Fright Night Theatre Film Festival Announces Rebranding, Changes Name to
HEXPLOITATION FILM FESTIVAL
HEXPLOITATION FILM FESTIVAL
Effective immediately, the Fright Night Theatre Film Festival is now the HEXPLOITATION FILM FESTIVAL: a three-day celebration and showcase of the best in new indie Horror & Exploitation genre films from Canada and around the world. The newly christened Hexploitation Film Festival (HXFF) will take over the Staircase Theatre in Hamilton, Ontario from March 23-25, 2018 with a competitive festival program of no-holds-barred cinematic thrills, chills, and kills. Submissions for feature-length and short films open August 1st exclusively on FILM FREEWAY
The Hexploitation Film Festival programming team, including festival director and organizer Aaron Allen whose passion for horror and controversial exploitation cult films led to the Hexploitation rebrand, is hard at work curating the annual competitive festival program as well as special one-off screenings packed with more monsters, maniacs, and murder! Horror fans and genre junkies can expect down-to-earth Q&A's with local and visiting filmmakers, themed parties and special events, and a community-driven experience organized by fans for fans.
In years past, the festival has been home to numerous world, national and regional premieres of such exciting and acclaimed indie films as THE BABADOOK, THE LURE, POOL PARTY MASSACRE, CAT SICK BLUES, RETURN TO NUKE'EM HIGH VOL. 1, ATTACK OF THE LEDERHOSENZOMBIES, KILLER RACK, BRACKENMORE, CIRCUS OF THE DEAD, BONEJANGLES, NIGHT OF SOMETHING STRANGE, THE BARN, and HARVEST LAKE.
The Hexploitation Film Festival has also been thrilled to host many visiting filmmakers such as George Mihalka (MY BLOODY VALENTINE), Gregory Lamberson (JOHNNY GRUESOME), Brian K. Williams (SPACE BABES FROM OUTERSPACE), Scott Schirmer (HARVEST LAKE), Justin M. Seaman (THE BARN), as well as post-screening Skype Q&As with filmmakers such as Lowell Dean (WOLFCOP) and Andy Palmer (THE FUNHOUSE MASSACRE).
“We live in an era where big studio blockbusters have pushed smaller innovative and envelope-pushing horror films from multiplex screens,” said festival director and lead programmer Aaron Allen. “At the same time, we’ve seen the development of a streaming distribution culture that has eroded the communal magic of the theatre-going experience and turned movie-watching into an isolated activity. The Hexploitation Film Festival seeks to preserve the best parts of the theatre-going experience by seeking out unique horror & cult exploitation films and providing an intimate and interactive theatrical experience that brings emerging filmmakers together with the local arts community and our great fanbase of horror and genre movie lovers.”
Raise a little Hex at the Staircase Theatre
March 23 - 25, 2018
