NIGHTSTREAM,
a new and ambitious virtual film festival, is a collaborative product from five
genre festivals in the U.S.: Boston Underground, Brooklyn Horror, North Bend,
Overlook, and Popcorn Frights, all of which have been gravely affected by
COVID. Rather than accepting the cancellations of their festivals, these
organizations decided to band together and reimagine festivals by including
social distancing guidelines. Ultimately, they created NIGHTSTREAM, so that
movie-lovers, artists, and filmmakers can still enjoy partaking in film
festivals safely amidst the pandemic.
This
virtual festival features exciting horror films and will even be premiering RUN,
a Hulu original thriller, which features Sarah Paulson from American Horror Story and was directed
by Aneesh Chaganty, who also directed for Sundance's Searching. NIGHTSTREAM will be hosting seven world premieres, nine
North American premieres, seven U.S. premieres, and 164 short films. Notable
films premiering during this festival are Jesse Blanchard's Frank & Zed, Nicholas Payne Santos's It Cuts Deep, Devereux Millburn's Honeydew, Jake Mahaffy's Reunion, Terence Krey's An Unquiet Grave, and Ryûhei Kitamura's The
Doorman, featuring Ruby Rose, who will partake in a Q&A after the
movie's screening.
Aside from premiering movies, this festival is also hosting
events, panels, and masterclasses led by acclaimed and esteemed filmmakers,
such as Mary Harron, the co-writer of American
Psycho, for the 20th anniversary of the movie, and Scott Beck and Bryan
Woods, screenwriters of A Quiet Place.
Mick Garris, filmmaker and screenwriter who created notable horror films including
Sleepwalkers, Nightmare Cinema, and Digging
Up the Marrow, will host a "Dinner
With the Masters of Horror." Guests
will include Joe Dante, film director of Gremlins;
Mike Flanagan, filmmaker of Before I Wake, Gerald's Game, and Oculus; John Landis, film director of Twilight Zone: The Movie and An American Werewolf in London, and
more.
NIGHTSTREAM will also include a special event hosted by Aaron
Moorhead and Justin Benson, the directors behind The Endless and Spring,
in which they will share their early works, which have never been viewed
before. The festival will also feature Peaches Chris, notable drag performer
and horror expert, who will share the history of campy horror and will also
host a spooky and dazzling festival party. In addition, "Evening Rituals Presented by IFC Midnight," a unique Happy-Hour social, will stream every night, hosted by
different guests, including Elijah Wood, the actor who played Frodo Baggins in
the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
NIGHTSTREAM will run from October 8 - 11 with select films
available till the 14th. Sales will be geo-locked to the United States. Tickets
are currently available in packages, such as the Night Owl (5 tickets for $65),
Homebody (9 tickets for $99), and Events Only (worldwide access for $25). The
Night Owl and Homebody bundles both offer unlimited access to events and
panels.
