Belfast International Horror Festival

Powertool Cheerleaders Vs The Boyband of The Screeching Dead
2022-10-28 19:00 - 21:00 (Europe/London) | The Beanbag Cinema, 23, Donegall Street, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 2FF ·, United Kingdom
Join BanterFlix for a screening of Pat Higgins Powertool Cheerleaders Vs The Boyband of The Screeching Dead at the Beanbag cinema as part of the Dark Hedges International Film Festival.

A fun, feminist horror comedy musical set in the backdrop of a TV talent competition, all about friendship and pursuing your dreams no matter what – even in the eye of a Zombie apocalypse.

This film is part of the new cinema strand of the festival’s programme

Fright Night (1985)
2022-10-28 21:15 - 23:00 | Queen’s Film Theatre, 20 University Square, Belfast, Antrim, BT7 1PA, United Kingdom
The Dark Hedges Film Festival presents Tom Holland’s Fright Night as part of their 2022 programme and In Dreams Are Monsters season.

17-year-old Charley Brewster (William Ragsdale) is a fan of both traditional horror films and horror TV series, Fright Night, hosted by former movie vampire hunter Peter Vincent (Roddy McDowall).

One evening, Charley discovers that his new neighbour Jerry Dandrige (Chris Sarandon) is a vampire who’s responsible for the disappearance of several locals. When no one believes him, Charley decides to get the help of washed-up television vampire killer Peter Vincent, to stop Jerry’s killing spree.

A member of the festival’s team will introduce the screening of this cult classic, just in time for Halloween.

Screening as part of In Dreams Are Monsters: A Season of Horror Films, a UK-wide film season supported by the National Lottery and BFI Film Audience Network.

A Life on the Farm
2022-10-29 12:00 - 13:15 | The Beanbag Cinema, 23, Donegall Street, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 2FF ·, United Kingdom
Join BanterFlix for a screening of Oscar Harding’s documentary A Life on the Farm at the Beanbag cinema as part of the Dark Hedges International Film Festival.

When filmmaker Oscar Harding’s grandfather passed away in the rural English county of Somerset, his family inherited an extraordinary videotape – a feature-length home movie from neighbour Charles Carson, which can best be described as “Monty Python meets The Texas Chainsaw Massacre”.

But there’s so much more to the man than his bizarre videos – Charles was an inventor, an outsider artist, and a pioneer of death positivity, to name just a few of the filmmaking farmer’s achievements.

Charles’ life and work are examined by those who knew him best, as well as a whole new generation of fans who have been inspired by the legacy he left behind.

A Life On The Farm is an exploration and celebration of Charles Carson and his movies, rescued from obscurity, which presents a moving and laugh-out-loud document of a time and place in danger of being lost to history.

This film is part of the new cinema strand of the festival’s programme

The Creeping
2022-10-29 14:00 - 15:30 | The Beanbag Cinema, 23, Donegall Street, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 2FF ·, United Kingdom
Join BanterFlix for a screening of Jamie Hooper’s The Creeping at the Beanbag cinema as part of the Dark Hedges International Film Festival.

Due to a traumatic childhood experience, Anna hasn’t returned home for many years. With her ailing grandmother, Lucy, suffering from worsening symptoms of dementia, Anna moves home to look after her.

Soon after, strange things begin happening. Though benign at first, events soon escalate into a nightmarish fight for life against a malevolent presence.

She discovers the ordeal is linked to a dark family secret, a tragic past that’s haunted Anna her whole life… and Lucy’s fading memories could be the key to solving the mystery and surviving the nightmare.

This film is part of the new cinema strand of the festival’s programme

Feed Me
2022-10-29 16:00 - 18:00 | The Beanbag Cinema, 23, Donegall Street, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 2FF ·, United Kingdom
Join BanterFlix for a screening of Adam Leader and Richard Oakes’ Feed Me at the Beanbag cinema as part of the Dark Hedges International Film Festival.

Following the death of his wife, a broken man spirals into an abyss of night tremors and depression and finds himself in the home of a deranged cannibal who convinces him to take his own life in the most horrific way imaginable.

This film is part of the new cinema strand of the festival’s programme

Irish Ghost Stories
2022-10-29 18:00 - 19:00 | The Beanbag Cinema, 23, Donegall Street, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 2FF ·, United Kingdom
Join BanterFlix for a screening of Eugene Mcpeake’s Irish Ghost Stories at the Beanbag cinema as part of the Dark Hedges International Film Festival.

A short anthology of six individual traditionally themed Irish ghost stories.

This film is part of the new cinema strand of the festival’s programme

What We Do in the Shadows (In Dreams Are Monsters Season)
2022-10-29 20:00 - 23:00 | The Black Box Belfast, 18-22 Hill Street, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 2LA, United Kingdom
Join BanterFlix at the Black Box in Belfast for an Unholy masquerade Ball and a screening of Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi’s What We Do in the Shadows.

Viago, Deacon, and Vladislav are vampires struggling with the mundane aspects of modern life, like paying rent, keeping up with the chore wheel, trying to get into nightclubs, and overcoming flatmate conflicts.

So when a camera crew decides to follow their day-to-day lives as they prowl the streets of Wellington in New Zealand what’s the worst that could happen?

So dress to impress as there are prizes for the best-dressed witch or vampire on the night as local cosplayer HedgeScout hosts this ghoulishly fun event

Cosplayer’s Joanne Alexander and Graham Alexander will host our screening

Screening as part of In Dreams Are Monsters: A Season of Horror Films, a UK-wide film season supported by the National Lottery and BFI Film Audience Network. indreamsaremonsters.co.uk

Bride of Frankenstein
2022-10-30 14:00 - 15:30 | The Strand Arts Centre, 152-154 Holywood Road, Belfast, United Kingdom
Join BanterFlix at the Strand Arts Centre for a screening off James Whale’s Bride of Frankenstein starring Boris Karloff and Elsa Lanchesteron as part of the Dark Hedges International Film Festival.

After recovering from injuries sustained in the mob attack upon himself and his creation, Dr. Frankenstein (Colin Clive) falls under the control of his former mentor, Dr. Pretorius (Ernest Thesiger), who convinces him to build his monster a mate.

Local writer Victoria Brown will introduce the film with a short presentation about the queer subtext within Whale’s filmmaking

Evil Dead Double Bill
2023-10-25 19:30 - 23:30 | The Belfast Barge, Lanyon Quay, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 3LG, United Kingdom
Join The Dark Hedges Film Festival for a double-bill of Ash at the Belfast Barge, just in time for Halloween.

They are screening two films within Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead trilogy on Wednesday 25th October.

First up is the director’s follow-up to the iconic original, Evil Dead 2 (1987) as Bruce Campbell’s Ash travels to a secluded cabin in the woods with his girlfriend Linda, only for all hell to break loose when the couple accidently summon a powerful demonic presence.

After a short interval they’ll screen Army of Darkness (1991) as Ash finds himself trapped in 1300 A.D, battling the undead as he tries to return home.

So come on down to the Barge, the venue will have its bar open on the night and anyone who pre-books a ticket will receive a free print designed by local artist Chris Ellis (Ellistration)

Short Film Competition: Offical Selection Category
2023-10-25 20:00 - 2023-10-31 23:59 | Dark Hedges Digital Player (Online)
Check out the 20 shorts from submissions from Irish and International filmmakers that have been included within the online ‘Offical Selection’ category of this year’s festival.

shorts are available to watch (£5) online on our digital player until 31 October on The Dark Hedges International Film Festival (vhx.tv)

The Lost Boys
2023-10-27 20:00 - 23:00 | The Strand Arts Centre, 152-154 Holywood Road, Belfast, United Kingdom
Teenage brothers Michael (Jason Patric) and Sam (Corey Haim) move with their mother (Dianne Wiest) to a small town in northern California.While the younger Sam meets a pair of kindred spirits in geeky comic-book nerds Edward (Corey Feldman) and Alan (Jamison Newlander), the angst-ridden Michael soon falls for Star (Jami Gertz) — who turns out to be in thrall to David (Kiefer Sutherland), leader of a local gang of vampires. Sam and his new friends must save Michael and Star from the undead.

This screening will be introduced by a member of the Festival’s team.

H. P. Lovecraft's The Old Ones
2023-10-28 11:00 - 12:30 | The Beanbag Cinema, 23, Donegall Street, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 2FF ·, United Kingdom
Director Chad Ferrin returns to the Dark Hedges International Film Festival with his latest feature H.P. Lovecraft’s The Old Ones. Set in 1930, sea captain Russel Marsh saw the light, and for 93 years his body was not his own. Inhabited by a Great Old One, he committed unspeakable acts in the name of the Esoteric Order of Dagon. Now free, he is in search of a way to go back in time to reverse the horrors wrought upon the world. But the cult has other plans and will stop at nothing to destroy him.

Bliss Of Evil
2023-10-28 12:45 - 14:15 | The Beanbag Cinema, 23, Donegall Street, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 2FF ·, United Kingdom
A sound engineer is forced to confront her trauma when she and her girlfriend’s grunge band are trapped in a recording studio by a shadowy killer.

PARALYSIS
2023-10-28 14:30 - 16:30 | The Beanbag Cinema, 23, Donegall Street, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 2FF ·, United Kingdom
A woman suffering from sleep paralysis learns her demons may be connected to a family secret.

Short Film Competition (Irish Finalists)
2023-10-28 15:00 - 17:15 | The Strand Arts Centre, 152-154 Holywood Road, Belfast, United Kingdom
The Dark Hedges Film Festival presents a showcase of the 10 finalists within the Irish category for this year’s Short Film Competition.

Audience will be able to vote for the Audience Choice award on the night. The Grand Jury prize within the category will be announced at a later date.

There will be a short internal during this event

Idiot Boy
2023-10-28 16:45 - 18:00 | The Beanbag Cinema, 23, Donegall Street, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 2FF ·, United Kingdom
The residents of a small, decrepit town come to terms with the disappearance of a young girl. When a young man takes up the search, he discovers some dark secrets in the place he calls home.

Told through a series of vignettes, the residents of Ballymoss find odd and often destructive ways of passing time in a place that seems to have been forgotten.

Shot on VHS and Hi8 tapes, Idiot Boy is a unique and visceral story of darkness, black comedy and horror.

Short Film Competition (International Finalists)
2023-10-28 17:30 - 19:30 | The Strand Arts Centre, 152-154 Holywood Road, Belfast, United Kingdom
The Dark Hedges Film Festival presents a showcase of the 10 finalists within the international category for this year’s Short Film Competition.

Audience will be able to vote for the Audience Choice award on the night. The Grand Jury prize within the category will be announced at a later date.

There will be a short internal during this event.

Bad Things in the Middle of Nowhere
2023-10-28 18:15 - 19:30 | The Beanbag Cinema, 23, Donegall Street, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 2FF ·, United Kingdom
A group of criminals lay low in the remote Irish countryside after pulling off an audacious robbery.

As they plan their escape they quickly realise the robbery will be the last thing to go right for them.

Ghostwatch
2023-10-28 20:30 - 22:00 | The Strand Arts Centre, 152-154 Holywood Road, Belfast, United Kingdom
To mark the passing of Sir Michael Parkinson, The Dark Hedges Film Festival is screening Lesley Manning’s Ghostwatch.

The Beeb received a number of complaints as a TV crew carried out a supposedly real paranormal investigation at the most haunted house in Britain.

The mockumentary shocked a nation when it was screened on BBC one on Halloween night in 1992.

The next ninety minutes would go down in British television history.

The Invisible Man (1933)
2023-10-29 18:00 - 20:00 | The Strand Arts Centre, 152-154 Holywood Road, Belfast, United Kingdom
The Dark Hedges Film Festival is screening James Whale’s The Invisible Man (1933) to celebrate the film’s 90th anniversary.

Based on H.G. Wells novel Whale’s film sees Claude Rains play Jack Griffins, a doctor who accidently stumbles on a potion that can make him invisible.

When he reveals his new ability to his old mentor (Henry Travers) and his fiancée (Gloria Stuart), it’s clear that a side effect of the potion is insanity.

Jack goes on a violent rampage, and the police struggle to hunt him down, unable to see their target, while his mentor and his former partner (William Harrigan) desperately try to devise a plan to capture him.

This screening as part of the classic horror strand of the programme, will be introduced by Victoria Brown.

Black Narcissus (1947)
2023-10-29 20:15 - 21:30 | The Strand Arts Centre, 152-154 Holywood Road, Belfast, United Kingdom
This explosive work about the conflict between the spirit and the flesh is the epitome of the sensuous style of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger. A group of nuns – played by some of Britain’s finest actresses, including Deborah Kerr, Kathleen Byron, and Flora Robson – struggle to establish a convent in the Himalayas, while isolation, extreme weather, altitude, and culture clashes all conspire to drive the well-intentioned missionaries mad.

With the help of set designer Alfred Junge and cinematographer Jack Cardiff (both rewarded with Academy Awards), Powell and Pressburger convincingly created a Himalayan convent on a Pinewood soundstage, lending the proceedings a tense, claustrophobic atmosphere

This screening will be Introduced by Victoria Brown. A horror lover, Victoria writes for BanterFlix and FrightClub NI and is the founder of The Readers in the Rue Morgue Horror Book Club and Film Club.

Programmed as part of a season celebrating the work – and influence – of film-makers Powell and Pressburger.

The Dark Hedges Horror Movie Quiz
2023-10-30 20:00 - 23:00 | The Sunflower Public House, 65 Union Street, Belfast, BT1 2JG, United Kingdom
The Dark Hedges Film Festival is hosting its first ever Horror Movie Quiz just in time for Halloween.

Come on down to the Sunflower and test your cinematic knowledge through 8 fiendish rounds.

There’ll be spot prizes and goodies up for grabs, with the night compared by local cosplayer Joanne Alexander.

Tickets are £3 each with a maximum of 4 people per team.

Dementia 13
2023-10-31 19:00 - 22:00 | The Sunflower Public House, 65 Union Street, Belfast, BT1 2JG, United Kingdom
Join The Readers in the Rue Morgue Film Club this Halloween Night for a screening of Francis Ford Coppola’s first ever film,! In partnership with The Dark Hedges International Film Festival.

We’re also having a spooky costume contest, with First, Second and Third place prizes up for grabs! Generously donated by local businessesTickets are £5 & all proceeds will go to our chosen charity The People’s Kitchen.

Please note that there is a 25 ticket limit via EventBrite but you can also pay at the door on the night! (exact change encouraged).

Hocus Pocus & Witches Disco
2024-10-26 19:00 - 23:00 | Show Some Love Belfast, 175 Victoria Street, Belfast, Antrim, United Kingdom
Light your black flamed candle and get ready for a party on the opening night of this year’s Dark Hedges Film Festival as they screen Disney’s cult- classic Hocus Pocus (1993) at Show Some Love Belfast.

Fancy dress is encouraged for this BYOB screening will be followed by a witches disco at the venue as a DJ attempts to put a spell on you with some spooky tunes well into the Witching hour

In Kenny Ortega’s feature a teenage boy named Max and his little sister Dani move to Salem, where he struggles to fit in, before accidentally awakening the Sanderson sisters (Bette Midler, Sarah Michelle Gueller and Katy Najimy) on Halloween night.

The trio of witches soon set out to avenge their execution by the town’s people 300 years prior.

Dawn of the Dead (1978) at Connswater
2024-10-27 14:00 - 16:00 | Connswater Shopping Centre, Bloomfield Avenue, Newtownards Road, Belfast, Antrim, BT5 5LP, United Kingdom
Join The Dark Hedges Film Festival as they screen George A. Romero’s seminal zombie masterpiece Dawn of the Dead (1978) at the Strand Cinema’s temporary home at the Connswater Shopping Centre just in time for Halloween.

As hordes of zombies swarm over the U.S., the terrified populace tries everything in their power to escape the attack of the undead, but neither cities nor the countryside prove safe. In Pennsylvania, radio-station employee Stephen (David Emge) and his girlfriend, Francine (Gaylen Ross), escape in the station helicopter, accompanied by two renegade SWAT members, Roger and Pete. The group retreats to the haven of an enclosed shopping centre to make what could be humanity’s last stand.

When there’s no more room in hell, the dead will roam the earth, well East Belfast!!

The Burbs (1989)
2024-10-27 18:00 - 20:30 | Accidental Theatre, 12-13 Shaftesbury Square, Belfast, BT2 7DB, United Kingdom
Welcome to the Never Seen Seen It Film Club’s latest season: “1988-89: The 2 Best Years in Cinematic History”!

Join us on Sunday 27th October, 6pm BST where we will be enjoying the next selection of our new season…The Burbs (1989)

Synopsis

Settling in for some time off in his suburban home, Ray Peterson’s (Tom Hanks) vacation becomes a horror when the Klopeks, a suspiciously odd family, move in down the block. Enlisting the aid of his paranoid buddy, Art (Rick Ducommun), and his militia-man neighbor, Rumsfield (Bruce Dern), Ray sends his son and wife (Carrie Fisher) away on a trip while he investigates the Klopeks. When a neighbor disappears, Ray and his cohorts risk their lives to save their cul-de-sac from the clutches of evil.

Short Film Competition 2024
2024-10-28 19:00 - 23:30 | Accidental Theatre, 12-13 Shaftesbury Square, Belfast, BT2 7DB, United Kingdom
Join the Dark Hedges Film Festival at the Accidental Theatre in Belfast as they showcase the 20 finalists for this year’s short film competition.

They’ll be screening both the Irish and International finalists on one night, starting with the Irish entries from 7pm, then the international selection (9:30pm). There’ll be a short interval between the two showcases

Audience members will be asked to vote for their favourites (Irish/International) on the night with a Grand jury prize also available in both categories.

There’s also the ‘First Blood’ & ‘Bloody Women’ awards up for grabs as they celebrate first-time filmmakers and female directors respectively.

The venue is BYOB so come on down and enjoy an eclectic mix of shorts made by filmmakers from around the world

Elvira: Mistress of the Dark (1988)
2024-10-29 20:00 - 22:00 | Accidental Theatre, 12-13 Shaftesbury Square, Belfast, BT2 7DB, United Kingdom
Join The Dark Hedges Film Festival for a BYOB screening of James Signorelli’s cult classic Elvira: Mistress of the Dark (1988) at the Accidental Theatre just in time for Halloween.

Horror Icon Cassandra Peterson stars as the aforementioned mistress of the dark, when she inherits a rundown mansion in a small American town Elvira soon finds herself battling an evil uncle and the townspeople who want her burned at the stake.

Anyone who pre-books a ticket, will receive a limited edition print upon arrival!

The Dark Hedges Movie Quiz
2024-10-30 20:00 - 23:00 | Accidental Theatre, 12-13 Shaftesbury Square, Belfast, BT2 7DB, United Kingdom
Tickets for £4 each

Test your horror knowledge at the Dark Hedges Film Festival’s annual movie quiz

Fancy dress is encouraged, there’ll be eight fiendish rounds at the Accidental Theatre with spot prizes for the best dressed, best team and of course goodies for the winners!

The evening will be hosted by the festival’s team and Lit to the Tit’s Claire McCullough

The Rocky Horror Picture Show & Shock Treatment
2024-10-31 19:00 - 23:30 | The Belfast Barge, Lanyon Quay, Belfast, Antrim, BT1 3LG, United Kingdom
Get your fishnets and stockings ready for a night of debauchery onboard the Belfast Barge as the Dark Hedges Film Festival hosts a screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show & Shock Treatment on Halloween night

In The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975), newly engaged couple Brad and Janet (Barry Bostwick & Susan Sarandon) end up at the castle of Dr Frank-N-Furter (Tim Curry) after their car breaks down. It just so happens on this wet and stormy night the self-proclaimed ‘sweet transvestite from Transsexual, Transylvania’ is hosting a party to celebrate the unveiling of his latest creation, a muscular Adonis called Rocky, the perfect male specimen who will bring him absolute pleasure.

As the evening goes on our two straight-faced lovebirds have their eyes are opened to a world of kink and perverted pleasure they never knew existed.

In Shock Treatment (1981), released six years after Jim Sharman’s original, Brad and Janet (now portrayed by Cliff De Young and Jessica Harper), head to Denton to take part in a game show on DTV. They find the town has been taken over by the television company and its primary sponsor, fast food company Farley Flavours. The couple soon find themselves held captive at the request of Farley’s mysterious CEO

Sharman’s follow-up might not have gained the same cult status as its predecessor, but in recent years it’s been re-evaluated and praised by critics for its views on celebrity culture and reality television.

On the night there’ll be props on hand to help get our audience in the mood for the time warp and fancy dress is encouraged as local cosplayers Joanne Alexander (HedgeScout) and Gabrielle Riddiough (Wishmama) will be on hand to judge the best dressed during the intermission between the two films, don’t worry they won’t bite, well not unless you want them to!
