Popcorn Frights Film Festival 2023’s Second Wave of Programming Includes NIGHTBREED: DIRECTOR’S CUT, THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE, and Free Outdoor Screening of THE BIRDS
Popcorn Frights Film Festival returns for its ninth edition of sun-soaked, blood-splattered cinematic scares this August in South Florida, and following the reveal of their scary good first wave of programming, the second wave of must-see screenings for the festival has been announced, including Clive Barker’s Nightbreed: Director’s Cut with star Anne Bobby in attendance, a special screening of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre on the 50th anniversary of the day on which the shocking events of the movie take place, a 60th anniversary presentation of Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds under the stars, and much more!
As previously announced, this year’s Popcorn Frights Film Festival will run August 10th–20th, with screenings taking place at Fort Lauderdale’s historic Savor Cinema and “The Horror Collective Screening Room” at Miami Beach’s O Cinema South Beach (as part of a special partnership between Popcorn Frights and Entertainment Squad’s The Horror Collective).
Below, we have a look at the full second wave of programming for this year’s Popcorn Frights Film Festival. Stay tuned to Daily Dead for the third wave of programming in the coming weeks, check out our event report from last year’s amazing festival, and be sure to visit Popcorn Frights’ official website!
Press Release: July 6, 2023 // – Feeling lucky? Well, you should! Popcorn Frights has added even more movies to its expansive schedule! Horror lovers in South Florida and all across the US can celebrate the one-of-a-kind, endless possibilities of genre cinema in the festival’s retina-reeling, round-the-world showcase of some of the medium’s most boundary-pushing and mind-enhancing films. Mark your calendars for August 10-20, when Popcorn Frights’ ninth edition unleashes cinematic mayhem on the big screen and online!
So, without further ado… Popcorn Frights is thrilled to announce that NIGHTBREED star Anne Bobby is checking into the festival for a special big screen presentation of Clive Barker’s “Director’s Cut” as well as the world premiere of her new short film KINDLING! The event will feature an extensive conversation with the star talking about her background and experience in the making of the iconic film.
For those daring to descend into even more terror, brace for Tobe Hooper’s all-time horror classic THE TEXAS CHAIN SAW MASSACRE as it returns to ravage the silver screen precisely 50 years after the infamous massacre shook the world on that fateful night of August 18, 1973. The anniversary event will also include several other treats and surprises in celebration of this unholy night.
But wait. There’s more! What better way to experience the 60th anniversary of Alfred Hitchcock’s horror masterpiece of nature gone berserk, THE BIRDS, than with a special free outdoor presentation on Ocean Drive, Miami Beach’s most famous stretch of sand and nightlife. The special event is made possible with the support of the City of Miami Beach.
“You’re a fucking murderer, Rico!” That is the first line of dialogue fans of THE SHINING icon Shelley Duvall can hear her speak after a 20-year absence from the screen in THE FOREST HILLS, a werewolf horror film unleashed in all practical special effects. This gripping genre-bender has drawn together an all-star ensemble, including TERMINATOR 2 star Edward Furlong, werewolf actress par excellence Dee Wallace, slasher queen Felissa Rose, scream queen Debbie Rochon, Stacey Nelkin (HALLOWEEN III), and Marianne Hagan (HALLOWEEN 6: THE CURSE OF MICHAEL MYERS).
Fans can see the film streaming as part of Popcorn Frights’ online virtual component featuring more than 20 films (with more still to be announced!) and granting audiences across the entire United States the opportunity to immerse themselves in the heart-pounding, adrenaline-fueled experience of the festival, no matter where they are.
Popcorn Frights’ virtual program is also headlined by the mind-bending sci-fi creature feature SUBJECT, a jolting tale wrapped in layers of mystery about a prison inmate chosen to participate in a secretive government study. Other highlights in the festival’s virtual experience include the premieres of the Cronenbergian zombie tale WINTERTIDE, the morbidly hypnotic found-footage creepfest INVOKING YELL, the nightmarish and visually haunting animated feature AGATHA that was ten years in the making, the gore-filled home invasion thriller WATCHDOG starring horror legend Mark Patton, and the story of Gilead Media in A WANDERING PATH, an underground label renowned for putting out black metal, doom, and noise rock releases of well-known bands.
A third wave of Popcorn Frights 2023 titles and special events will be announced in the coming weeks.
Access to the in-theater program 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 Horror Collective 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.
Submissions to the ninth annual Popcorn Frights Film Festival are still open via Film Freeway with the final deadline set for July 19. Shorts, features, documentaries, animation, film and video — all are welcome and can be submitted at the link: https://filmfreeway.com/popcornfrightsfilmfestival
The ninth edition of the Popcorn Frights Film Festival is made possible with the support of its generous sponsors, including 88 Films, AGFA, ALTER, The Betsy, Daily Dead, Bloody Disgusting, Dread Central, Fangoria, Fright Rags, The Horror Collective, Kino Cult, MVD, O Cinema, Savor Cinema, Severin Films, and its loyal fans. For more info about Popcorn Frights, visit PopcornFrights.com
IN-THEATER RETRO LINEUP
(Second Wave)
The Birds
60th Anniversary Presentation
United States | 1963 | 120 Min. | Dir. Alfred Hitchcock
*Under the stars event
A wealthy San Francisco socialite pursues a potential boyfriend to a small Northern California town that slowly takes a turn for the bizarre when birds of all kinds suddenly begin to attack people.
Nightbreed: Director’s Cut
Special Presentation
United States | 1990 | 120 Min. | Dir. Clive Barker
*Actress Anne Bobby expected in person
A troubled young man is drawn to a mythical place called Midian where a variety of friendly monsters are hiding from humanity.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
Special 50th Anniversary Presentation
United States | 1974 | 83 Min. | Dir. Tobe Hooper
Five friends head out to rural Texas to visit the grave of a grandfather. On the way they stumble across what appears to be a deserted house, only to discover something sinister within. Something armed with a chainsaw.
VIRTUAL FEATURE FILM LINEUP
(Second Wave)
A Wandering Path
Florida Premiere
United States | 2023 | 98 Min. | Dir. Michael Dimmitt
The story of underground label Gilead Media and its renown for putting out black metal, doom, and noise rock releases of well-known bands.
Agatha
Florida Premiere
United States | 2022 | 60 Min. | Dirs. Kelly Bigelow Becerra, Roland Becerra
Hoping to find a cure to his sickness, “The Professor” follows Agatha on a strange and risky journey into a forgotten but not entirely deserted urban wasteland.
The Forest Hills
Florida Premiere
United States | 2023 | 80 Min. | Dir. Scott Goldberg
A man is tormented by nightmarish visions after enduring head trauma while camping in the Catskill woods.
Invoking Yell
Florida Premiere
Chile | 2023 | 84 Min. | Dir. Patricio Valladares
Set in 1990s in the south of Chile, a trio of metalhead twenty-something girls venture into the woods to shoot a demo tape for their black metal band, Invoking Yell, while also documenting the eerie and unsettling process of recording electronic voice phenomena in the woods for the final track.
Subject
Florida Premiere
Australia | 2022 | 77 Min. | Dir. Tristan Barr
On his way to prison, a man gets intercepted by a secretive government agency who task him to monitor a secret experiment in exchange for commuting his sentence.
Watchdog
Florida Premiere
United States | 2023 | 93 Min. | Dir. L.C. Holt
After narrowly surviving a violent mugging, a man invites a drifter who saved him back to the isolated home where he and his girlfriend resides, not realizing that he’s opened the door to a night of terror and bloody revenge.
Wintertide
Florida Premiere
Canada | 2023 | 97 Min. | Dir. John Barnard
A volunteer watchperson of an isolated northern city battles a plague of depression that transforms the few remaining residents into empty, zombie-like automatons.
For all further details please visit www.popcornfrights.com
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ABOUT POPCORN FRIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL
Popcorn Frights Film Festival is the ultimate summer celebration of the art of horror, showcasing the finest contemporary genre cinema from around the world. As the largest genre film festival in the Southeast U.S., this ten-day event takes pride in premiering works from both emerging and established filmmakers. By offering a platform for these artists, the festival aims to provide an immersive experience that highlights the captivating power of storytelling through genre film.
