Festival Day 2: Slashers & Psychopaths

The Fright Night Theatre Film Festival enters Day 2 at the Staircase Theatre for a day of four fearsome screenings!

At 3:30pm we are thrilled to present our annual HORROR SHORT FILM SHOWCASE featuring the World Premieres of local shorts CHEWED (dir. Mike Trebilcock) and JASON (dir. Greg Kovacs). Although this screening is SOLD OUT, there's a chance some tickets will become available at the box office due to no-shows. Check in with the box office at 2:30pm to join the rush line.

At 7:00pm we have three back-to-back features, all of which deal with psychos and slashers!

7.00 PM - WHO'S WATCHING OLIVER (USA) Tickets: $11.00 ea. (cash-only at the door) 

|| ONTARIO PREMIERE||
Directed by Richie Moore

WHO'S WATCHING OLIVER tells the story of a mentally unstable loner lost in a life of depraved violence forced upon him by his psychopathic mother. His only savior and possible way out of a life of sleazy violence comes in the form of the beautiful Sophia. Or will she end up like all the beautiful women in his life: cut up into little pieces?

Screens with short film FLIES IN MAY directed by Caroline Jiang.

9.45 PM - RED CHRISTMAS (AUSTRALIA) Tickets: $11.00 ea. (cash-only at the door) 

|| ONTARIO PREMIERE||
Directed by Craig Anderson

Starring and produced by genre star DEE WALLACE (The Howling, Cujo, The Hills Have Eyes), the stylish and over-the-top RED CHRISTMAS makes its Ontario debut the FNTFF! A cloaked stranger interrupts the Christmas Day festivities of a strong willed matriarch (Dee Wallace) who is celebrating with her dysfunctional family. When the stranger goes on the offensive, the family is subjected to an un-silent night of holy terror in which the cinematic carnage that makes victims of naughty and nice alike.

Screens with short film BORN AGAIN directed by Jason Tostevin.

11.59 PM - CAT SICK BLUES (AUSTRALIA) Tickets: $11.00 ea. (cash-only at the door) 

|| CANADIAN PREMIERE||
Directed by Dave Jackson

A man pushed to a traumatic mental breakdown following the death of his beloved cat believes he can bring his feline friend back from the dead by dressing up like a cat and collecting 9 human lives. Insane. Offensive. Prosthetic Cat Penis. None of these words come close to describing the unbridled madness that is destined to make CAT SICK BLUES a certifiable cult hit.

Screens with short film DEATH METAL directed by Chris McInroy.

Festival is Now On: Opening Night Films over 50% Sold Out

The 2017 Fright Night Theatre Film Festival is now officially on! 

Tonight we kick off the festival with a wet & wild double feature of horror-comedy POOL PARTY MASSACRE and acclaimed killer-mermaid musical THE LURE. 

7.30 PM - POOL PARTY MASSACRE (USA) -- OVER 50% SOLD OUT || CANADIAN PREMIERE||  Directed by Drew Marvick Poster

What starts out as a relaxing summer day by the pool for a group of high-maintenance socialites quickly turns into a gory nightmare as the unknown killer begins to stalk and murder the young girls in increasingly bloody ways. This hilarious homage to 80s slashers from hot up-and-coming horror writer/director Drew Marvick is Slumber Party Massacre meets Mean Girls. Definitely a pool-side treat for fans of bodacious, blood-soaked bikini body counts. Starring LeeAnna Vamp, Alexis Adams, Mark Justice.

Screens with short film JUST JUSTICE III KUNGFU KARATE ANNIHILATOR directed by Rafael Dengrá

Tickets: $11.00 ea. (cash-only at the door) 

9.45 PM - THE LURE (POLAND) -- OVER 60% SOLD OUT || HAMILTON PREMIERE||  *subtitled in English* Directed by Agnieszka Smoczynska Trailer Poster

In an alternate version of 1980s Poland, a pair of mermaid sisters come ashore and join an adult night club as strippers and singers. While one seeks love with humans the other hungers to dine on the human population of the city. The Lure is a bloody, bold, and genre-defying sensation featuring stunning musical numbers, special effects, and savage sexuality. Starring Marta Mazurek, Michalina Olszanska, Kinga Preis. 

Screens with short film WHEN SUSSURRUS STIRS directed by Anthony Cousins

Tickets: $11.00 ea. (cash-only at the door) 

FNTFF 2017 AWARDS NOMINEES ANNOUNCED

2017 NOMINEES

Each year, the Fright Night Theatre Film Festival recognizes exceptional achievements and performances in the indie horror, cult film, and exploitation genre with our annual FNTFF AWARDS. Although all of our official selections are eligible to win the Best Film or Best Short Audience Choice Award, we are thrilled to announce the following 2017 nominees in our competitive Selection Committee awards.

FEATURE FILM AWARDS

SCARIEST FILM

WHO'S WATCHING OLIVER

RED CHRISTMAS
CAT SICK BLUES

MOST SHOCKING FILM

WHO'S WATCHING OLIVER

RED CHRISTMAS
CAT SICK BLUES

FUNNIEST FILM

POOL PARTY MASSACRE

CAT SICK BLUES
LONG LIVE THE KING

BEST DIRECTOR

Agnieszka Smoczynska (THE LURE)

Richie Moore (WHO'S WATCHING OLIVER)
Dave Jackson (CAT SICK BLUES)

BEST WRITING

Robert Bolesto (THE LURE)

Russell Geoffrey Banks, Raimund Huber, Richie Moore (WHO'S WATCHING OLIVER)
Andrew Gallacher & Dave Jackson (CAT SICK BLUES)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Jakub Kijowski (THE LURE)

Richie Moore (WHO'S WATCHING OLIVER)
Douglas James Burgdorff (RED CHRISTMAS)
Daniel Cowan (CAT SICK BLUES)

BEST ACTOR

Andrzej Konopka (THE LURE)

Russell Geoffrey Banks (WHO'S WATCHING OLIVER)
Matthew C. Vaughan (CAT SICK BLUES)
Benjamin Arthur (BLOOD HUNTERS)

BEST ACTRESS

Michalina Olszanska (THE LURE)

Marta Mazurek (THE LURE)
Sara Malakul Lane (WHO'S WATCHING OLIVER)
Dee Wallace (RED CHRISTMAS)
Shian Denovan (CAT SICK BLUES)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Drew Marvick (POOL PARTY MASSACRE)

Zygmunt Malanowicz (THE LURE)
Marcin Kowalczyk (THE LURE)
Julian Richings (BLOOD HUNTERS)
David Collins (RED CHRISTMAS)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Alexis Adams (POOL PARTY MASSACRE)

Kinga Preis (THE LURE)
Margaret Roche (WHO'S WATCHING OLIVER)
Sarah Bishop as Suzy (RED CHRISTMAS)

BEST SPECIAL FX

THE LURE

RED CHRISTMAS
CAT SICK BLUES

BEST VISUAL FX

THE LURE

RED CHRISTMAS
CAT SICK BLUES

BEST ORIGINAL MUSICAL SCORE

Mike Conway (POOL PARTY MASSACRE)

Barbara Wrońska, Zuzanna Wrońska, Marcin Macuk (THE LURE)
Helen Grimley (RED CHRISTMAS)
Matthew Revert (CAT SICK BLUES)

BEST VILLAIN

Mama (WHO'S WATCHING OLIVER)
Cletus (RED CHRISTMAS)

Ted / Catman (CAT SICK BLUES)


BEST MONSTER

Cletus (RED CHRISTMAS)

Creatures (BLOOD HUNTERS)
Golden and Silver (THE LURE)

ACHIEVEMENT IN MAKEUP FX

THE LURE

RED CHRISTMAS
CAT SICK BLUES

SHORT FILM AWARDS

BEST HORROR SHORT

Curve

Death Metal
Kaska
PYOTR495
When Susurrus Stirs
Your Date Is Here

MOST SHOCKING SHORT

Born Again
PYOTR495
Undress Me
When Susurrus Stirs

BEST COMEDIC SHORT

Born Again
Death Metal
Just Justice III KungFu Karate Annihilator
Your Date Is Here

BEST SCI-FI SHORT

Just Justice III KungFu Karate Annihilator
The Fisherman
When Susurrus Stirs

BEST FANTASY SHORT

Born Again
Flies in May
Kaska
Your Date Is Here

BEST CANADIAN SHORT

PYOTR495
Studded Nightmare
Undress Me

BEST ANIMATED SHORT

JASON
FLIES IN MAY

FNTFF Debuts 2017 Festival Poster

The Fright Night Theatre Film Festival is proud to unveil our official 2017 festival poster, designed by Shawn Hopkins. 

Reflecting our roots as Hamilton, Ontario's only annual film festival dedicated to Horror, Cult, and Exploitation films, we've put the historic Gore Park Fountain front and center in this year's poster, with a tentacle twist that pays homage to the silly and scary creature features we love.

The 2017 Fright Night Theatre Film Festival returns to the Staircase Theatre March 24-26 for three nights of cinematic monsters, maniacs, and murder. Official selections are expected to be announced the week of February 18th with festival passes becoming available soon after.

Filmmakers interested in being considered for the festival still have time to take advantage of our late deadline, which closes February 15th on Filmfreeway.com.

Regular Submissions Close February 1st

SUBMISSIONS CLOSE - FEBRUARY 1

Our regular call for submissions to be considered for the March 2017  Fright Night Theatre Film Festival close at the beginning of February. Our fun, freaky, and frightful indie film festival is seeking feature length and short films in the horror, cult, and exploitation genre that thrill, chill, and kill. Join us for our blockbuster 9th year as Hamilton, Ontario's only dedicated genre film festival event by fans, for fans.

SUBMIT TODAY

All of our submissions are handled through Filmfreeway.com

For detailed entry rules and/or entry category descriptions, please visit our Submissions Page.

That's a Wrap: Fall FNTFF 2016

That's a wrap on the Fall 2016 edition of Hamilton's Fright Night Theatre Film Festival!

After two days of horror, cult, and exploitation film celebration, the Fall edition of the Fright Night Theatre Film Festival in Hamilton, ON has officially concluded on the evening of October 1st. With seven fiendish feature films and 21 shocking shorts, the Fall 2016 edition of the Fright Night Theatre Film Festival offered something for every fan of fringe film-making -- from gut-wrenching horror dramas to outrageous horror-comedies. Highlights from this season's fest included the World Premiere of UK horror-drama Brackenmore, the North American Premiere of Attack of the Lederhosenzombies, the Hamilton Premiere of hand-drawn animated feature Nova Seed, and the Canadian Premiere of the gross-out Night of Something Strange, which whipped our audience up into a frenzy of stomach-churning hilarity.

To set the tone within the Staircase Theatre, SUBTLE IMPERFECTIONS provided some deadly decor from hand-crafted horror signs to a fan-favorite mock guillotine and a Jason meets Chucky "Your Face Here" carnival photo-op.

TIK-TIK director Larica Perera about to lose her head in front of her cast and crew

The Fright Night Theatre Film Festival would like to thank its community sponsors The Hamilton Film Festival, Black Fawn Distribution, Trash Palace, The Gifted, Haunted Hamilton, and Grim Details. We'd also like to thank all our Fall 2016 programmers and volunteers, especially Laurel Goertz , Riley Cranston, Jesse Gordon, and Jeff Watson.

Stay tuned for the announcement of the Fright Night Theatre Film Festival Awards later this week.

2016 SUBMISSIONS NOW CLOSED

Submissions for the Fall 2016 edition of the 

Fright Night Theatre Film Festival are now CLOSED

Thank you to all the filmmakers who submitted their shorts and features for consideration in the Fall installment of the Fright Night Theatre Film Festival. Submissions for the 2016 year are now closed. We received a record-number of submissions this year, and our programming team is hard at work evaluating each and every film. Five features and approximately 20 shorts will be selected to screen in competition at the FNTFF on Sep. 30 - Oct. 01 alongside the Canadian Premiere of gross-out horror-comedy NIGHT OF SOMETHING STRANGE and the Hamilton Premiere of the hand-animated, sci-fi/fantasy/action/adventure feature NOVA SEED. Filmmakers will be notified of their status no later than September 1, 2016. 

Don't miss any of our exciting film announcements. Join our mailing list for exclusive news and offers.

FIRST FILMS ANNOUNCED!

The Fright Night Theatre Film Festival is excited to announce its first wave of official selections for our Fall program: September 30 - October 1st

Following on the heels of a hugely successful Winter edition, the Fright Night Theatre Film Festival (Hamilton, Ontario's horror, cult, and exploitation genre film fest) returns this Fall with a new slate of killer film premieres guaranteed to push the boundaries of spectacle and imagination (not to mention good taste).

NIGHT OF SOMETHING STRANGE

|| Canadian Premiere! ||

*Gross-Out Body Horror Comedy*

The FNTFF is very proud to present the Canadian Premiere of Jonathan Straiton's award-winning and fan-acclaimed teenage sex comedy / zombie gore fest: NIGHT OF SOMETHING STRANGE

Five teenage friends set out for the beach on their Spring Break vacation. Good times are cut short when one of the group contracts a deadly sexual transmitted disease during a bathroom stop. But this is no ordinary STD! When they stop for the night at an isolated motel, the STD virus starts running rampant, turning those infected into sex-crazed and oozing living dead mutants. 

Hot off its award wins for Best SFX, Best Actor, and the Jury Award for Best Film at the Crimson Screen Horror Film Festival, NIGHT OF THE SOMETHING STRANGE is an uncomfortably hilarious and gleefuly disgusting tour de force of comedy, action, and gross-out gore that takes the meaning of bad taste to a whole new level.

NOVA SEED

|| Hamilton Premiere! ||

*Animated Action/Fantasy/Sci-Fi Adventure*

From the gross to the gorgeous, the FNTFF is honoured to also announce the Hamilton Premiere of NOVA SEED from Hamilton-born animator Nick DiLiberto.

Enter a fantasy world of pure imagination and exhilarating action. Deep below the surface of a desolated world, the Mad Doctor Mindskull has discovered a way to use the planet’s power of creation as a weapon. With humanity unable to fight back, they enlist the aid of an outlaw bio-engineered N.A.C (Neo Animal Combatant). But will the N.A.C turn against the humans who shun him, and what is the mystery of the Nova Seed's power?

Years in the making, NOVA SEED was produced in 2D, hand-drawn frame by glorious frame. NOVA SEED is a Heavy Metal meets Ralph Bakshi experience that embodies the true spirit of DIY independent film-making. Destined to be a cult classic, NOVA SEED has already reaped acclaim at Toronto's WTFilm Fest and the Toronto Animation Arts Festival International.

7 feature films and 20 shorts will screen this fall as part of the Fright Night Theatre Film Festival. Submissions officially close August 13 and the full lineup will be revealed in early September.

To submit your feature or short, visit https://filmfreeway.com/festival/FrightNightTheatre

Subscribe to our mailing list for more announcement updates

First Films and New Merch to Debut at Dark Carnival

This weekend, the Fright Night Theatre Film Festival will be debuting some chillin' new merch and thrilling news at the Rue Morgue Dark Carnival Horror Culture & Entertainment Expo (July 9-10) in Hamilton, ON!

FIRST FILMS TO BE REVEALED!

Stop by the FNTFF table (booth #606) for an exclusive sneak peek at our first two feature film premiere screenings coming to our Fall festival (September 30 - October 1)

EXCLUSIVE T-SHIRT!

Our first ever t-shirt is here! Show your Hamilton horror pride with our exclusive, limited edition Fright Night Theatre Film Festival t-shirt. Available in S, M, L, XL while supplies last. Once they're gone, they're gone: never to be re-printed! $20.00 (cash-only)

PRIZES!

Visit our table for a chance to win copies of Delirium Magazine

Full Moon presents DELIRIUM magazine, a bloody, bold,beautiful and critically acclaimed print and digital magazine published by Charles Band, produced by the Full Moon Features team and edited by filmmaker, writer and www.ShockTillYouDrop.com managing editor Chris Alexander. DELIRIUM features exclusive interviews, bizarre stories, garish photos, posters, retrospectives, special FX make-up secrets, laughs, shocks, thrills and chills. It's the best cult film magazine on the market!

FREE BUTTONS!

Make your own buttons with our button machine of the damned! Show off your creepy creativity and celebrate the horror genre.

Sample Buttons

DISCOUNT PASSES!

Be the first to secure your seats for the Fall edition of FNTFF. Get your discount VIP Festival pass for just $45 (regular $60). Supply is limited!

www.darkcarnivalexpo.com

PHOTOS: FNTFF Mar 11-12, 2016

From March 11-12, 2016, the Fright Night Theatre Film Festival transformed the Staircase Theatre in Hamilton, ON into the SCAREcase Theatre for two nights of thrills, chills, and cinematic kills. We kicked off the first of our twice-a-year horror, cult, and exploitation film festival with 20 official selections: 5 fiendish feature films (Harvest Lake, The Barn, Bunny the Killer Thing, She Who Must Burn, and Idyll) and 15 terrifying shorts. 

With the help of Locked in the Cellar Creations, who decGOREated the Staircase Theatre with horror decor, the first Fright Night Theatre Film Fest of 2016 was a decidedly sinful success and we'll return with an all new festival lineup September 30 - October 01!

OFFICIAL PHOTOS