HXFF 2019 First Wave Announcement
2019 will mark the 10th anniversary of the Hexploitation Film Festival. What began in 2009 as a monthly horror film screening series called Fright Night Theatre eventually evolved into the annual film festival that the Hexploitation Film Festival is today. In recognition of a decade devoted to cinematic thrills, chills, and kills, our 2019 festival will be a fusion of our past and present in which we honor both our local roots and continue to seek out the best in new and exciting horror, cult, and exploitation films.
The Hexploitation Film Festival will celebrate 10 years of screenings with our next festival, running Thursday, February 21 to Saturday, February 23, 2019 in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The festival’s full lineup of 7 features and approx. 15 shorts will be announced in early January, but in the meantime, we are exited to reveal our first wave of officially selected features and shorts to show you the gore we have in store.
FIRST WAVE - FEATURE FILMS
CRYSTAL EYES
Mirada de Cristal
|| CANADIAN PREMIERE ||
2017, DIR. EZEQUIEL ENDELMAN AND LEANDRO MONTEJANO, 82 MIN. ARG
Mirada de Cristal
|| CANADIAN PREMIERE ||
2017, DIR. EZEQUIEL ENDELMAN AND LEANDRO MONTEJANO, 82 MIN. ARG
Official Selection:
FrightFest London 2018
Mordibo Film Festival 2018
FrightFest London 2018
Mordibo Film Festival 2018
It's the first anniversary of the tragic death of supermodel Alexis Carpenter, who went out in blaze of glory when she was accidentally set on fire while closing an upscale runway show. Lucia L'uccello, the Editor-in-Chief of the most important fashion magazine in Buenos Aires, chooses two rival supermodels as cover girls for the next issue in memory of Alexis's death. The night before the photo shoot is to take place, Alexis's original dresses that were going to be used for the shoot are stolen. From that moment, members of the important fashion magazine and agency begin to disappear, one by one, at the hands of a stealthy, sinister female silhouette in a long black leather raincoat. Is someone seeking revenge? Or has Alexis returned from the grave?
Slasher fans won't want to miss Crystal Eyes. Argentinan writers/directors Ezequiel Endelman and Leandro Montejano drink deep at the well of Dario Argento and Mario Bava to deliver a Spanish-language neo-Giallo dripping in neon style and the horrors of high-fashion.
***
JOHNNY GRUESOME
|| CANADIAN PREMIERE ||
2018, DIR. GREGORY LAMBERSON, 90 MIN. USA
|| CANADIAN PREMIERE ||
2018, DIR. GREGORY LAMBERSON, 90 MIN. USA
Gregory Lamberson (KILLER RACK, SLIME CITY MASSACRE) will be in attendance to brings his award-winning novel JOHNNY GRUESOME to the HXFF, starring Anthony De La Torre (Young Jack Sparrow in PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN) and Michael De Lorenzo (NEW YORK UNDERCOVER).
While on a drunken joy-ride with his friends, rebellious high school rocker Johnny Grissom is murdered. After those involved cover up his death to make it look like an accident, Johnny's classmates start to turn up dead. Johnny's best friend Eric begins to suspect Johnny has returned from the grave to wreak havoc on those who wronged him.
We are thrilled to welcome back Gregory Lamberson to the HXFF for the Canadian debut of his Tales From the Crypt styled slice of undead revenge. Lamberson is no stranger to the HXFF. In 2015 we hosted the Canadian Premiere of his cult comedy KILLER RACK and he was a special commentator at our 2017 screening of RAWHEAD REX. Expect a lively post-film Q&A about the making of the film, how they scored an original song by Robby Takac of the Goo Goo Dolls, and the long road from novel to screen.
We are thrilled to welcome back Gregory Lamberson to the HXFF for the Canadian debut of his Tales From the Crypt styled slice of undead revenge. Lamberson is no stranger to the HXFF. In 2015 we hosted the Canadian Premiere of his cult comedy KILLER RACK and he was a special commentator at our 2017 screening of RAWHEAD REX. Expect a lively post-film Q&A about the making of the film, how they scored an original song by Robby Takac of the Goo Goo Dolls, and the long road from novel to screen.
***
CREATURE FROM CANNIBAL CREEK|| WORLD PREMIERE ||
MADE IN HAMILTON
2018, DIR. JOHN MIGLIORE, 80 MIN. CAN
It Came From Hamilton! Locally made creature feature to receive World Premiere at HXFF
Nature spawns a creature driven by vengeance to destroy a group of cold-blooded cannibals in Creature from Cannibal Creek! From the director of Exorcism of the Dead and Poltergeist Encounters comes a film that recalls the dingy reels of low-budget exploitation and monster movies of the seventies. Creature from Cannibal Creek combines the cannibal horror like The Hills Have Eyes with the monster mayhem of Swampthing.
Creature from Cannibal Creek concerns itself with a family of deranged cannibals who make their meals out of unsuspecting people they capture in the woods, keep in cages, and then tenderize for supper. However, when one of their captives escapes only to die in the surrounding forest, nature takes a perverse turn to resurrect their victim as a shaggy beast made of forest and fury that gives the cannibals a taste of their own medicine.
John Migliore, the film's writer and director, is a familiar face at the HXFF. As a mainstay of the local horror scene, Migliore's films are imbued with a passion for low-budget horror, a dedication to do-it-yourself film-making, and a commitment to following your dreams, no matter how bizarre. With a score by Juno Award-winning musician Mike Trebilcock, CREATURE FROM CANNIBAL CREEK is a not-so-serious romp full of local Hamilton talent in front and behind the camera.
Creature from Cannibal Creek concerns itself with a family of deranged cannibals who make their meals out of unsuspecting people they capture in the woods, keep in cages, and then tenderize for supper. However, when one of their captives escapes only to die in the surrounding forest, nature takes a perverse turn to resurrect their victim as a shaggy beast made of forest and fury that gives the cannibals a taste of their own medicine.
John Migliore, the film's writer and director, is a familiar face at the HXFF. As a mainstay of the local horror scene, Migliore's films are imbued with a passion for low-budget horror, a dedication to do-it-yourself film-making, and a commitment to following your dreams, no matter how bizarre. With a score by Juno Award-winning musician Mike Trebilcock, CREATURE FROM CANNIBAL CREEK is a not-so-serious romp full of local Hamilton talent in front and behind the camera.
FIRST WAVE - SHORT FILMS
BINGE
||HAMILTON PREMIERE||
MADE IN HAMILTON
||HAMILTON PREMIERE||
MADE IN HAMILTON
2018, DIR. DAVID J. FERNANDES, 13 MIN. CAN
Official Selection:
Blood in the Snow Film Festival 2018
A mysterious envelope arrives at Jen's door, sending her on an increasingly dangerous hunt to discover its intent. Written, directed, and produced by Hamilton filmmaker David J. Fernandes, the eerie and tense Binge is an exercise in minimalism that delivers lush images, compelling music, and rich sound design.
BITTEN
||CANADIAN PREMIERE||
2018, DIR. SARAH K REIMERS, 11 MIN. USA
***
THE BLOODY BALLAD OF SQUIRT REYNOLDS
||HAMILTON PREMIERE||
2018, DIR. ANTHONY COUSINS, 7 MIN. USA
The kids at Camp Nawgonamakit are about to find out the tragic tale of Squirt Reynolds is more than just a legend in this outrageous new horror comedy by writer/director Anthony Cousins. Cousins returns to the HXFF after winning our 2017 award for MOST SHOCKING SHORT with WHEN SUSURRUS STIRS.
TIME HEALS NO WOUNDS
||HAMILTON PREMIERE||
||HAMILTON PREMIERE||
2018, DIR. JORDAN BARNES-CROUSE, 11 MIN. CAN
FULL LINEUP & SCHEDULE TO BE REVEALED JANUARY 7, 2019
Purchase your 3-Day Festival Pass for guaranteed seating at all screenings February 21-23 to avoid sellouts and rush lines
Purchase your 3-Day Festival Pass for guaranteed seating at all screenings February 21-23 to avoid sellouts and rush lines
