emotion. And that was the original goal, do something that gets this off my chest, but also works as a small, independent horror production. Then,

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Jul 17, 2019
Horror Fuel

New Clip From Horror Thriller ‘1BR’ Arrives Ahead Of Fantasia Premiere

Ahead of its premiere at the Fantasia Film Festival, a new clip has arrived for David Marmor‘s LA-set horror-thriller 1BR. “After leaving behind a painful past to follow her dreams, Sarah scores the perfect Hollywood apartment. But something is not right. Unable to sleep, tormented by strange noises and threatening notes, her new life quickly starts to unravel. By the time she learns the horrifying truth, it’s too late. Caught in a waking nightmare, Sarah must find the strength to hold onto her crumbling sanity…or be trapped forever in an existential hell.” Horror films don’t come more instantly identifiable than 1BR… Marmor’s smart script and solid cast make 1BR one of Fantasia 2019’s top discoveries. Don’t sleep in this 1BR, but don’t sleep on it, either.” Matthew Kiernan, Fantasia International Film Festival, stated. 1BR is the debut from writer/director David Mamor and is produced by Alok Mishra and Shane Vorster for Malevolent Films, Allard Cantor and Jarrod Murray for Epicenter,

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Jul 5, 2019
Horror Fuel

Movie Reviews: Dances with Films Festival premieres: Driven, Would You Like to Try Again? and Wowzers

In this creep column, I’m focusing my putrid peepers on three vastly different flicks that will be prancin’ across the sinful silver screen this month at the Dances with Films Festival! Playing Saturday, June 15th at 11:45 pm at TCL Chinese Theatre is: Driven (2019) Ride share fright flicks are en vogue these days; and as a relatively new phenomena they are ripe for exploration and fresh ideas, and Driven exemplifies this fully! Emerson (Casey Dillard who also wrote and co-produced the film) is havin’ the usual ass-pain of a night schlepping around various annoying fares, but things take a turn for the batshit when she picks up Roger (Richard Speight Jr.). You see Rog-baby is lookin’ to dump off a curse handed down through the generations, and now he and E-dawg are in for a night of supernatural shenanigans as they attempt to confront a preternatural evil. Sounds like a Tuesday to your’s cruelly… The lions share of what

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Jun 11, 2019
Horror Fuel

Exclusive: New Trailer Warns That There Is An ‘Animal Among Us’

The screams can still be heard from last weekend’s Die Laughing Film Festival in Hollywood where Animal Among Us won Best Feature Film, Best Director, Best Actor, and the coveted Audience Choice Award. Ahead of its screening at the Creepy Tree Film Festival, the trailer for the film has been unleashed, teasing an action filled, bloody film. “This is a story about a monster… Fifteen years ago, two teenage girls were murdered at Merrymaker Campgrounds. The case was filed an animal attack, the camp was condemned and the killer never found – but something horrific still waits in those woods.” Starring Larisa Oleynik (10 Things I Hate About You, The Secret World of Alex Mack), Christian Oliver (The Good German, Speed Racer), Christine Donlon (Entourage), Erin Daniels (House of 1000 Corpses), UFC Hall of Famer Don Frye (Miami Vice), and Daytime Emmy Award winner Heather Tom (Bold & The Beautiful, Young & the Restless) star in the film that pays

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 22, 2019
Horror Fuel

Saban Films Snags Horror Comedy ‘Come To Daddy’ Starring Elijah Wood

Saban Films has snagged the U.S. rights to producer Ant Timpson‘s Come to Daddy, his directorial debut which made its world premiere at Tribeca last month before heading to Cannes. Starring Elijah Wood, the horror-comedy centers on a man in his thirties who travels to a remote cabin to reconnect with his estranged father. Stephen McHattie (Watchmen, Pontypool) also stars along with Wood and Martin Donavan (Ant-Man, “Big Little Lies”). Toby Harvard penned the script based on Timpson’s story. The film was produced by Mette-Marie Kongsved and Laura Tunstall for Nowhere, Katie Holly for Blinder Films, Daniel Bekerman for Scythia Films, Emma Slade for Firefly Films, and Toby Harvard. Tango Entertainment financed the film which is a Canadian, New Zealand, and Irish co-production that also had support from the New Zealand Film Commission. A theatrical release date should be announced soon for Come to Daddy. Take a look at the clip titled “Impress Me” that features Wood’s character Norval having

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 19, 2019

More from Film Festivals

Horror Fuel

Scare-A-Con 2019 Ready to Unleash Horror in New York!

Scare-A-Con is coming to the Rochester Riverside Hotel, Rochester, NY on October 18 thru the 20th, and to shed Lucifer’s light on the whole arcane affair your’s cruelly recently had a chance to chat with the show’s promoter JV Johnson! Dan XIII: Please tell my revoltin’ readers how you came to be involved in that creepiest of conventions Scare-A-Con! JV: Once I discovered the world of horror conventions, I realized that there were many people who shared the same passions as I did. That revelation made me decide to bring a similar event to my town of Syracuse, NY. I owned & operated a group of radio stations there and I used those resources to have the first SCARE-A-CON in 2011. After a couple venue changes and the addition of the New England show, we have become one of the biggest horror conventions in the Northeast. DXIII: What can all of your faithful n’ fearsome fiends expect to experience at

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Sep 19, 2019
Horror Fuel

Movie Review (FilmQuest Film Festival): The Black String (2019)

Life goes from boring and lonely to maddening and terrifying for twentysomething Jonathan, the protagonist of director Brian Hanson’s The Black String, a terrific supernatural/body horror film with paranoia thriller and film noir elements. Jonathan, superbly portrayed by Frankie Muniz of Agent Cody Banks (2003) and the TV series Malcolm in the Middle (2000–2006), is a loner who lets life pass him by while working at what he calls a “lifestyle convenience boutique,” but what most of us refer to as a liquor store. His outgoing boss and friend Eric (Blake Webb of the American Horror Story [2011] TV series and Alienate [2016]) coaxes him into living life a bit more, which leads Jonathan to call a singles hotline number after seeing its seemingly personalized commercial on television. As a result, Jonathan winds up on a date with the fetching Dena (Chelsea Edmunson of 14 Cameras and Howlers, both 2018) and contracting a horrid looking rash from having unprotected sex

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Sep 18, 2019
Horror Fuel

Shudder Acquires Supernatural Horror ‘The Cleansing Hour’ Ahead of Sitges

Shudder, AMC Networks’ premium streaming service for horror, thriller and the supernatural, has acquired all rights in the US, Canada, the UK and Ireland to the supernatural horror feature The Cleansing Hour, starring Ryan Guzman (The Boy Next Door, Everybody Wants Some!), Kyle Gallner (American Sniper, The Haunting in Connecticut), and Alix Angelis (The Magnificent Seven, Love’s Last Resort). The film centers around millennial entrepreneurs, Max (Guzman) and Drew (Gallner), who run a popular webcast that streams “live exorcisms” that are, in fact, elaborately staged hoaxes watched by millions. However, their fortunes take a turn when during one of their webcasts, Drew’s fiancée becomes mysteriously possessed by a real demon that takes the crew hostage. In front of a rapidly growing global audience, the demon subjects the crew to a series of violent and humiliating challenges that expose dark secrets they have been hiding from each other. Fun, fresh, scary, THE CLEANSING HOUR grabs you and takes you on the

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Sep 16, 2019
Horror Fuel

History And A&E Announce Ghost Hunters And More To Host Panels At AlienCon

AlienCon®, the world’s first convention dedicated to seeking the truth about extraterrestrial existence and solving the mysteries of the universe, has announced new program details for the October 4-6 event in Dallas, Texas. A+E Networks previously announced celebrity guests at AlienCon Dallas will include HISTORY’s “Ancient Aliens” contributors Giorgio A. Tsoukalos, David Childress, Nick Pope, Caroline Cory, Jason Martell, John Brandenburg, Travis Taylor, and Jonathan Young. Now adding to the captivating line-up of expert voices are cast members from HISTORY’s upcoming nonfiction series, “The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch” (working title), who will be featured on two panels over the three-day event. “The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch” is executive produced by Kevin Burns, the creator and producer of HISTORY’s most popular series, including “Ancient Aliens” and cable’s #1 nonfiction series “The Curse of Oak Island”and will give viewers full, unprecedented access to one of the most infamous and secretive hotspots of paranormal and UFO-related activities on earth. The series will feature

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Sep 7, 2019
Horror Fuel

Movie Review (GenreBlast Film Festival): Bloodsucker’s Planet (2019)

Bloodsucker’s Planet screened at GenreBlast, which ran at the Alamo Drafthouse in Winchester, Virginia, from August 29– September 1. Fans of space opera creature features such as The Green Slime (1968) and Mario Bava’s Planet of The Vampires (1965; an obvious influence here) are sure to find loads to love about writer/director/cinematographer/editor/producer Mark Beal’s outrageously fun new film Bloodsucker’s Planet. In the distant future, the spaceship Argosy picks up a distress signal from the planet Mara. Captain McDermott (Allen Menefee) decides to have his crew investigate, with everyone heading down to Mara except second-in-command Clarissa (Leni Mex), who remains aboard the ship. Doc (Joel Jeremy Herrera), Paulina (Adrienne Dobson), and Danvers (Logan Hooks) have a look-see, during which time Danvers comes into contact with a small creature that looks like a tentacled bat. The planet’s sole human resident, Bartlett (Joe Grisaffi), has chosen to remain on Mara as caretaker for a large corporation that abandoned its mud farming industry years

Continue reading →
Joseph Perry
Sep 2, 2019
Horror Fuel

A Serial Killer Spills Blood In The First Batch Of Images From ‘ARTIK’

Award-winning filmmaker, Tom Botchii, is gearing up for the World Premiere of his horror-thriller, ARTIK. With Popcorn Frights just weeks away, we have an exclusive look at brutal stills from the film to share with you. In the film, “a comic book obsessed serial killer teaches his son how to get away with a series of brutal murders until the boy befriends a mysterious man who threatens to expose everything.” It sounds funny but making ARTIK, a film about a murderer, was actually, kind of healing. Truth is, the character himself is loosely based on my dad and the character of Holton was based around an ex-girlfriend,” says Botchii. “So from the moment that I started writing, it felt like the story was just pouring out of me and releasing a lot of pent up emotion. And that was the original goal, do something that gets this off my chest, but also works as a small, independent horror production. Then,

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Jul 17, 2019
Horror Fuel

New Clip From Horror Thriller ‘1BR’ Arrives Ahead Of Fantasia Premiere

Ahead of its premiere at the Fantasia Film Festival, a new clip has arrived for David Marmor‘s LA-set horror-thriller 1BR. “After leaving behind a painful past to follow her dreams, Sarah scores the perfect Hollywood apartment. But something is not right. Unable to sleep, tormented by strange noises and threatening notes, her new life quickly starts to unravel. By the time she learns the horrifying truth, it’s too late. Caught in a waking nightmare, Sarah must find the strength to hold onto her crumbling sanity…or be trapped forever in an existential hell.” Horror films don’t come more instantly identifiable than 1BR… Marmor’s smart script and solid cast make 1BR one of Fantasia 2019’s top discoveries. Don’t sleep in this 1BR, but don’t sleep on it, either.” Matthew Kiernan, Fantasia International Film Festival, stated. 1BR is the debut from writer/director David Mamor and is produced by Alok Mishra and Shane Vorster for Malevolent Films, Allard Cantor and Jarrod Murray for Epicenter,

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
Jul 5, 2019
Horror Fuel

Movie Reviews: Dances with Films Festival premieres: Driven, Would You Like to Try Again? and Wowzers

In this creep column, I’m focusing my putrid peepers on three vastly different flicks that will be prancin’ across the sinful silver screen this month at the Dances with Films Festival! Playing Saturday, June 15th at 11:45 pm at TCL Chinese Theatre is: Driven (2019) Ride share fright flicks are en vogue these days; and as a relatively new phenomena they are ripe for exploration and fresh ideas, and Driven exemplifies this fully! Emerson (Casey Dillard who also wrote and co-produced the film) is havin’ the usual ass-pain of a night schlepping around various annoying fares, but things take a turn for the batshit when she picks up Roger (Richard Speight Jr.). You see Rog-baby is lookin’ to dump off a curse handed down through the generations, and now he and E-dawg are in for a night of supernatural shenanigans as they attempt to confront a preternatural evil. Sounds like a Tuesday to your’s cruelly… The lions share of what

Continue reading →
DanXIII
Jun 11, 2019
Horror Fuel

Exclusive: New Trailer Warns That There Is An ‘Animal Among Us’

The screams can still be heard from last weekend’s Die Laughing Film Festival in Hollywood where Animal Among Us won Best Feature Film, Best Director, Best Actor, and the coveted Audience Choice Award. Ahead of its screening at the Creepy Tree Film Festival, the trailer for the film has been unleashed, teasing an action filled, bloody film. “This is a story about a monster… Fifteen years ago, two teenage girls were murdered at Merrymaker Campgrounds. The case was filed an animal attack, the camp was condemned and the killer never found – but something horrific still waits in those woods.” Starring Larisa Oleynik (10 Things I Hate About You, The Secret World of Alex Mack), Christian Oliver (The Good German, Speed Racer), Christine Donlon (Entourage), Erin Daniels (House of 1000 Corpses), UFC Hall of Famer Don Frye (Miami Vice), and Daytime Emmy Award winner Heather Tom (Bold & The Beautiful, Young & the Restless) star in the film that pays

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 22, 2019
Horror Fuel

Saban Films Snags Horror Comedy ‘Come To Daddy’ Starring Elijah Wood

Saban Films has snagged the U.S. rights to producer Ant Timpson‘s Come to Daddy, his directorial debut which made its world premiere at Tribeca last month before heading to Cannes. Starring Elijah Wood, the horror-comedy centers on a man in his thirties who travels to a remote cabin to reconnect with his estranged father. Stephen McHattie (Watchmen, Pontypool) also stars along with Wood and Martin Donavan (Ant-Man, “Big Little Lies”). Toby Harvard penned the script based on Timpson’s story. The film was produced by Mette-Marie Kongsved and Laura Tunstall for Nowhere, Katie Holly for Blinder Films, Daniel Bekerman for Scythia Films, Emma Slade for Firefly Films, and Toby Harvard. Tango Entertainment financed the film which is a Canadian, New Zealand, and Irish co-production that also had support from the New Zealand Film Commission. A theatrical release date should be announced soon for Come to Daddy. Take a look at the clip titled “Impress Me” that features Wood’s character Norval having

Continue reading →
Kelli Marchman McNeely
May 19, 2019
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