Guillermo del Toro

Ivana Baquero

Sergi López

Maribel Verdú

Ariadna Gil

Doug Jones

Álex Angulo

Roger Casamajor

Manolo Solo

César Vea

Ivan Massagué

Gonzalo Uriarte

Eusebio Lázaro

Francisco Vidal

Juanjo Cucalón

Lina Mira

Mario Zorrilla

Sebastián Haro

Mila Espiga

Pepa Pedroche

Lalá Gatóo

Ana Sáez

Chani Martín

Milo Taboada

Fernando Albizu

Pedro G. Marzo

José Luis Torrijo

Íñigo Garcés

Fernando Tielve

Federico Luppi

Chicho Campillo

Pablo Adán

Álvaro Augustin

Alfonso Cuarón

Bertha Navarro

Frida Torresblanco

David Ebner

Bernat Vilaplana

Guillermo Navarro

Eugenio Caballero

Carlos Zaragoza

Alicia Castro Chicol

Pilar Revuelta

Laura Musso

Steve Dellerson

Ron Friedman

Edward Irastorza

Grzegorz Jonkajtys

Everett Burrell

Javier Navarrete

Miguel Ángel Polo

Roland N. Thai

Dana Blanco

Martín Hernández

Carlos Zamorano

Alejandro Quevedo

Lala Huete

Rocío Redondo

Aleix Torrecillas

José Quetglás

David Martí

Montse Ribé

Estudios Picasso

Esperanto Filmoj

Tequila Gang

Telecinco Cinema

Living with her tyrannical stepfather in a new home with her pregnant mother, 10-year-old Ofelia feels alone until she explores a decaying labyrinth guarded by a mysterious faun who claims to know her destiny. If she wishes to return to her real father, Ofelia must complete three terrifying tasks.

Drama

Fantasy

Pan's Labyrinth

As Emilie Blichfeldt&rsquo;s dark fairy tale The Ugly Stepsister casts a spell over Letterboxd members, Katie Rife leafs through the pages of the storybook genre and its horror impact, from honking imps to jealous spirits.

A starter pack of dark fairy tales, from The Red Shoes to The Ugly Stepsister.

Wicked Queens and Big Bad Wolves

Guillermo del Toro and the Pinocchio team celebrate stop-motion as a &ldquo;gift from God&rdquo;, retelling Carlo Collodi&rsquo;s classic tale as an ode to unruliness.

Guillermo del Toro and friends on bringing Pinocchio to life.

Toying with Disobedience

Follow our industry partners for film news and the latest on new releases.

Follow HQs

Spanish

<blockquote>"The difference between <a href="https://boxd.it/1TjS" rel="nofollow">Cronos</a> and <a href="https://boxd.it/28Li" rel="nofollow">The Devil's Backbone</a> is I'm 36 and in Cronos I was 28, and I had now the enormous experience of eight years... but I feel I was better prepared to shoot that movie now. As a filmmaker, I had more tools."</blockquote>Back at TIFF '01, filmmaker <a href="https://letterboxd.com/director/guillermo-del-toro/" rel="nofollow">Guillermo del Toro</a> (<a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">Pan's Labyrinth</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/23zm" rel="nofollow">Mimic</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/dZ5m" rel="nofollow">The Shape of Water</a>) took part in the Festival's Mavericks conversation series to discuss his filmmaking career, amateur movie stunts he performed as a child, how he met <a href="https://letterboxd.com/director/pedro-almodovar/" rel="nofollow">Pedro Almodóvar</a>, and losing all his money on his feature debut Cronos.Watch the full conversation on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@TIFF" rel="nofollow">TIFF Originals</a> YouTube channel as part of our TIFF Rewind series in celebration of TIFF's 50th edition.

<blockquote>"The difference between <a href="https://boxd.it/1TjS">Cronos</a> and <a href="https://boxd.it/28Li">The Devil's Backbone</a> is I'm 36 and in Cronos I was 28, and I had now the enormous experience of eight years... but I feel I was better prepared to shoot that movie now. As a filmmaker, I had more tools."</blockquote>

Back at TIFF '01, filmmaker <a href="https://letterboxd.com/director/guillermo-del-toro/">Guillermo del Toro</a> (<a href="https://boxd.it/28No">Pan's Labyrinth</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/23zm">Mimic</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/dZ5m">The Shape of Water</a>) took part in the Festival's Mavericks conversation series to discuss his filmmaking career, amateur movie stunts he performed as a child, how he met <a href="https://letterboxd.com/director/pedro-almodovar/">Pedro Almodóvar</a>, and losing all his money on his feature debut Cronos.

Watch the full conversation on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@TIFF">TIFF Originals</a> YouTube channel as part of our TIFF Rewind series in celebration of TIFF's 50th edition.

 Guillermo del Toro – Mavericks Conversation (TIFF '01) | TIFF Rewind

Cinema is a shared experience, and with our new LAB Suggestions program, we’re putting the spotlight on the films you want to see on the big screen. Starting this March, we’ll present a handpicked selection of movies suggested through our online and on-location Suggestions Board, celebrating the passion and curiosity of our audience.From cult classics to hidden gems, bold arthouse to nostalgic favorites, we’ve crafted a lineup as diverse as the voices behind it. Every screening is a tribute to the collective love of cinema, reminding us that the best film selections don’t just come from curators, but from the people who fill the seats. Whether you’re revisiting a personal favorite or discovering something new, these are films chosen by film lovers, for film lovers. <a href="https://boxd.it/1F7e" rel="nofollow">Le Notti Di Cabiria</a> (1957) <a href="https://boxd.it/2apI" rel="nofollow">Vertigo</a> (4K Restoration, 1958) <a href="https://boxd.it/28Q8" rel="nofollow">Mirror</a> (1975) <a href="https://boxd.it/1T6O" rel="nofollow">The Deer Hunter</a> (4K Restoration, 1978) <a href="https://boxd.it/294O" rel="nofollow">The Thing</a> (4K Restoration, 1982) <a href="https://boxd.it/29Ge" rel="nofollow">Evil Dead II</a> (1988) <a href="https://boxd.it/2aSg" rel="nofollow">Dead Poets Society</a> (1990) <a href="https://boxd.it/2aGY" rel="nofollow">Terminator 2: Judgment Day</a> (1991) <a href="https://boxd.it/1YMA" rel="nofollow">Zoolander</a> (4K Restoration, 2001) <a href="https://boxd.it/2aUc" rel="nofollow">Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain</a> (2001) <a href="https://boxd.it/29J8" rel="nofollow">Shaun Of The Dead</a> &amp; <a href="https://boxd.it/2416" rel="nofollow">Hot Fuzz</a> (Double Bill Incl. dinner) <a href="https://boxd.it/1SYq" rel="nofollow">The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie</a> (2005) <a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">Pan's Labyrinth</a> (2006) <a href="https://boxd.it/7UmK" rel="nofollow">Wild Tales</a> (2014) <a href="https://boxd.it/948A" rel="nofollow">The Handmaiden</a> (2016) <a href="https://boxd.it/d6bE" rel="nofollow">Moonlight</a> (2016) <a href="https://boxd.it/b2L0" rel="nofollow">Manchester By The Sea</a> (2017) Info &amp; Tickets: <a href="https://www.lab111.nl/picks/" rel="nofollow">www.lab111.nl/picks/</a>

Cinema is a shared experience, and with our new LAB Suggestions program, we’re putting the spotlight on the films you want to see on the big screen. Starting this March, we’ll present a handpicked selection of movies suggested through our online and on-location Suggestions Board, celebrating the passion and curiosity of our audience.

From cult classics to hidden gems, bold arthouse to nostalgic favorites, we’ve crafted a lineup as diverse as the voices behind it. Every screening is a tribute to the collective love of cinema, reminding us that the best film selections don’t just come from curators, but from the people who fill the seats. Whether you’re revisiting a personal favorite or discovering something new, these are films chosen by film lovers, for film lovers.


<a href="https://boxd.it/1F7e">Le Notti Di Cabiria</a> (1957)
<a href="https://boxd.it/2apI">Vertigo</a> (4K Restoration, 1958)
<a href="https://boxd.it/28Q8">Mirror</a> (1975)
<a href="https://boxd.it/1T6O">The Deer Hunter</a> (4K Restoration, 1978)
<a href="https://boxd.it/294O">The Thing</a> (4K Restoration, 1982)
<a href="https://boxd.it/29Ge">Evil Dead II</a> (1988)
<a href="https://boxd.it/2aSg">Dead Poets Society</a> (1990)
<a href="https://boxd.it/2aGY">Terminator 2: Judgment Day</a> (1991)
<a href="https://boxd.it/1YMA">Zoolander</a> (4K Restoration, 2001)
<a href="https://boxd.it/2aUc">Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain</a> (2001)
<a href="https://boxd.it/29J8">Shaun Of The Dead</a> & <a href="https://boxd.it/2416">Hot Fuzz</a> (Double Bill Incl. dinner)
<a href="https://boxd.it/1SYq">The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie</a> (2005)
<a href="https://boxd.it/28No">Pan's Labyrinth</a> (2006)
<a href="https://boxd.it/7UmK">Wild Tales</a> (2014)
<a href="https://boxd.it/948A">The Handmaiden</a> (2016)
<a href="https://boxd.it/d6bE">Moonlight</a> (2016)
<a href="https://boxd.it/b2L0">Manchester By The Sea</a> (2017)


Info & Tickets: https://www.lab111.nl/picks/

LAB Suggestions

CURSE is our new weekender that delves deep into the chilling and mysterious world of folklore cinema, bringing together the eerie, the mystical, and the macabre from across the globe. We have often wanted to create a programme of films that highlight the universal and timeless nature of folklore stories and CURSE is the result, allowing us to offer our audience a chance to experience both the terror and the beauty of stories passed down through generations! Focused on horror and cult cinema, CURSE explores how ancient myths, legends, and superstitions have shaped storytelling in different cultures through cinema in the modern age.Taking place from February 28 to March 2, the weekender will kick off with Robin Hardy's 1973 classic The Wicker Man! We’re also super excited to welcome two special guests to the programme: producer Jen Handorf (Prevenge) will be taking part in a special Q+A after a screening of The Borderlands and the incomparable British Director Ben Wheatley will be joining us at our A Field in England screening to discuss his work on the film and some of his other folkloric projects! As well as visiting CULTPLEX for an in person Q+A after the film, Mr Wheatley has kindly curated a screening that will cap off the second evening with Penda’s Fen. CURSE is where the ancient stories meet our favourite modern medium; where folklore finds its unsettling place on the silver screen!Check out the full programme below!<a href="https://boxd.it/1KnG" rel="nofollow">THE WICKERMAN</a> “Flesh to touch...Flesh to burn! Don't keep the Wicker Man waiting!” The Wickerman has had an enduring fascination for audiences since its release in 1973. A unique and bone-fide horror masterpiece featuring an astounding performance by the legendary Christopher Lee. Director Robin Hardy's atmospheric use of location, unsettling imagery and haunting soundtrack gradually builds to one of the most terrifying and iconic climaxes in modern cinema.<a href="https://boxd.it/3Ic6" rel="nofollow">SONG OF THE SEA</a> Nominated for Academy Award 'Best Animated Feature', the film takes inspiration from the mythological Selkies of Irish folklore, who live as seals in the sea but become humans on land Directed by Tomm Moore (The Secret of Kells, Wolfwalkers). The enchanting Irish animation SONG OF THE SEA tells the story of Ben and his little sister Saoirse – the last Seal-child – who embark on a fantastic journey across a fading world of ancient legend and magic in an attempt to return to their home by the sea. <a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">PANS LABYRINTH</a> An Academy Award winning dark fable set five years after the end of the Spanish Civil War, Pan’s Labyrinth encapsulates the rich visual style and genre-defying craft of Guillermo del Toro. Eleven-year-old Ofelia comes face to face with the horrors of fascism when she and her pregnant mother are uprooted to the countryside, where her new stepfather, a sadistic captain in General Franco’s army, hunts down Republican guerrillas. The violent reality in which she lives merges seamlessly with a fantastical interior world when Ofelia meets a faun in a decaying labyrinth and is set on a strange, mythic journey that is at once terrifying and beautiful. In his revisiting of this bloody period in Spanish history, del Toro creates a vivid depiction of the monstrosities of war infiltrating a child's imagination and threatening the innocence of youth.<a href="https://boxd.it/rM0m" rel="nofollow">ENYS MEN</a> Enys Men is a mind-bending Cornish folk horror set in 1973 that unfolds on an uninhabited island off the Cornish coast. A wildlife volunteer’s daily observations of a rare flower take a dark turn into the strange and metaphysical, forcing both her and viewers to question what is real and what is a nightmare. Is the landscape not only alive but sentient? Shot by Jenkin on grainy 16mm colour film stock and with his trademark post-synched sound, the form feels both innovative and authentic to the period. Filmed on location around the disused tin mines of West Penwith, it is also an ode to Cornwall’s rich folklore and natural beauty.<a href="https://boxd.it/5tmk" rel="nofollow">A FIELD IN ENGLAND + Q&amp;A </a> Amid the Civil War in 17th-century England, a group of deserters flee from battle through an overgrown field. Captured by an alchemist, the men are forced to help him search to find a hidden treasure that he believes is buried in the field.The men's fear of death, pain and the non-existence of God creates the perfect conditions for hysteria, ignited by eating variously shaped mushrooms sprouting in the soil. Possibly one of Wheatley’s most  unclassifiable features yet, it blends historical drama, 1960s psychedelia and formal experimentation to create a grisly, visceral, occult, monochrome-psychedelic breakdown.<a href="https://boxd.it/4oQW" rel="nofollow">BEN WHEATLEY’S PICK - PENDA’S FEN</a> As well as visiting CULTPLEX for an in person Q+A after the film, Mr Wheatley has kindly curated a screening that will cap off the second evening. Originally shown on BBC1 in 1974 as part of the Play for Today series, the film has rarely been seen since. Penda's Fen has become the stuff of legend, its name invoking the spirit of a time when television had the power to provoke and astound. Penda's Fen offers a powerful portrait of adolescence and religious anguish in rural England.<a href="https://boxd.it/6dIw" rel="nofollow">THE BORDERLANDS + Q&amp;A</a> Say your prayers as writer-director Elliot Goldner’s chiller THE BORDERLAND is set to strike fear into your very soul. This is a terrifying British found footage film that has gone on to become a cult classic. Recently celebrated by Guillermo del Toro, it even made Mark Kermode want to leave the cinema in fear. When frequent strange happenings are reported at a thirteenth century church in rural Devon, a small team of Vatican investigators are sent in to try and demystify the unusual goings on… But what they discover is more disturbing than they could ever imagine. <a href="https://boxd.it/1i1s" rel="nofollow">WITCHFINDER GENERAL</a> Simply one of the most brutal British films of the late 60s, this Tigon-produced Michael Reeves film featuring American horror star Vincent Price and Ian Ogilvy, offers up a maliciously violent polemic about the dangers of baying mobs and propaganda-fuelled cynical opportunists. Witchfinder General is a subversive masterpiece that turns a journeying revenge horror into a genuinely questioning film about the power of belief and the true horrors that lurk in the fields and forests of England. <a href="https://boxd.it/252a" rel="nofollow"> </a> <a href="https://boxd.it/252a" rel="nofollow">ONIBABA</a> Deep in the windswept marshes of war-torn medieval Japan, an impoverished older woman and her daughter-in-law murder lost samurai and sell their belongings for the most meager of sustenance. When a bedraggled neighbor returns from battle, lust, jealousy, and rage threaten to destroy the trio’s tenuous existence, before an ominous, ill-gotten demon mask seals their horrifying fate. Driven by primal emotions, dark eroticism, a frenzied score by Hikaru Hayashi, and stunning images both lyrical and macabre, Kaneto Shindo’s chilling folktale Onibaba conjures a nightmarish vision of humankind’s deepest desires and impulses.

CURSE is our new weekender that delves deep into the chilling and mysterious world of folklore cinema, bringing together the eerie, the mystical, and the macabre from across the globe. We have often wanted to create a programme of films that highlight the universal and timeless nature of folklore stories and CURSE is the result, allowing us to offer our audience a chance to experience both the terror and the beauty of stories passed down through generations! Focused on horror and cult cinema, CURSE explores how ancient myths, legends, and superstitions have shaped storytelling in different cultures through cinema in the modern age.

Taking place from February 28 to March 2, the weekender will kick off with Robin Hardy's 1973 classic The Wicker Man! We’re also super excited to welcome two special guests to the programme: producer Jen Handorf (Prevenge) will be taking part in a special Q+A after a screening of The Borderlands and the incomparable British Director Ben Wheatley will be joining us at our A Field in England screening to discuss his work on the film and some of his other folkloric projects! As well as visiting CULTPLEX for an in person Q+A after the film, Mr Wheatley has kindly curated a screening that will cap off the second evening with Penda’s Fen. 

CURSE is where the ancient stories meet our favourite modern medium; where folklore finds its unsettling place on the silver screen!

Check out the full programme below!

<a href="https://boxd.it/1KnG">THE WICKERMAN</a>
“Flesh to touch...Flesh to burn! Don't keep the Wicker Man waiting!”
The Wickerman has had an enduring fascination for audiences since its release in 1973. A unique and bone-fide horror masterpiece featuring an astounding performance by the legendary Christopher Lee. Director Robin Hardy's atmospheric use of location, unsettling imagery and haunting soundtrack gradually builds to one of the most terrifying and iconic climaxes in modern cinema.

<a href="https://boxd.it/3Ic6">SONG OF THE SEA</a>
Nominated for Academy Award 'Best Animated Feature', the film takes inspiration from the mythological Selkies of Irish folklore, who live as seals in the sea but become humans on land Directed by Tomm Moore (The Secret of Kells, Wolfwalkers). The enchanting Irish animation SONG OF THE SEA tells the story of Ben and his little sister Saoirse – the last Seal-child – who embark on a fantastic journey across a fading world of ancient legend and magic in an attempt to return to their home by the sea. 

<a href="https://boxd.it/28No">PANS LABYRINTH</a>
An Academy Award winning dark fable set five years after the end of the Spanish Civil War, Pan’s Labyrinth encapsulates the rich visual style and genre-defying craft of Guillermo del Toro. Eleven-year-old Ofelia comes face to face with the horrors of fascism when she and her pregnant mother are uprooted to the countryside, where her new stepfather, a sadistic captain in General Franco’s army, hunts down Republican guerrillas. The violent reality in which she lives merges seamlessly with a fantastical interior world when Ofelia meets a faun in a decaying labyrinth and is set on a strange, mythic journey that is at once terrifying and beautiful. In his revisiting of this bloody period in Spanish history, del Toro creates a vivid depiction of the monstrosities of war infiltrating a child's imagination and threatening the innocence of youth.

<a href="https://boxd.it/rM0m">ENYS MEN</a>
Enys Men is a mind-bending Cornish folk horror set in 1973 that unfolds on an uninhabited island off the Cornish coast. A wildlife volunteer’s daily observations of a rare flower take a dark turn into the strange and metaphysical, forcing both her and viewers to question what is real and what is a nightmare. Is the landscape not only alive but sentient? Shot by Jenkin on grainy 16mm colour film stock and with his trademark post-synched sound, the form feels both innovative and authentic to the period. Filmed on location around the disused tin mines of West Penwith, it is also an ode to Cornwall’s rich folklore and natural beauty.

<a href="https://boxd.it/5tmk">A FIELD IN ENGLAND + Q&A </a>
Amid the Civil War in 17th-century England, a group of deserters flee from battle through an overgrown field. Captured by an alchemist, the men are forced to help him search to find a hidden treasure that he believes is buried in the field.The men's fear of death, pain and the non-existence of God creates the perfect conditions for hysteria, ignited by eating variously shaped mushrooms sprouting in the soil. Possibly one of Wheatley’s most  unclassifiable features yet, it blends historical drama, 1960s psychedelia and formal experimentation to create a grisly, visceral, occult, monochrome-psychedelic breakdown.

<a href="https://boxd.it/4oQW">BEN WHEATLEY’S PICK - PENDA’S FEN</a>
As well as visiting CULTPLEX for an in person Q+A after the film, Mr Wheatley has kindly curated a screening that will cap off the second evening. Originally shown on BBC1 in 1974 as part of the Play for Today series, the film has rarely been seen since. Penda's Fen has become the stuff of legend, its name invoking the spirit of a time when television had the power to provoke and astound. Penda's Fen offers a powerful portrait of adolescence and religious anguish in rural England.

<a href="https://boxd.it/6dIw">THE BORDERLANDS + Q&A</a>
Say your prayers as writer-director Elliot Goldner’s chiller THE BORDERLAND is set to strike fear into your very soul. This is a terrifying British found footage film that has gone on to become a cult classic. Recently celebrated by Guillermo del Toro, it even made Mark Kermode want to leave the cinema in fear. When frequent strange happenings are reported at a thirteenth century church in rural Devon, a small team of Vatican investigators are sent in to try and demystify the unusual goings on… But what they discover is more disturbing than they could ever imagine. 

<a href="https://boxd.it/1i1s">WITCHFINDER GENERAL</a>
Simply one of the most brutal British films of the late 60s, this Tigon-produced Michael Reeves film featuring American horror star Vincent Price and Ian Ogilvy, offers up a maliciously violent polemic about the dangers of baying mobs and propaganda-fuelled cynical opportunists. Witchfinder General is a subversive masterpiece that turns a journeying revenge horror into a genuinely questioning film about the power of belief and the true horrors that lurk in the fields and forests of England.
<a href="https://boxd.it/252a"> </a>
<a href="https://boxd.it/252a">ONIBABA</a>
Deep in the windswept marshes of war-torn medieval Japan, an impoverished older woman and her daughter-in-law murder lost samurai and sell their belongings for the most meager of sustenance. When a bedraggled neighbor returns from battle, lust, jealousy, and rage threaten to destroy the trio’s tenuous existence, before an ominous, ill-gotten demon mask seals their horrifying fate. Driven by primal emotions, dark eroticism, a frenzied score by Hikaru Hayashi, and stunning images both lyrical and macabre, Kaneto Shindo’s chilling folktale Onibaba conjures a nightmarish vision of humankind’s deepest desires and impulses.

INTRODUCING...CURSE FOLKLORE FILM FESTIVAL

Guillermo Del Toro is a Mexican filmmaker known for his unique blend of horror, fantasy, and science fiction elements in his movies. He gained recognition with his debut feature film, "<a href="https://boxd.it/1TjS" rel="nofollow">Cronos</a>" (1993), which won the International Critics' Week prize at Cannes. He continued to make a name for himself with "The Devil's Backbone" (2001), "<a href="https://boxd.it/kjMW" rel="nofollow">Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio</a>" (2022), "<a href="https://boxd.it/2cB2" rel="nofollow">Pacific Rim</a>" (2013), "<a href="https://boxd.it/m0HC" rel="nofollow">Nightmare Alley</a>" (2021)", "<a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">Pan's Labyrinth</a>" (2006), and, "<a href="https://boxd.it/dZ5m" rel="nofollow">The Shape of Water</a>" (2017) which won the Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Del Toro's filmography is characterized by his signature dark and visually stunning style, exploring themes of humanity, mortality, and societal issues through his imaginative and often macabre storytelling.Here Are All Guillermo Del Toro Movies Ranked: <a href="https://www.highonfilms.com/guillermo-del-toro-movies-ranked/" rel="nofollow">www.highonfilms.com/guillermo-del-toro-movies-ranked/</a>

Guillermo Del Toro is a Mexican filmmaker known for his unique blend of horror, fantasy, and science fiction elements in his movies. He gained recognition with his debut feature film, "<a href="https://boxd.it/1TjS">Cronos</a>" (1993), which won the International Critics' Week prize at Cannes. He continued to make a name for himself with "The Devil's Backbone" (2001), "<a href="https://boxd.it/kjMW">Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio</a>" (2022), "<a href="https://boxd.it/2cB2">Pacific Rim</a>" (2013), "<a href="https://boxd.it/m0HC">Nightmare Alley</a>" (2021)", "<a href="https://boxd.it/28No">Pan's Labyrinth</a>" (2006), and, "<a href="https://boxd.it/dZ5m">The Shape of Water</a>" (2017) which won the Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Del Toro's filmography is characterized by his signature dark and visually stunning style, exploring themes of humanity, mortality, and societal issues through his imaginative and often macabre storytelling.

Here Are All Guillermo Del Toro Movies Ranked:
https://www.highonfilms.com/guillermo-del-toro-movies-ranked/

All Guillermo Del Toro Movies Ranked

Las Vegas’ only indie film house, storytelling arena, and live music scene presents Monster Mondays Punch Card Promotion, Cinema Classics, New Releases, Summer Favorites, and More in July It’s time to indulge in the ultimate summer movie experience at The Beverly Theater. July is a cinephile's paradise, offering an enticing mix of monster movies, summer blockbusters, new releases, nostalgic favorites, and timeless classics. With a curated lineup of unforgettable cinematic adventures, don’t miss out on the movie magic.Monster Mondays in July – See All Four Get Movie Tickets Free Become a ghoul in good standing with Monster Mondays in July at The Beverly Theater. Beginning Monday, July 10 with “Invasion of Astro Monster,” pick up your punch card and get it punched weekly while enjoying a ghoulish good time. See all four and get free movie tickets every Monday in August.Monday, July 10 “<a href="https://boxd.it/1EXe" rel="nofollow">Invasion of Astro Monster</a>” (1965) Monday, July 17 “<a href="https://boxd.it/2awY" rel="nofollow">Alien</a>” (1979) Monday, July 24 “<a href="https://boxd.it/77xu" rel="nofollow">The Babadook</a>” (2014) Monday, July 31 “<a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">Pan’s Labyrinth</a>” (2006)Cinema Classics – “Midnight Cowboy” Convinced of his irresistible appeal to women, Texas dishwasher Joe Buck (Jon Voight) quits his job and heads for New York City, thinking he'll latch on to some rich dowager. New York, however, is not as hospitable as he imagined, and Joe soon finds himself living in an abandoned building with a Dickensian layabout named Enrico "Ratso" Rizzo (Dustin Hoffman). The two form a rough alliance, and together they kick-start Joe's hustling career just as Ratso's health begins to deteriorate. Incredibly controversial upon its release, it was rated X and the filmmakers refused to make edits to change its rating - it went on to win Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Writing (by Waldo Salt). Not as shocking today but still as poetic and powerful.  Also see the new documentary about the film and its times, playing at The Beverly: Desperate Souls, Dark City and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy.July 6 – 11 “<a href="https://boxd.it/25Hi" rel="nofollow">Midnight Cowboy</a>” July 6 – 13 “<a href="https://boxd.it/BZfY" rel="nofollow">Desperate Souls, Dark City and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy</a>”Summer Cinema – Sizzling on Screen Although the sunny summer weather may last only a few months, summer cinema lasts forever. Whether looking for an old favorite comedy, drama, or one of the top summer movies of all time, The Beverly Theater makes summer movies sizzle.July 12  “<a href="https://boxd.it/29gA" rel="nofollow">Do The Right Thing</a>” July 13 – 14 “<a href="https://boxd.it/2a5e" rel="nofollow">Jaws</a>” (Just in time for Shark Week – See the movie that started it all.) July 13 “<a href="https://boxd.it/1Ylk" rel="nofollow">Dazed and Confused</a>” July 19 “<a href="https://boxd.it/20f4" rel="nofollow">Three Amigos</a>” July 20 “<a href="https://boxd.it/1QnM" rel="nofollow">Fast Times at Ridgemont High</a>”New Titles Make a Run at The Beverly Theater The movie that started it all when it was screened during the grand opening of The Beverly Theater, “Past Lives” is a Korean romance film created by writer-director Celine Song, starring Greta Lee and Teo Yoo. Widely lauded as one of the best films of the year, the indie film is produced by Killer Films and A24 Films and centers on Nora and Hae Sung, two deeply connected childhood friends, who are wrested apart after Nora’s family emigrated from South Korea. Two decades later, they are reunited in New York for one fateful week as they confront notions of destiny, love, and the choices that make a life.July 14-20 “Past Lives” Directed by Vadim Perelman, “Persian Lessons” is set in occupied France, 1942. Gilles (Nahuel Pérez Biscayart) is arrested by SS soldiers alongside other Jews and sent to a camp in Germany. En route to the camp, he narrowly avoids sudden execution by swearing to the guards that he is not Jewish, but Persian. This lie temporarily saves him, as one of the soldiers’ superior officers is “looking for a Persian,” and has promised additional rations to the soldier who delivers.

Las Vegas’ only indie film house, storytelling arena, and live music scene presents Monster Mondays Punch Card Promotion, Cinema Classics, New Releases, Summer Favorites, and More in July
It’s time to indulge in the ultimate summer movie experience at The Beverly Theater. July is a cinephile's paradise, offering an enticing mix of monster movies, summer blockbusters, new releases, nostalgic favorites, and timeless classics. With a curated lineup of unforgettable cinematic adventures, don’t miss out on the movie magic.

Monster Mondays in July – See All Four Get Movie Tickets Free
Become a ghoul in good standing with Monster Mondays in July at The Beverly Theater. Beginning Monday, July 10 with “Invasion of Astro Monster,” pick up your punch card and get it punched weekly while enjoying a ghoulish good time. See all four and get free movie tickets every Monday in August.

Monday, July 10 “<a href="https://boxd.it/1EXe">Invasion of Astro Monster</a>” (1965)
Monday, July 17 “<a href="https://boxd.it/2awY">Alien</a>” (1979)
Monday, July 24 “<a href="https://boxd.it/77xu">The Babadook</a>” (2014)
Monday, July 31 “<a href="https://boxd.it/28No">Pan’s Labyrinth</a>” (2006)

Cinema Classics – “Midnight Cowboy”
Convinced of his irresistible appeal to women, Texas dishwasher Joe Buck (Jon Voight) quits his job and heads for New York City, thinking he'll latch on to some rich dowager. New York, however, is not as hospitable as he imagined, and Joe soon finds himself living in an abandoned building with a Dickensian layabout named Enrico "Ratso" Rizzo (Dustin Hoffman). The two form a rough alliance, and together they kick-start Joe's hustling career just as Ratso's health begins to deteriorate. Incredibly controversial upon its release, it was rated X and the filmmakers refused to make edits to change its rating - it went on to win Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Writing (by Waldo Salt). Not as shocking today but still as poetic and powerful. 
Also see the new documentary about the film and its times, playing at The Beverly: Desperate Souls, Dark City and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy.

July 6 – 11 “<a href="https://boxd.it/25Hi">Midnight Cowboy</a>”
July 6 – 13 “<a href="https://boxd.it/BZfY">Desperate Souls, Dark City and the Legend of Midnight Cowboy</a>”

Summer Cinema – Sizzling on Screen
Although the sunny summer weather may last only a few months, summer cinema lasts forever. Whether looking for an old favorite comedy, drama, or one of the top summer movies of all time, The Beverly Theater makes summer movies sizzle.

July 12  “<a href="https://boxd.it/29gA">Do The Right Thing</a>”
July 13 – 14 “<a href="https://boxd.it/2a5e">Jaws</a>” (Just in time for Shark Week – See the movie that started it all.)
July 13 “<a href="https://boxd.it/1Ylk">Dazed and Confused</a>”
July 19 “<a href="https://boxd.it/20f4">Three Amigos</a>”
July 20 “<a href="https://boxd.it/1QnM">Fast Times at Ridgemont High</a>”

New Titles Make a Run at The Beverly Theater
The movie that started it all when it was screened during the grand opening of The Beverly Theater, “Past Lives” is a Korean romance film created by writer-director Celine Song, starring Greta Lee and Teo Yoo. Widely lauded as one of the best films of the year, the indie film is produced by Killer Films and A24 Films and centers on Nora and Hae Sung, two deeply connected childhood friends, who are wrested apart after Nora’s family emigrated from South Korea. Two decades later, they are reunited in New York for one fateful week as they confront notions of destiny, love, and the choices that make a life.

July 14-20 “Past Lives”
Directed by Vadim Perelman, “Persian Lessons” is set in occupied France, 1942. Gilles (Nahuel Pérez Biscayart) is arrested by SS soldiers alongside other Jews and sent to a camp in Germany. En route to the camp, he narrowly avoids sudden execution by swearing to the guards that he is not Jewish, but Persian. This lie temporarily saves him, as one of the soldiers’ superior officers is “looking for a Persian,” and has promised additional rations to the soldier who delivers.

Monster Mondays 2023

<blockquote>"Oh, Canada is this magical land of illegal whiskey and great animation."</blockquote>Acclaimed filmmaker Guillermo del Toro (<a href="https://boxd.it/dZ5m" rel="nofollow">The Shape of Water</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">Pan's Labyrinth</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/kjMW" rel="nofollow">Pinocchio</a>) joined us at #TIFF23 to share his love of experimental Canadian film through the works of Norman McLaren (<a href="https://boxd.it/BtS" rel="nofollow">Neighbours</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/4dP4" rel="nofollow">Duo</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/4cMo" rel="nofollow">Begone Dull Care</a>) and the 'madness' of David Cronenberg (<a href="https://boxd.it/1YIe" rel="nofollow">The Fly</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/29uC" rel="nofollow">Videodrome</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/uTuY" rel="nofollow">Crimes of the Future</a>).

<blockquote>"Oh, Canada is this magical land of illegal whiskey and great animation."</blockquote>

Acclaimed filmmaker Guillermo del Toro (<a href="https://boxd.it/dZ5m">The Shape of Water</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/28No">Pan's Labyrinth</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/kjMW">Pinocchio</a>) joined us at #TIFF23 to share his love of experimental Canadian film through the works of Norman McLaren (<a href="https://boxd.it/BtS">Neighbours</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/4dP4">Duo</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/4cMo">Begone Dull Care</a>) and the 'madness' of David Cronenberg (<a href="https://boxd.it/1YIe">The Fly</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/29uC">Videodrome</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/uTuY">Crimes of the Future</a>).

Guillermo del Toro on His Love for Canadian Cinema

Dylan Clark's <a href="https://youtu.be/BI9fKfX5V68" rel="nofollow">Portrait of God</a> is now streaming on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@dylanclark" rel="nofollow">his YouTube channel</a>.In the film<blockquote>A religious girl prepares a presentation about a painting titled "Portrait of God". What she sees challenges her beliefs.</blockquote>No genre is as filmmaker friendly as horror. The demand is high, the cost is low, and the community is electric. What more can you ask for as an independent creative? What's perhaps most exciting though is that the craving for horror runs deep. All the way down to the micro-budget short film on YouTube. Amazingly, these projects can lead to feature films at the studio level– a testament to the fact that horror thrives on fresh ideas rather than only franchise or star power. Look no further than <a href="https://letterboxd.com/film/lights-out-2016/" rel="nofollow">LIGHTS OUT</a>, <a href="https://letterboxd.com/film/come-play/" rel="nofollow">COME PLAY</a>, and, most recently, <a href="https://letterboxd.com/film/smile-2022/" rel="nofollow">SMILE</a>.When it comes to my work as a short horror filmmaker, there are a number of feature films highlighted below that have inspired me. But when <a href="http://boxd.it/1622F" rel="nofollow">Brett</a> gave me the opportunity to write this, I knew I wanted to spotlight the short horror film community as well. In the latter half of this story, I’ll explore some of the short films that have had the most significant impact on me as a filmmaker.<blockquote>Check out the full list on Horrorville <a href="https://boxd.it/m9L4m" rel="nofollow">here</a>.</blockquote><a href="https://boxd.it/l8QA" rel="nofollow">Saint Maud</a> My most recent short, PORTRAIT OF GOD, owes its inspiration to several films, but perhaps most of all to Rose Glass’ directorial debut SAINT MAUD—what a sad, unsettling journey. Moyford Clark brings such a uniquely troubling presence to Maud. Her tragic relationship with God and the way it affects her struggle for real connection is so well realized. And that ending… the kind of image that burns itself into your head and sticks around. It recontextualizes everything preceding in the most horrific way possible. I wanted to capture that feeling with the final few frames of Portrait.<a href="https://boxd.it/1Zpi" rel="nofollow">Hellraiser</a> / <a href="https://boxd.it/1ZfW" rel="nofollow">Hellbound:</a><a href="https://boxd.it/1ZfW" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/1ZfW" rel="nofollow">Hellraiser II</a> I'm lumping these together because Hellraiser II feels like such an immediate sequel to the original that they're effectively conjoined in my head. The first occupies that more intimate home setting while the second brings most of the action into the Labyrinth itself. An awesome one-two punch. What I love most about this franchise is just how fantastical and cosmic it leans– particularly in Hellraiser II. “Demons to some, angels to others” is the line that captures the Cenobites' uniquely haunting brand of terror to me. A great concept, with iconic antagonists, and a rather underappreciated final girl in Kirsty. I love writing horror that leans heavily into the fantastical and I owe a large part of that love to these films.<a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">Pan's Labyrinth</a> On the topic of fantastical horror, del Toro has been an inspiration ever since I saw PAN'S LABYRINTH for the first time. What can I write about del Toro that hasn’t been written about ad nauseam? I'll spare the gush session as I imagine most reading this feel similarly. Del Toro’s projects, whether he's directing or producing, frequently explore the dark fairy tale space, which I adore. The simplicity– or even comfortability of that framework, corrupted by whatever nightmarish twist he puts on it, especially in the visual department, is just a formula that I can’t get enough of. PAN’S LABYRINTH fires on all cylinders in that department and does so with so much heart.<a href="https://boxd.it/9yzm" rel="nofollow">Annihilation</a> While I adore fantastical and religious horror, sci-fi horror can scratch a very similar itch. Alex Garland’s sci-fi outings accomplish that. It’s the alien, treated like an incomprehensible higher power that works so well for me. Vicious horror villains like Freddy, Chucky, or Pennywise are great, but there’s something so chilling about terrifying antagonists with unclear intentions. It’s hard to tell if the alien even knows why it’s here and if it’s aware of the carnage it’s incidentally causing. <a href="https://boxd.it/26ua" rel="nofollow">The Blair Witch Project</a> What Eduardo Sánchez and Daniel Myrick pulled off with THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT is nothing short of astounding. How insane is it that you can run into the woods with some friends, actors, and a camera and spawn a multi-million dollar franchise? It’s a testament to the horror genre's unique ability to transform limitations into strengths and the fun and creativity that can go into the marketing for these films. That doesn’t mean it’s easy though. The countless follow-up found footage horror films have proven as much. As a young filmmaker growing up in a wooded area, Blair Witch proved that the only thing standing in my way was a great idea and the drive to see it through. In fact, Blair Witch specifically inspired me to make my first horror short back in elementary school. In middle school, I even PA'd for a film festival just because I knew Eduardo Sánchez would be a guest there. It’s incredible that after all these years, after seeing this film many times, it still manages to inspire and deeply unsettle me.<a href="https://boxd.it/4W9M" rel="nofollow">Oculus</a> Flanagan is such a prolific titan in this genre now that it's hard to believe his first studio horror film came out less than ten years ago. The DNA of his future projects is well embedded in his earlier films. The mirror in OCULUS is a great hook, but Flanagan and cowriters, Jeff Howard, and Jeff Seidman focus this film so clearly on the family, which works wonderfully and brings it all together. Flanagan’s work, specifically the heart he puts into his stories, is something I've found refreshing and hugely inspiring. What continues to impress me with each rewatch of OCULUS is the parallel flashback story and how it’s integrated and woven into the narrative. Oculus was also based on Flanagan’s short, which is great as well and can be easily found online. That serves as a nice transition to the short film side of things!<a href="https://boxd.it/xNxo" rel="nofollow">Ignore It</a> I should note that I've had the pleasure of working with Sam Evenson on a project, but I saw his work before meeting him and that has no bearing on these thoughts. The core premise here (by Jeff Speziale) is a standout and Sam showcases its incredible potential for expansion. Watching this family try to casually eat dinner as this entity terrorizes them is horror gold. The child performances in particular are fantastic and Sam holds on certain beats for a glorious amount of time, really pulling as much out of them as possible. Like Oculus earlier on this list, it’s a great choice to center this premise around a family. The invasion of this creature into that familiar, everyday environment with loved ones is perfect.<a href="https://boxd.it/lXsa" rel="nofollow">Other Side of the Box</a> OTHER SIDE OF THE BOX is a great showcase for the potential of the short horror format. Like LIGHTS OUT, it rides on a creative, terrifying premise and pulls it as far as it can in a short runtime. What makes this stand out further is that director Caleb J Phillips takes the time for us to learn a bit about these central protagonists. They aren't just cannon fodder for the premise, which is typically the case for short horror projects. He introduces us to them, then lets us watch as he psychologically tortures them. It's fun, clever, and ends on a silent climactic beat that packs a huge punch.<a href="https://boxd.it/dgTc" rel="nofollow">Attic Panic</a> David F. Sandberg's footprint on the short horror community is undeniable. LIGHTS OUT is a classic, but ATTIC PANIC is another one of my favorites from him. Even more than LIGHTS OUT, ATTIC PANIC is a fantastic showcase of how to set up and pay off a scare. The film is three minutes and features not one, but two great payoffs. Like some of the other films I’ve mentioned, it also ends with a silent scare. Jump scares can be great, but there’s something about these understated endings, leaving the protagonist in a no-win scenario that I find even more satisfying. A jump scare will leave the audience in recovery, but these kinds of endings leave them in suspense– left to fill the blank space with their own morbid ideas.<a href="https://boxd.it/tLse" rel="nofollow">You're Dead Hélène</a> YOU'RE DEAD HÉLÈNE is the short I was introduced to most recently on this list. It's a horror/rom-com hybrid that’s as frightening as it is heartbreaking and funny. That cross-pollination of emotions is always a blast in the horror genre and this one pulls it off perfectly. It’s rare for something like this to succeed in each genre department it's operating in. EVIL DEAD 2 comes to mind as something as scary as it is hilarious, so it's awesome to see that Raimi is on board as a producer for the feature adaptation of this project. Little doubt that the director, Michiel Blanchart will crush it if this short is any indication.<a href="https://boxd.it/iy9Q" rel="nofollow">Milk</a> All of Santiago Menghini's short films are incredibly effective and demand to be seen by anyone reading this list. MILK in particular has stuck with me. It’s the kind of film that I've rewatched several times and found more to appreciate with each viewing. He weaponizes the shadows but doesn’t shy away from flat-out showing you the monster hiding within. It's a bold move and one that pays off in my book. Menghini has such an attention to detail and establishes a flawless sense of dread. It’s consistent in his other shorts and something he’s uniquely good at. Simply and honestly put, MILK is one of the most effective short films I've ever seen. Can’t wait to see more projects from Menghini.I wanted to take the time to highlight some of these shorts because there's an entire sub-community of short horror creators sharing their work online, inspiring and supporting each other. It’s a microcosm of the genre and an awesome place to operate in. Aaron Fradkin, Cameron Gallagher, Julian Terry, Neil Stevens, Ryan Godoy, Spencer Keller, Tracy Kleeman, Victoria Fratz, Vincent Dormani– these are just a few of the incredible folks putting their work out there. It’s an exciting time to be a horror fan and if some of the films on this list are any indication, it may not be long before these guys bring their work to the big screen. Check their work out early! Who knows, maybe they’ll inspire you to join the club too.----- Dylan Clark is a young writer and director who's gained a following online in the YouTube horror space. His latest, <a href="https://boxd.it/CSom" rel="nofollow">PORTRAIT OF GOD</a>, was released in 2022 to a particularly warm reception and attention. His short films gravitate towards the intersection of horror with religion and/or technology. Dylan is an undergraduate senior at Ithaca College. A new film, his thesis for the undergraduate program titled REMAINS, will be released later this year during its festival run. You can follow him on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/dylanmcclarkus" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/mcclarkusjfox" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLvcw3m1dgjm6wDCXhlXo7g" rel="nofollow">YouTube</a>.

Dylan Clark's <a href="https://youtu.be/BI9fKfX5V68">Portrait of God</a> is now streaming on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@dylanclark">his YouTube channel</a>.

In the film
<blockquote>A religious girl prepares a presentation about a painting titled "Portrait of God". What she sees challenges her beliefs.</blockquote>

No genre is as filmmaker friendly as horror. The demand is high, the cost is low, and the community is electric. What more can you ask for as an independent creative? What's perhaps most exciting though is that the craving for horror runs deep. All the way down to the micro-budget short film on YouTube. Amazingly, these projects can lead to feature films at the studio level– a testament to the fact that horror thrives on fresh ideas rather than only franchise or star power. Look no further than <a href="https://letterboxd.com/film/lights-out-2016/">LIGHTS OUT</a>, <a href="https://letterboxd.com/film/come-play/">COME PLAY</a>, and, most recently, <a href="https://letterboxd.com/film/smile-2022/">SMILE</a>.

When it comes to my work as a short horror filmmaker, there are a number of feature films highlighted below that have inspired me. But when <a href="http://boxd.it/1622F">Brett</a> gave me the opportunity to write this, I knew I wanted to spotlight the short horror film community as well. In the latter half of this story, I’ll explore some of the short films that have had the most significant impact on me as a filmmaker.

<blockquote>Check out the full list on Horrorville <a href="https://boxd.it/m9L4m">here</a>.</blockquote>

<a href="https://boxd.it/l8QA">Saint Maud</a>
My most recent short, PORTRAIT OF GOD, owes its inspiration to several films, but perhaps most of all to Rose Glass’ directorial debut SAINT MAUD—what a sad, unsettling journey. Moyford Clark brings such a uniquely troubling presence to Maud. Her tragic relationship with God and the way it affects her struggle for real connection is so well realized. And that ending… the kind of image that burns itself into your head and sticks around. It recontextualizes everything preceding in the most horrific way possible. I wanted to capture that feeling with the final few frames of Portrait.

<a href="https://boxd.it/1Zpi">Hellraiser</a> / <a href="https://boxd.it/1ZfW">Hellbound:</a><a href="https://boxd.it/1ZfW"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/1ZfW">Hellraiser II</a>
I'm lumping these together because Hellraiser II feels like such an immediate sequel to the original that they're effectively conjoined in my head. The first occupies that more intimate home setting while the second brings most of the action into the Labyrinth itself. An awesome one-two punch. What I love most about this franchise is just how fantastical and cosmic it leans– particularly in Hellraiser II. “Demons to some, angels to others” is the line that captures the Cenobites' uniquely haunting brand of terror to me. A great concept, with iconic antagonists, and a rather underappreciated final girl in Kirsty. I love writing horror that leans heavily into the fantastical and I owe a large part of that love to these films.

<a href="https://boxd.it/28No">Pan's Labyrinth</a>
On the topic of fantastical horror, del Toro has been an inspiration ever since I saw PAN'S LABYRINTH for the first time. What can I write about del Toro that hasn’t been written about ad nauseam? I'll spare the gush session as I imagine most reading this feel similarly. Del Toro’s projects, whether he's directing or producing, frequently explore the dark fairy tale space, which I adore. The simplicity– or even comfortability of that framework, corrupted by whatever nightmarish twist he puts on it, especially in the visual department, is just a formula that I can’t get enough of. PAN’S LABYRINTH fires on all cylinders in that department and does so with so much heart.

<a href="https://boxd.it/9yzm">Annihilation</a>
While I adore fantastical and religious horror, sci-fi horror can scratch a very similar itch. Alex Garland’s sci-fi outings accomplish that. It’s the alien, treated like an incomprehensible higher power that works so well for me. Vicious horror villains like Freddy, Chucky, or Pennywise are great, but there’s something so chilling about terrifying antagonists with unclear intentions. It’s hard to tell if the alien even knows why it’s here and if it’s aware of the carnage it’s incidentally causing. 

<a href="https://boxd.it/26ua">The Blair Witch Project</a>
What Eduardo Sánchez and Daniel Myrick pulled off with THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT is nothing short of astounding. How insane is it that you can run into the woods with some friends, actors, and a camera and spawn a multi-million dollar franchise? It’s a testament to the horror genre's unique ability to transform limitations into strengths and the fun and creativity that can go into the marketing for these films. That doesn’t mean it’s easy though. The countless follow-up found footage horror films have proven as much. As a young filmmaker growing up in a wooded area, Blair Witch proved that the only thing standing in my way was a great idea and the drive to see it through. In fact, Blair Witch specifically inspired me to make my first horror short back in elementary school. In middle school, I even PA'd for a film festival just because I knew Eduardo Sánchez would be a guest there. It’s incredible that after all these years, after seeing this film many times, it still manages to inspire and deeply unsettle me.

<a href="https://boxd.it/4W9M">Oculus</a>
Flanagan is such a prolific titan in this genre now that it's hard to believe his first studio horror film came out less than ten years ago. The DNA of his future projects is well embedded in his earlier films. The mirror in OCULUS is a great hook, but Flanagan and cowriters, Jeff Howard, and Jeff Seidman focus this film so clearly on the family, which works wonderfully and brings it all together. Flanagan’s work, specifically the heart he puts into his stories, is something I've found refreshing and hugely inspiring. What continues to impress me with each rewatch of OCULUS is the parallel flashback story and how it’s integrated and woven into the narrative. Oculus was also based on Flanagan’s short, which is great as well and can be easily found online. 

That serves as a nice transition to the short film side of things!

<a href="https://boxd.it/xNxo">Ignore It</a>
I should note that I've had the pleasure of working with Sam Evenson on a project, but I saw his work before meeting him and that has no bearing on these thoughts. The core premise here (by Jeff Speziale) is a standout and Sam showcases its incredible potential for expansion. Watching this family try to casually eat dinner as this entity terrorizes them is horror gold. The child performances in particular are fantastic and Sam holds on certain beats for a glorious amount of time, really pulling as much out of them as possible. Like Oculus earlier on this list, it’s a great choice to center this premise around a family. The invasion of this creature into that familiar, everyday environment with loved ones is perfect.

<a href="https://boxd.it/lXsa">Other Side of the Box</a>
OTHER SIDE OF THE BOX is a great showcase for the potential of the short horror format. Like LIGHTS OUT, it rides on a creative, terrifying premise and pulls it as far as it can in a short runtime. What makes this stand out further is that director Caleb J Phillips takes the time for us to learn a bit about these central protagonists. They aren't just cannon fodder for the premise, which is typically the case for short horror projects. He introduces us to them, then lets us watch as he psychologically tortures them. It's fun, clever, and ends on a silent climactic beat that packs a huge punch.

<a href="https://boxd.it/dgTc">Attic Panic</a>
David F. Sandberg's footprint on the short horror community is undeniable. LIGHTS OUT is a classic, but ATTIC PANIC is another one of my favorites from him. Even more than LIGHTS OUT, ATTIC PANIC is a fantastic showcase of how to set up and pay off a scare. The film is three minutes and features not one, but two great payoffs. Like some of the other films I’ve mentioned, it also ends with a silent scare. Jump scares can be great, but there’s something about these understated endings, leaving the protagonist in a no-win scenario that I find even more satisfying. A jump scare will leave the audience in recovery, but these kinds of endings leave them in suspense– left to fill the blank space with their own morbid ideas.

<a href="https://boxd.it/tLse">You're Dead Hélène</a>
YOU'RE DEAD HÉLÈNE is the short I was introduced to most recently on this list. It's a horror/rom-com hybrid that’s as frightening as it is heartbreaking and funny. That cross-pollination of emotions is always a blast in the horror genre and this one pulls it off perfectly. It’s rare for something like this to succeed in each genre department it's operating in. EVIL DEAD 2 comes to mind as something as scary as it is hilarious, so it's awesome to see that Raimi is on board as a producer for the feature adaptation of this project. Little doubt that the director, Michiel Blanchart will crush it if this short is any indication.

<a href="https://boxd.it/iy9Q">Milk</a>
All of Santiago Menghini's short films are incredibly effective and demand to be seen by anyone reading this list. MILK in particular has stuck with me. It’s the kind of film that I've rewatched several times and found more to appreciate with each viewing. He weaponizes the shadows but doesn’t shy away from flat-out showing you the monster hiding within. It's a bold move and one that pays off in my book. Menghini has such an attention to detail and establishes a flawless sense of dread. It’s consistent in his other shorts and something he’s uniquely good at. Simply and honestly put, MILK is one of the most effective short films I've ever seen. Can’t wait to see more projects from Menghini.

I wanted to take the time to highlight some of these shorts because there's an entire sub-community of short horror creators sharing their work online, inspiring and supporting each other. It’s a microcosm of the genre and an awesome place to operate in. Aaron Fradkin, Cameron Gallagher, Julian Terry, Neil Stevens, Ryan Godoy, Spencer Keller, Tracy Kleeman, Victoria Fratz, Vincent Dormani– these are just a few of the incredible folks putting their work out there. It’s an exciting time to be a horror fan and if some of the films on this list are any indication, it may not be long before these guys bring their work to the big screen. Check their work out early! Who knows, maybe they’ll inspire you to join the club too.

-----
Dylan Clark is a young writer and director who's gained a following online in the YouTube horror space. His latest, <a href="https://boxd.it/CSom">PORTRAIT OF GOD</a>, was released in 2022 to a particularly warm reception and attention. His short films gravitate towards the intersection of horror with religion and/or technology. Dylan is an undergraduate senior at Ithaca College. A new film, his thesis for the undergraduate program titled REMAINS, will be released later this year during its festival run. You can follow him on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/dylanmcclarkus">Instagram</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/mcclarkusjfox">Twitter</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLvcw3m1dgjm6wDCXhlXo7g">YouTube</a>.

The films that influenced 'Portrait of God' and other horror shorts by Dylan Clark

Hello! I wrote a book. The book is called <a href="https://zandoprojects.com/books/monstrilio/" rel="nofollow">Monstrilio</a>. It’s about a mother who cuts a piece of lung from her dead son; she feeds the lung, and the lung becomes a monster. There’s horror in it — we’re in Horrorville! There’s also grief, love, family, sex, hairiness, fangs, and queerness. I love films. Horror films inhabit a cozy space in the wicked cabinets of my heart. As I wrote <a href="https://zandoprojects.com/books/monstrilio/" rel="nofollow">Monstrilio</a>, many horror films crawled out of their cabinets, crisp, long, bristly legs first, and shared their stories.<blockquote>Check out the full list on Horrorville <a href="https://boxd.it/lwOx4" rel="nofollow">here</a>.</blockquote><a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">Pan’s Labyrinth</a> by Guillermo del Toro Amid the horrors of Francoist Spain, Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) finds respite in a fantastic world with a faun as her guide, and though there are horrors in this world too, Ofelia meets amazing creatures both friendly and threatening. The creation of a parallel world in order to understand (and survive!) the “real” one is a scheme that fascinates me. It allows for the experience of terror, joy, anger, frustration, and love to come alive in a fleshy, visceral manner. Such creatures conjure these emotions with only one glimpse at their scandalously magnificent bodies. These creatures threaten, can be talked with, learned from, destroyed or, if one is lucky, embraced. I knew I wanted Monstrilio, the novel’s eponymous little monster, to live in this realm of embodied emotion. Guillermo del Toro’s creatures have continuously tickled my dreams in delighted awe.<a href="https://boxd.it/1YIe" rel="nofollow">The Fly</a> by David Cronenberg More monsters! I adore monsters. I love when we get the perspective of a monster, learn what is going on in its mind. We get to experience the tension sizzling between its monstrosity and its power, its need for love, and its desire to be itself. Even after Seth (a gorgeously twitchy Jeff Goldblum) realizes he has spliced his genetic makeup with a fly, he tries to take advantage of and cherish what he’s become. He climbs walls. He’s super strong. He’s extra limber and fast. For a while, before he starts seriously decomposing (or, rather, losing his human parts to turn more fully into Brundlefly) he refuses to see himself as “wrong.” He believes he’s created, in himself, something new and better. It is in these moments of teetering self-acceptance that I find most inspiration. Is a monster created by the prejudice of others, of oneself, or is there truly something inherently monstrous, an ingredient which is unalienable monster? — Bonus echo! There’s a scene when Ronnie (Geena Davis) tells Seth that a test revealed that the coarse hairs she cut from him are non-human. In Monstrilio, Monstrilio’s hairs, too, are deemed non-human.<a href="https://boxd.it/1Qr0" rel="nofollow">Let the Right One In</a> by Tomas Alfredson An exquisite tale of friendship where two kids bond through a relationship forged in otherness. Bloody, violent, and sometimes cruel, it is their love (a huge, tender lump of love) that prevails. When writing Monstrilio, I kept coming back to such a lump of love and the tender ties that bind it. Monstrilio revels in otherness, his shape, horrific or otherwise, and the love that it takes to embrace him.<a href="https://boxd.it/hNVe" rel="nofollow">Hereditary</a> by Ari Aster Annie’s monologue spooked me in a way that the rest of the film couldn’t. Goosebumps! Not that I wasn’t squealingly scared by what followed, but there was such pain, anger, and despair in Annie (the always stupendous Toni Collette), her voice scratching its way out with nails sharp and splintered, that I couldn’t but want to delve into that kind of horror, the kind of horror that lodges, teeth first, inside. I needed to explore it, peel it apart, and see what would come out. (Hint: someone hungry, furry and fangy.)<a href="https://boxd.it/77xu" rel="nofollow">The Babadook</a> by Jennifer Kent This movie flaunts a dapper, top-hatted monster of such awesomeness (those book illustrations!), it’s hard not to want more of him. The movie’s engine, however, is Amelia’s grief, so potent her eyes cannot fully open or her lips attempt a smile. On top of her grief (and, evidently, because of it) she can’t handle her over-eager, screeching, monster-seeing son. She also suffers from insomnia. And a toothache. It’s all too much for Amelia (the terrific Essie Davies): shadows are constantly eating her, she’s half-asleep, her voice is a twitter, and her house is doomingly gray. And all of this is even before Mr. Babadook shows up! Grief is the Babadook and the Babadook is grief. I love this idea. I love stories in which people’s relationships to their monsters are layered. There’s horror, of course, but also a much needed symbiosis, a release, a tangibility given to something that we may feel only lives in our heads. Monstrilio is also inspired by the concept of a “grief creature:” a feeling so awful and overwhelming it gains a life of its own. And with its own life, I like to believe, the creature becomes someone that should be cared for, or at least, seen. It is perfectly fitting, too, that the Babadook became a gay meme icon for a while. I like to think it is his otherness that propelled him to such status. And not only his otherness, but an otherness allowed to exist, to be cared for even if it’s in a basement. His otherness and, of course, his top hat.----- Gerardo Sámano Córdova is a writer and artist from Mexico City, where he currently resides. He holds an MFA in Fiction from the University of Michigan. He has studied with Alexander Chee at Bread Loaf as a work/study scholar, and with Garth Greenwell at Tin House. His work has appeared in Ninth Letter, Passages North, and Chicago Quarterly Review, and is forthcoming in The Common.  You can follow him on both <a href="http://instagram.com/samanito" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a> and <a href="http://twitter.com/samanito" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a>.

Hello! I wrote a book. The book is called <a href="https://zandoprojects.com/books/monstrilio/">Monstrilio</a>. It’s about a mother who cuts a piece of lung from her dead son; she feeds the lung, and the lung becomes a monster. There’s horror in it — we’re in Horrorville! There’s also grief, love, family, sex, hairiness, fangs, and queerness. I love films. Horror films inhabit a cozy space in the wicked cabinets of my heart. As I wrote <a href="https://zandoprojects.com/books/monstrilio/">Monstrilio</a>, many horror films crawled out of their cabinets, crisp, long, bristly legs first, and shared their stories.

<blockquote>Check out the full list on Horrorville <a href="https://boxd.it/lwOx4">here</a>.</blockquote>

<a href="https://boxd.it/28No">Pan’s Labyrinth</a> by Guillermo del Toro
Amid the horrors of Francoist Spain, Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) finds respite in a fantastic world with a faun as her guide, and though there are horrors in this world too, Ofelia meets amazing creatures both friendly and threatening. The creation of a parallel world in order to understand (and survive!) the “real” one is a scheme that fascinates me. It allows for the experience of terror, joy, anger, frustration, and love to come alive in a fleshy, visceral manner. Such creatures conjure these emotions with only one glimpse at their scandalously magnificent bodies. These creatures threaten, can be talked with, learned from, destroyed or, if one is lucky, embraced. I knew I wanted Monstrilio, the novel’s eponymous little monster, to live in this realm of embodied emotion. Guillermo del Toro’s creatures have continuously tickled my dreams in delighted awe.

<a href="https://boxd.it/1YIe">The Fly</a> by David Cronenberg 
More monsters! I adore monsters. I love when we get the perspective of a monster, learn what is going on in its mind. We get to experience the tension sizzling between its monstrosity and its power, its need for love, and its desire to be itself. Even after Seth (a gorgeously twitchy Jeff Goldblum) realizes he has spliced his genetic makeup with a fly, he tries to take advantage of and cherish what he’s become. He climbs walls. He’s super strong. He’s extra limber and fast. For a while, before he starts seriously decomposing (or, rather, losing his human parts to turn more fully into Brundlefly) he refuses to see himself as “wrong.” He believes he’s created, in himself, something new and better. It is in these moments of teetering self-acceptance that I find most inspiration. Is a monster created by the prejudice of others, of oneself, or is there truly something inherently monstrous, an ingredient which is unalienable monster? — Bonus echo! There’s a scene when Ronnie (Geena Davis) tells Seth that a test revealed that the coarse hairs she cut from him are non-human. In Monstrilio, Monstrilio’s hairs, too, are deemed non-human.

<a href="https://boxd.it/1Qr0">Let the Right One In</a> by Tomas Alfredson
An exquisite tale of friendship where two kids bond through a relationship forged in otherness. Bloody, violent, and sometimes cruel, it is their love (a huge, tender lump of love) that prevails. When writing Monstrilio, I kept coming back to such a lump of love and the tender ties that bind it. Monstrilio revels in otherness, his shape, horrific or otherwise, and the love that it takes to embrace him.

<a href="https://boxd.it/hNVe">Hereditary</a> by Ari Aster
Annie’s monologue spooked me in a way that the rest of the film couldn’t. Goosebumps! Not that I wasn’t squealingly scared by what followed, but there was such pain, anger, and despair in Annie (the always stupendous Toni Collette), her voice scratching its way out with nails sharp and splintered, that I couldn’t but want to delve into that kind of horror, the kind of horror that lodges, teeth first, inside. I needed to explore it, peel it apart, and see what would come out. (Hint: someone hungry, furry and fangy.)

<a href="https://boxd.it/77xu">The Babadook</a> by Jennifer Kent
This movie flaunts a dapper, top-hatted monster of such awesomeness (those book illustrations!), it’s hard not to want more of him. The movie’s engine, however, is Amelia’s grief, so potent her eyes cannot fully open or her lips attempt a smile. On top of her grief (and, evidently, because of it) she can’t handle her over-eager, screeching, monster-seeing son. She also suffers from insomnia. And a toothache. It’s all too much for Amelia (the terrific Essie Davies): shadows are constantly eating her, she’s half-asleep, her voice is a twitter, and her house is doomingly gray. And all of this is even before Mr. Babadook shows up! Grief is the Babadook and the Babadook is grief. I love this idea. I love stories in which people’s relationships to their monsters are layered. There’s horror, of course, but also a much needed symbiosis, a release, a tangibility given to something that we may feel only lives in our heads. Monstrilio is also inspired by the concept of a “grief creature:” a feeling so awful and overwhelming it gains a life of its own. And with its own life, I like to believe, the creature becomes someone that should be cared for, or at least, seen. It is perfectly fitting, too, that the Babadook became a gay meme icon for a while. I like to think it is his otherness that propelled him to such status. And not only his otherness, but an otherness allowed to exist, to be cared for even if it’s in a basement. His otherness and, of course, his top hat.

-----
Gerardo Sámano Córdova is a writer and artist from Mexico City, where he currently resides. He holds an MFA in Fiction from the University of Michigan. He has studied with Alexander Chee at Bread Loaf as a work/study scholar, and with Garth Greenwell at Tin House. His work has appeared in Ninth Letter, Passages North, and Chicago Quarterly Review, and is forthcoming in The Common.  You can follow him on both <a href="http://instagram.com/samanito">Instagram</a> and <a href="http://twitter.com/samanito">Twitter</a>.

The Horror Films that influenced “Monstrilio”, a story by Gerardo Sámano Córdova

<a href="https://netflixqueue.com/guillermo-del-toros-crafting-pinocchio-opens-at-moma" rel="nofollow">Guillermo del Toro</a> is a rare filmmaker, one with the ability to completely transport his audience to fantastical new worlds that feel both incredibly tangible and painfully familiar. Beginning with the release of his unconventional vampire tale <a href="https://boxd.it/1TjS" rel="nofollow">Cronos</a>, which netted top honors at 1993’s Ariel Awards, del Toro has commanded widespread respect for what many have described as his directorial magic touch. In 2007, he earned Oscar glory stateside with his gorgeous, creature-filled fable <a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">Pan’s Labyrinth</a>, taking home awards for three of the film’s six nominations. Del Toro continued his pursuit of unusually captivating tales, earning more Oscars — for Best Director and Best Picture — for 2017’s sci-fi inflected romance <a href="https://boxd.it/dZ5m" rel="nofollow">The Shape of Water</a>; his subsequent drama, the film-noir-inspired <a href="https://boxd.it/m0HC" rel="nofollow">Nightmare Alley</a> was nominated for Best Picture as well.  <a href="https://netflixqueue.com/guillermo-del-toro-realizes-a-life-long-dream-in-pinocchio" rel="nofollow">Click here to discover more.</a>

<a href="https://netflixqueue.com/guillermo-del-toros-crafting-pinocchio-opens-at-moma">Guillermo del Toro</a> is a rare filmmaker, one with the ability to completely transport his audience to fantastical new worlds that feel both incredibly tangible and painfully familiar. Beginning with the release of his unconventional vampire tale <a href="https://boxd.it/1TjS">Cronos</a>, which netted top honors at 1993’s Ariel Awards, del Toro has commanded widespread respect for what many have described as his directorial magic touch. In 2007, he earned Oscar glory stateside with his gorgeous, creature-filled fable <a href="https://boxd.it/28No">Pan’s Labyrinth</a>, taking home awards for three of the film’s six nominations. Del Toro continued his pursuit of unusually captivating tales, earning more Oscars — for Best Director and Best Picture — for 2017’s sci-fi inflected romance <a href="https://boxd.it/dZ5m">The Shape of Water</a>; his subsequent drama, the film-noir-inspired <a href="https://boxd.it/m0HC">Nightmare Alley</a> was nominated for Best Picture as well.  

<a href="https://netflixqueue.com/guillermo-del-toro-realizes-a-life-long-dream-in-pinocchio">Click here to discover more.</a>

Guillermo del Toro Realizes a Life Long Dream in Pinocchio

<a href="https://boxd.it/xfHk" rel="nofollow">The Visitor</a> is now available on digital and on demand.<blockquote>After a series of tragedies including the death of his father-in-law, Robert and his wife Maia leave their home in London to move back to her childhood home. But when Robert discovers an old portrait in the attic of a man who is his spitting image, he goes down a rabbit hole to discover the identity of this mysterious doppelganger known only as the visitor. It isn’t long until he realizes – where the visitor goes, death follows.</blockquote>---- Growing up in a stricter household, movies and television were not especially prevalent in my childhood. We were allowed to watch wholesome family comedies on Fridays, and cartoons the following Saturday morning, but most movies – definitely horror movies – were out of the question.<blockquote>Check out the full list of films on Horrorville <a href="https://boxd.it/iJOHi" rel="nofollow">here</a>.</blockquote>  One night I had a sleepover at a friend’s house, one with more lenient parents than mine. It was there that I saw my very first horror film –<a href="https://boxd.it/24fs" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/24fs" rel="nofollow">FRIDAY THE 13TH</a>. It would also be my last, for quite some time. Forget that my Catholic upbringing already instilled a level of fear and guilt in me that just watching the film without my parents’ permission made me feel like I was going to be struck down by lightning…on top of that, the film itself scared the living shit out of me. I couldn’t sleep for weeks, and the fear wasn’t something I enjoyed. My imagination tortured me, to the point that even once I reached high school and had more freedom to explore tv and film, I steered clear of horror.   It wasn’t until I attended Columbia’s graduate film school years later that I found my true gateway into horror, when my classmate recommended I watch<a href="https://boxd.it/1Qr0" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/1Qr0" rel="nofollow">LET THE RIGHT ONE IN</a>. The film was both terrifying and beautiful in ways I hadn’t experienced before, with a sort of earnestness that matched my own, but also tapping into a darker, more brutal anger that I hadn’t really allowed myself to explore before.<a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">PAN’S LABYRINTH</a> and<a href="https://boxd.it/28Li" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/28Li" rel="nofollow">THE DEVIL’S BACKBONE</a> soon followed, and where before I had kept horror at arm’s length, suddenly it felt like it was beckoning to me, and I was finally listening. So when I entered my final directing class a year later, and my professor challenged me to try something different than the kinds of films I had been making up to that point, I decided to attempt a small horror short, and that’s when it all clicked.   It was in that class that we would spend hours at a time breaking down films, shot by shot, and I was introduced to the brilliance and artistry behind the making of<a href="https://boxd.it/29zM" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/29zM" rel="nofollow">ROSEMARY’S BABY</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/2a5e" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/2a5e" rel="nofollow">JAWS</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/2a0o" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/2a0o" rel="nofollow">POLTERGEIST</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/1Yoo" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/1Yoo" rel="nofollow">THE EXORCIST</a>. I continued down the rabbit hole myself, devouring<a href="https://boxd.it/2ab2" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/2ab2" rel="nofollow">PSYCHO</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/29Nu" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/29Nu" rel="nofollow">THE SHINING</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/294O" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/294O" rel="nofollow">THE THING</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/20ZQ" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/20ZQ" rel="nofollow">CARRIE</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/28gY" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/28gY" rel="nofollow">MISERY</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/29fC" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/29fC" rel="nofollow">DON’T LOOK NOW</a>.   My love for the genre has continued to grow, with so many treasures to discover and each year bringing more. Favorites include<a href="https://boxd.it/2aXU" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/2aXU" rel="nofollow">28 DAYS LATER</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/87wo" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/87wo" rel="nofollow">IT FOLLOWS</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/9X0m" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/9X0m" rel="nofollow">THE WITCH</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/77xu" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/77xu" rel="nofollow">THE BABADOOK</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/eOCm" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/eOCm" rel="nofollow">GET OUT</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/dLd2" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/dLd2" rel="nofollow">RAW</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/8Niy" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/8Niy" rel="nofollow">GOODNIGHT MOMMY</a>…the list goes on.   For my latest film,<a href="https://boxd.it/xfHk" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/xfHk" rel="nofollow">THE VISITOR</a>, there were three titles in particular that influenced me: two of my favorite classics –<a href="https://boxd.it/29zM" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/29zM" rel="nofollow">ROSEMARY’S BABY</a> and<a href="https://boxd.it/1KnG" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/1KnG" rel="nofollow">THE WICKER MAN</a> – not only due to the journey Rosemary and the Sergeant take feeling eerily similar to Robert’s, but also in tone with each film maintaining a terrifying creepiness and feeling of dread throughout, but also incorporating a certain element of winking comedy that doesn’t undercut the fear, but somehow actually enhances it; and then Mike Flanagan’s great series<a href="https://boxd.it/kfJ0" rel="nofollow"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/kfJ0" rel="nofollow">THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE</a> which was not only a brilliant use of a haunted house to illustrate and explore family pathos, but also introduced one of the most terrifying visuals I had ever seen in the Bent-Neck lady, which even as an adult kept me wide awake at night for weeks on end…only this time, I kept horror close, and got to work.----- Just in P. Lange is a screenwriter and director with an MFA in film directing from the Columbia University Graduate Film Program. He only wears red shoes. Justin's third feature film THE VISITOR, which he directed for Blumhouse Television and Epix, will premiere on Digital and On Demand on October 7, 2022 and then on EPIX in December 2022. You can follow him on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/jp_lange/" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a>.

<a href="https://boxd.it/xfHk">The Visitor</a> is now available on digital and on demand.

<blockquote>After a series of tragedies including the death of his father-in-law, Robert and his wife Maia leave their home in London to move back to her childhood home. But when Robert discovers an old portrait in the attic of a man who is his spitting image, he goes down a rabbit hole to discover the identity of this mysterious doppelganger known only as the visitor. It isn’t long until he realizes – where the visitor goes, death follows.</blockquote>

----
Growing up in a stricter household, movies and television were not especially prevalent in my childhood. We were allowed to watch wholesome family comedies on Fridays, and cartoons the following Saturday morning, but most movies – definitely horror movies – were out of the question.

<blockquote>Check out the full list of films on Horrorville <a href="https://boxd.it/iJOHi">here</a>.</blockquote>
 
One night I had a sleepover at a friend’s house, one with more lenient parents than mine. It was there that I saw my very first horror film –<a href="https://boxd.it/24fs"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/24fs">FRIDAY THE 13TH</a>. It would also be my last, for quite some time. Forget that my Catholic upbringing already instilled a level of fear and guilt in me that just watching the film without my parents’ permission made me feel like I was going to be struck down by lightning…on top of that, the film itself scared the living shit out of me. I couldn’t sleep for weeks, and the fear wasn’t something I enjoyed. My imagination tortured me, to the point that even once I reached high school and had more freedom to explore tv and film, I steered clear of horror.
 
It wasn’t until I attended Columbia’s graduate film school years later that I found my true gateway into horror, when my classmate recommended I watch<a href="https://boxd.it/1Qr0"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/1Qr0">LET THE RIGHT ONE IN</a>. The film was both terrifying and beautiful in ways I hadn’t experienced before, with a sort of earnestness that matched my own, but also tapping into a darker, more brutal anger that I hadn’t really allowed myself to explore before.<a href="https://boxd.it/28No"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/28No">PAN’S LABYRINTH</a> and<a href="https://boxd.it/28Li"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/28Li">THE DEVIL’S BACKBONE</a> soon followed, and where before I had kept horror at arm’s length, suddenly it felt like it was beckoning to me, and I was finally listening. So when I entered my final directing class a year later, and my professor challenged me to try something different than the kinds of films I had been making up to that point, I decided to attempt a small horror short, and that’s when it all clicked.
 
It was in that class that we would spend hours at a time breaking down films, shot by shot, and I was introduced to the brilliance and artistry behind the making of<a href="https://boxd.it/29zM"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/29zM">ROSEMARY’S BABY</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/2a5e"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/2a5e">JAWS</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/2a0o"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/2a0o">POLTERGEIST</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/1Yoo"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/1Yoo">THE EXORCIST</a>. I continued down the rabbit hole myself, devouring<a href="https://boxd.it/2ab2"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/2ab2">PSYCHO</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/29Nu"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/29Nu">THE SHINING</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/294O"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/294O">THE THING</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/20ZQ"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/20ZQ">CARRIE</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/28gY"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/28gY">MISERY</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/29fC"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/29fC">DON’T LOOK NOW</a>.
 
My love for the genre has continued to grow, with so many treasures to discover and each year bringing more. Favorites include<a href="https://boxd.it/2aXU"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/2aXU">28 DAYS LATER</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/87wo"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/87wo">IT FOLLOWS</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/9X0m"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/9X0m">THE WITCH</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/77xu"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/77xu">THE BABADOOK</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/eOCm"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/eOCm">GET OUT</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/dLd2"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/dLd2">RAW</a>,<a href="https://boxd.it/8Niy"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/8Niy">GOODNIGHT MOMMY</a>…the list goes on.
 
For my latest film,<a href="https://boxd.it/xfHk"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/xfHk">THE VISITOR</a>, there were three titles in particular that influenced me: two of my favorite classics –<a href="https://boxd.it/29zM"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/29zM">ROSEMARY’S BABY</a> and<a href="https://boxd.it/1KnG"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/1KnG">THE WICKER MAN</a> – not only due to the journey Rosemary and the Sergeant take feeling eerily similar to Robert’s, but also in tone with each film maintaining a terrifying creepiness and feeling of dread throughout, but also incorporating a certain element of winking comedy that doesn’t undercut the fear, but somehow actually enhances it; and then Mike Flanagan’s great series<a href="https://boxd.it/kfJ0"> </a><a href="https://boxd.it/kfJ0">THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE</a> which was not only a brilliant use of a haunted house to illustrate and explore family pathos, but also introduced one of the most terrifying visuals I had ever seen in the Bent-Neck lady, which even as an adult kept me wide awake at night for weeks on end…only this time, I kept horror close, and got to work.

-----
Just in P. Lange is a screenwriter and director with an MFA in film directing from the Columbia University Graduate Film Program. He only wears red shoes. Justin's third feature film THE VISITOR, which he directed for Blumhouse Television and Epix, will premiere on Digital and On Demand on October 7, 2022 and then on EPIX in December 2022. You can follow him on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/jp_lange/">Instagram</a>.

A Horror Awakening, a story by Justin P. Lange

<blockquote>"Every morning we wake up, we can choose between fear and love. And love is the answer."</blockquote>Throughout his career, Guillermo del Toro has amassed global critical acclaim and accolades for his films <a href="https://boxd.it/1TjS" rel="nofollow">Cronos</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/28HK" rel="nofollow">Hellboy</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/62Ty" rel="nofollow">Crimson Peak</a>, and his Academy Award-nominated film <a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">Pan's Labyrinth</a>.His work has been described to have a strong connection to fairytales and horror, citing his fascination with monsters as a symbol of power. In addition, his work often includes the use of religious imagery including themes of Catholicism, practical special effects, and amber lighting.2018 reigned as a celebratory year for Guillermo del Toro after he won Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Director with his film <a href="https://boxd.it/dZ5m" rel="nofollow">The Shape of Water</a>. He was also named as one of TIME magazine's 100 most influential people and in 2019, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.From December 3–19, celebrate the renowned director, and the release of <a href="https://boxd.it/m0HC" rel="nofollow">Nightmare Alley</a>, with Guillermo del Toro Presents: Film Noirs from 20th Century Studios, screening at <a href="https://tiff.net/calendar?series=gdtnoir&amp;list" rel="nofollow">TIFF Bell Lightbox</a>.

<blockquote> "Every morning we wake up, we can choose between fear and love. And love is the answer."</blockquote>

Throughout his career, Guillermo del Toro has amassed global critical acclaim and accolades for his films <a href="https://boxd.it/1TjS">Cronos</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/28HK">Hellboy</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/62Ty">Crimson Peak</a>, and his Academy Award-nominated film <a href="https://boxd.it/28No">Pan's Labyrinth</a>.

His work has been described to have a strong connection to fairytales and horror, citing his fascination with monsters as a symbol of power. In addition, his work often includes the use of religious imagery including themes of Catholicism, practical special effects, and amber lighting.

2018 reigned as a celebratory year for Guillermo del Toro after he won Academy Awards for Best Picture and Best Director with his film <a href="https://boxd.it/dZ5m">The Shape of Water</a>. He was also named as one of TIME magazine's 100 most influential people and in 2019, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

From December 3–19, celebrate the renowned director, and the release of <a href="https://boxd.it/m0HC">Nightmare Alley</a>, with Guillermo del Toro Presents: Film Noirs from 20th Century Studios, screening at <a href="https://tiff.net/calendar?series=gdtnoir&list">TIFF Bell Lightbox</a>.

Guillermo Del Toro: Love Is The Answer

<a href="https://boxd.it/u1d0" rel="nofollow">Martyrs Lane</a> is a film scaled down to a child's eye view. Tonally, its more ghost story than horror, but many influences, cinematic, literary, and personal, have filtered through the sand of my brain to create it.<blockquote>Check out <a href="https://boxd.it/dn6ei" rel="nofollow">The Films That Influenced Ruth Platt's MARTYRS LANE</a></blockquote>Nostalgia plays a part – the house being based a little on the large, falling apart, church-owned house I grew up in, a home to strangers and my family alike. Leah is a small collector of things - scant on emotional fulfilment and adult communication, and like a little magpie scavenging small, seemingly insignificant objects to fill a nameless void. I watched and rewatched as many films that tell their stories through a child's eye as I could – films from different genres, and different auteurs – <a href="https://boxd.it/79YW" rel="nofollow">Night of the Hunter</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/23hW" rel="nofollow">Bicycle Thieves</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1j6y" rel="nofollow">Ivan's Childhood</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1BzI" rel="nofollow">The Fallen Idol</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1mSg" rel="nofollow">Ratcatcher</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1Qi8" rel="nofollow">Kes</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/28Li" rel="nofollow">The Devil's Backbone</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">Pan's Labyrinth</a>. I suppose the most significant influence is a Spanish film called <a href="https://boxd.it/24eY" rel="nofollow">Spirit of the Beehive</a> by <a href="https://letterboxd.com/director/victor-erice/" rel="nofollow">Victor Erice</a>, both visually and thematically. It has these two extraordinary young leads – two girls – and their voices and relationship seem so unmanipulated by the adult (director) voice – the personalities and chemistry they bring to the screen seem so of themselves, and yet placed within a story so carefully created and told by Erice. The lead child, Ana, played by Ana Torrent, makes sense of the fragments of the adult world around her, through her own childlike imagination, and this was key for the conception of Martyrs Lane. And the relationship between the two girls, quite capricious at times, and so natural, but natural in a way that also manages to encompass a wider experience of the child's eye – a slightly strange, liminal space, between the practical world and the spiritual, or dream-like, but still from a child's eye view. And again, this was very key in creating a sense of the internal narrative of Martyrs Lane's little protagonist, Leah. We, Mark Gyori (my DP) and I, also discussed how we could visually reflect the cinematic look of Spirit of the Beehive, in creating this big dark house, which in my film, in my head, was a metaphor for Leah's mother's brain – a brain Leah was rattling around in, lost; with light flooding windows, single light sources, long dark corridors, and a slightly dreamy, lyrical quality to the space. Mark used Cooke Panchro lenses and a classic vario lens to further enhance the introspective, non-digital, retro look of the film. We used diopters instead of a macro lens to home in on all the tiny objects Leah gathers, and this also creates a rather haptic, slightly nostalgic feel for them that I think works well. In a strange way, Tarkovsky's <a href="https://boxd.it/28PO" rel="nofollow">Stalker</a> and <a href="https://boxd.it/2a2Y" rel="nofollow">Solaris</a> were also influences – though Martyrs Lane doesn't resemble those films in many ways, I was always fascinated by Stalker's daughter and her presence in the film, and there is a scene towards the end of Martyrs Lane that is a bit of an homage to a scene in <a href="https://boxd.it/28PO" rel="nofollow">Stalker</a>  - and Solaris is just the most beautiful ghost story set in space, about grief and love. So, many eclectic influences I guess, embedded somewhere deep in the fabric of my film. -<a href="https://letterboxd.com/director/ruth-platt/" rel="nofollow">Ruth Platt</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/RutharioP" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a> <a href="https://boxd.it/u1d0" rel="nofollow">Martyrs Lane</a> is now streaming on <a href="http://letterboxd.com/shudder" rel="nofollow">Shudder</a>.

<a href="https://boxd.it/u1d0">Martyrs Lane</a> is a film scaled down to a child's eye view. Tonally, its more ghost story than horror, but many influences, cinematic, literary, and personal, have filtered through the sand of my brain to create it. 

<blockquote>Check out <a href="https://boxd.it/dn6ei">The Films That Influenced Ruth Platt's MARTYRS LANE</a></blockquote>

Nostalgia plays a part – the house being based a little on the large, falling apart, church-owned house I grew up in, a home to strangers and my family alike. Leah is a small collector of things - scant on emotional fulfilment and adult communication, and like a little magpie scavenging small, seemingly insignificant objects to fill a nameless void. 

I watched and rewatched as many films that tell their stories through a child's eye as I could – films from different genres, and different auteurs – <a href="https://boxd.it/79YW">Night of the Hunter</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/23hW">Bicycle Thieves</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1j6y">Ivan's Childhood</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1BzI">The Fallen Idol</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1mSg">Ratcatcher</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1Qi8">Kes</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/28Li">The Devil's Backbone</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/28No">Pan's Labyrinth</a>. I suppose the most significant influence is a Spanish film called <a href="https://boxd.it/24eY">Spirit of the Beehive</a> by <a href="https://letterboxd.com/director/victor-erice/">Victor Erice</a>, both visually and thematically. It has these two extraordinary young leads – two girls – and their voices and relationship seem so unmanipulated by the adult (director) voice – the personalities and chemistry they bring to the screen seem so of themselves, and yet placed within a story so carefully created and told by Erice. The lead child, Ana, played by Ana Torrent, makes sense of the fragments of the adult world around her, through her own childlike imagination, and this was key for the conception of Martyrs Lane. And the relationship between the two girls, quite capricious at times, and so natural, but natural in a way that also manages to encompass a wider experience of the child's eye – a slightly strange, liminal space, between the practical world and the spiritual, or dream-like, but still from a child's eye view. And again, this was very key in creating a sense of the internal narrative of Martyrs Lane's little protagonist, Leah. 

We, Mark Gyori (my DP) and I, also discussed how we could visually reflect the cinematic look of Spirit of the Beehive, in creating this big dark house, which in my film, in my head, was a metaphor for Leah's mother's brain – a brain Leah was rattling around in, lost; with light flooding windows, single light sources, long dark corridors, and a slightly dreamy, lyrical quality to the space. Mark used Cooke Panchro lenses and a classic vario lens to further enhance the introspective, non-digital, retro look of the film. We used diopters instead of a macro lens to home in on all the tiny objects Leah gathers, and this also creates a rather haptic, slightly nostalgic feel for them that I think works well. 

In a strange way, Tarkovsky's <a href="https://boxd.it/28PO">Stalker</a> and <a href="https://boxd.it/2a2Y">Solaris</a> were also influences – though Martyrs Lane doesn't resemble those films in many ways, I was always fascinated by Stalker's daughter and her presence in the film, and there is a scene towards the end of Martyrs Lane that is a bit of an homage to a scene in <a href="https://boxd.it/28PO">Stalker</a>  - and Solaris is just the most beautiful ghost story set in space, about grief and love. So, many eclectic influences I guess, embedded somewhere deep in the fabric of my film. 

-<a href="https://letterboxd.com/director/ruth-platt/">Ruth Platt</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/RutharioP">Twitter</a> 

<a href="https://boxd.it/u1d0">Martyrs Lane</a> is now streaming on <a href="http://letterboxd.com/shudder">Shudder</a>.

The Films That Influenced Ruth Platt's MARTYRS LANE

From the films that inspired Parasite to an exploration of Afrofuturism, SIFF’s Film Talks cover a wide range of cinematic subjects. Now available to watch on-demand on the SIFF Channel. More info at <a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming?utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=letterboxd&amp;utm_campaign=ondemandclasses" rel="nofollow">siff.net/vodclasses</a>.<a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming/cinema-dna-get-out-on-demand?utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=letterboxd&amp;utm_campaign=cindnagetout" rel="nofollow">Cinema DNA: Get Out and the Black Perspective</a> Explore the films that inspired Jordan Peele’s racially charged horror story <a href="https://boxd.it/eOCm" rel="nofollow">Get Out</a> and how they take form through this new lens of a Black American filmmaker. Taught by Nicole Pouchet. RIYL: <a href="https://boxd.it/gnV6" rel="nofollow">Us</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1Sfq" rel="nofollow">Stepford Wives</a> (1975), <a href="https://boxd.it/2wRu" rel="nofollow">Halloween</a> (1978), <a href="https://boxd.it/1WwA" rel="nofollow">Night of the Living Dead</a> (1968), <a href="https://boxd.it/29Nu" rel="nofollow">The Shining</a><a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming/cinema-dna-parasite-on-demand?utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=letterboxd&amp;utm_campaign=cindnaparasite" rel="nofollow">Cinema DNA: Parasite</a> Revel in the films that inspired the Oscar-winning <a href="https://boxd.it/hTha" rel="nofollow">Parasite</a>—from Chaplin's <a href="https://boxd.it/29ki" rel="nofollow">City Lights</a> to mid-century South Korean films and more. Taught by John Trafton. RIYL: <a href="https://boxd.it/3Icg" rel="nofollow">Snowpiercer</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/dvXe" rel="nofollow">Okja</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/29Du" rel="nofollow">Gattaca</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1HuY" rel="nofollow">Tokyo Story</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/2ab2" rel="nofollow">Psycho</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/2b1C" rel="nofollow">The 400 Blows</a><a href="https://letterboxd.com/siff/list/cinema-dna-parasite/" rel="nofollow">View SIFF List → Cinema DNA: Parasite</a><a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming/don-guillermo-on-demand?utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=letterboxd&amp;utm_campaign=donguillermo" rel="nofollow">Don Guillermo: Del Toro and his Ibero-American Influences</a> Explore the Latin American and Spanish influences behind Guillermo del Toro's filmography, including films, paintings, and literature. Taught by John Trafton. RIYL: <a href="https://boxd.it/28No" rel="nofollow">Pan's Labyrinth</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/dZ5m" rel="nofollow">The Shape of Water</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/62Ty" rel="nofollow">Crimson Peak</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/29AA" rel="nofollow">Los olvidados</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/24GI" rel="nofollow">Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown</a><a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming/hunt-for-dr-lecter-on-demand?utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=letterboxd&amp;utm_campaign=huntfordrlecter" rel="nofollow">The Hunt for Dr. Lecter</a> Slice into the world of Hannibal Lecter beginning with his gothic literary origins, his basis in American crime journalism, and his portrayals in film and TV. Taught by John Trafton. RIYL: <a href="https://boxd.it/2aHW" rel="nofollow">The Silence of the Lambs</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1XVc" rel="nofollow">Hannibal</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1TOw" rel="nofollow">Manhunter</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1Yrs" rel="nofollow">Red Dragon</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/2916" rel="nofollow">Hannibal Rising</a><a href="https://letterboxd.com/siff/list/the-world-of-hannibal-lecter/" rel="nofollow">View SIFF List → The World of Hannibal Lecter</a><a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming/reel-black-afrofuturism-on-demand?utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=letterboxd&amp;utm_campaign=reelblackafrofuturism" rel="nofollow">Reel Black: Afrofuturism</a> Take a deep dive into unapologetically blackity-black speculative film in this culture-, commentary-, and clip-filled class. Taught by Nicole Pouchet. RIYL: <a href="https://boxd.it/iLhe" rel="nofollow">Dirty Computer</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1sX2" rel="nofollow">The Brother From Another Planet</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/2H44" rel="nofollow">Touki Bouki</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1KBo" rel="nofollow">Space is the Place</a><a href="https://boxd.it/aPHAu" rel="nofollow">View SIFF List → Afrofuturism</a><a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming/costuming-trek-streaming?utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=letterboxd&amp;utm_campaign=wtfemmecostuming" rel="nofollow">What The Femme: Costuming the Final Frontier</a> Explore the good to the god-awful in costuming the women of "Star Trek” in this fun conversation from a feminist Trekkie perspective. Taught by the hosts of Women at Warp. RIYL: <a href="https://boxd.it/1Q6c" rel="nofollow">Star Trek</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/5Ik4" rel="nofollow">Star Trek Beyond</a><a href="https://boxd.it/2aTo" rel="nofollow">,</a> <a href="https://boxd.it/2b0u" rel="nofollow">Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/2aTo" rel="nofollow">Star Trek: First Contact</a><a href="https://letterboxd.com/siff/list/costuming-women-in-sci-fi/" rel="nofollow">View SIFF List → Costuming Women in Sci-Fi</a>Want to join in live? Visit <a href="https://www.siff.net/programs/classes?utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=letterboxd&amp;utm_campaign=classes" rel="nofollow">siff.net/classes</a> all upcoming live classes, held most Tuesday evenings at 6:30pm PT.

From the films that inspired Parasite to an exploration of Afrofuturism, SIFF’s Film Talks cover a wide range of cinematic subjects. Now available to watch on-demand on the SIFF Channel. More info at <a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming?utm_medium=social&utm_source=letterboxd&utm_campaign=ondemandclasses">siff.net/vodclasses</a>.

<a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming/cinema-dna-get-out-on-demand?utm_medium=social&utm_source=letterboxd&utm_campaign=cindnagetout">Cinema DNA: Get Out and the Black Perspective</a>
Explore the films that inspired Jordan Peele’s racially charged horror story <a href="https://boxd.it/eOCm">Get Out</a> and how they take form through this new lens of a Black American filmmaker. Taught by Nicole Pouchet.
RIYL: <a href="https://boxd.it/gnV6">Us</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1Sfq">Stepford Wives</a> (1975), <a href="https://boxd.it/2wRu">Halloween</a> (1978), <a href="https://boxd.it/1WwA">Night of the Living Dead</a> (1968), <a href="https://boxd.it/29Nu">The Shining</a>

<a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming/cinema-dna-parasite-on-demand?utm_medium=social&utm_source=letterboxd&utm_campaign=cindnaparasite">Cinema DNA: Parasite</a>
Revel in the films that inspired the Oscar-winning <a href="https://boxd.it/hTha">Parasite</a>—from Chaplin's <a href="https://boxd.it/29ki">City Lights</a> to mid-century South Korean films and more. Taught by John Trafton.
RIYL: <a href="https://boxd.it/3Icg">Snowpiercer</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/dvXe">Okja</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/29Du">Gattaca</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1HuY">Tokyo Story</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/2ab2">Psycho</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/2b1C">The 400 Blows</a>

<a href="https://letterboxd.com/siff/list/cinema-dna-parasite/">View SIFF List → Cinema DNA: Parasite</a>

<a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming/don-guillermo-on-demand?utm_medium=social&utm_source=letterboxd&utm_campaign=donguillermo">Don Guillermo: Del Toro and his Ibero-American Influences</a>
Explore the Latin American and Spanish influences behind Guillermo del Toro's filmography, including films, paintings, and literature. Taught by John Trafton.
RIYL: <a href="https://boxd.it/28No">Pan's Labyrinth</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/dZ5m">The Shape of Water</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/62Ty">Crimson Peak</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/29AA">Los olvidados</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/24GI">Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown</a>

<a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming/hunt-for-dr-lecter-on-demand?utm_medium=social&utm_source=letterboxd&utm_campaign=huntfordrlecter">The Hunt for Dr. Lecter</a>
Slice into the world of Hannibal Lecter beginning with his gothic literary origins, his basis in American crime journalism, and his portrayals in film and TV. Taught by John Trafton.
RIYL: <a href="https://boxd.it/2aHW">The Silence of the Lambs</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1XVc">Hannibal</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1TOw">Manhunter</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1Yrs">Red Dragon</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/2916">Hannibal Rising</a>

<a href="https://letterboxd.com/siff/list/the-world-of-hannibal-lecter/">View SIFF List → The World of Hannibal Lecter</a>

<a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming/reel-black-afrofuturism-on-demand?utm_medium=social&utm_source=letterboxd&utm_campaign=reelblackafrofuturism">Reel Black: Afrofuturism</a>
Take a deep dive into unapologetically blackity-black speculative film in this culture-, commentary-, and clip-filled class. Taught by Nicole Pouchet.
RIYL: <a href="https://boxd.it/iLhe">Dirty Computer</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1sX2">The Brother From Another Planet</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/2H44">Touki Bouki</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/1KBo">Space is the Place</a>

<a href="https://boxd.it/aPHAu">View SIFF List → Afrofuturism</a>

<a href="https://www.siff.net/siff-cinema/streaming/costuming-trek-streaming?utm_medium=social&utm_source=letterboxd&utm_campaign=wtfemmecostuming">What The Femme: Costuming the Final Frontier</a>
Explore the good to the god-awful in costuming the women of "Star Trek” in this fun conversation from a feminist Trekkie perspective. Taught by the hosts of Women at Warp.
RIYL: <a href="https://boxd.it/1Q6c">Star Trek</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/5Ik4">Star Trek Beyond</a><a href="https://boxd.it/2aTo">,</a> <a href="https://boxd.it/2b0u">Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan</a>, <a href="https://boxd.it/2aTo">Star Trek: First Contact</a>

<a href="https://letterboxd.com/siff/list/costuming-women-in-sci-fi/">View SIFF List → Costuming Women in Sci-Fi</a>

Want to join in live? Visit <a href="https://www.siff.net/programs/classes?utm_medium=social&utm_source=letterboxd&utm_campaign=classes">siff.net/classes</a> all upcoming live classes, held most Tuesday evenings at 6:30pm PT.

On-Demand Film Talks

slim’s ★★★½ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

I will never be able to understand Ofelia dirtying up that new dress. Inconceivable. More on a very special <a href="http://www.70mmpod.com" rel="nofollow">70mm podcast</a>.

protolexus’s diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

protolexus’s ★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

A fairytale for adults. Guillermo Del Toro has incredible vision for crafting a story. Part Alice in Wonderland, part &lt;insert horror gore flick&gt;, this story feels like a classic with its simple but layered story and incredible characters. Del Toro tells the story he wants to tell with some horrifying visuals mixed in.I just love the look and feel. Everything is tactile and feels lived in down to the appearance of the font in the credits. Hear more on <a href="https://anchor.fm/70mm/episodes/Pans-Labyrinth-2006-eh95ru" rel="nofollow">70mm</a>.

Thomas’s ★★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Wow wow wow. Wonderful. Watching it felt like a dose of real magic. The sets, makeup, costumes, all perfect. I loved the story — the whole fairy tale setup rarely works for me but this one really hits. Amazing performances. A lot of this is on the shoulders of a child actor and Ivana Baquero nails it. Maribel Verdu is in perma-crush territory after Y Tu Mama Tambien and here she instantly feels like a warm presence for our protagonist. The performance by Sergi Lopez as the captain is unhinged. Terrific work on his cheek being slashed … how about this maniac doing his own stitches in the mirror??? How about his circular sunglasses? Awesome villain mode. Plenty of fantastical creatures and monsters running around and he’s the worst of them all. This is a movie I will revisit multiple times. Thank you Guillermo. <a href="https://boxd.it/jqOKW" rel="nofollow">Criterion Challenge 2023 Week 52</a>: FantasyAnd with that my Criterion Challenge from … uh … 2023 … is complete 😅😅

Zachary Mulligan’s ★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Diamond’s diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Joseph (JoeJazzy)’s ★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

mosheal’s ★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

The creature designs are fantastic. I was not expecting all of the warfare and general bleakness in this at all, which probably makes this into something I wouldn’t want to revisit often.

Alex’s ★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

The only thing about this movie I knew of ahead of time was the fantastic creature design, so imagine my surprise when it’s mostly about guerrilla warfare under the Spanish dictatorship

Christian Gutiérrez’s diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

“While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.” — Angela Schwindt

Dylan’s ★★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Kev’s ★★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Sean Allen’s ★★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

“Tell my son the time that his father died. Tell him...”“No. He won't even know your name.”I told Kelsey, hey I’m picking a movie, which is usually code for, you think you’re gonna hate it but trust me on this one...Well she didn’t hate it. I think her words were “it kept my attention”. Not quite the most glowing review.  Picked it up on Criterion and excited to dig into the features. Del Toto seems like a fun hang[ <a href="https://www.imdb.com/media/rm1237159681/tt0457430" rel="nofollow">Top Shot</a> ]

Ismael’s ★★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Un cuento muy pero muy original y bien hecho. Guillermo Del Toro se la rifa como siempre en este cuento de sus monstruos y la maldad en el hombre.Muy bien hecha, me encantó!

Sophie Shin’s ★★★★½ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

I will never forgive myself for taking so long to watch this. Also Ofelia’s hag energy is off the charts 🙏

ava’s ★★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

“visible only to those who know where to look”the color grading in this was kinda weird but anyways this was SOO good!!! the eyeball guy was creepy af

Ben’s ★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

I tried to watch this for the first time when I was 11 or 12 years old. Didn't make it further than a few minutes after Vidal bashes the man's face in with a bottle. It didn't frighten me. It didnt gross me out. I dont have the words for it but however you put it, it was unforgettable. It came out of nowhere. The visuals, the color palette, the sound effects, and most specifically the rythm embedded itself in my brain. I can't be holding a glass bottle without seeing that scene played identically inside my mind.Well anyways, I finally watched the film in its entirety for the first time tonight and I can't believe there's so many articles and video essays titled something along the lines of "10 reasons Pan's Labyrinth is actually a fantastical Disney princess film!" Like.... yeah. Duh.

radianen’s ★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Nicole Kohler’s ★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Why did I have it in my head that this was a kid's movie!? Some really beautiful and incredibly haunting imagery. Mercedes made the movie for me.

Sander’s ★★★½ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Another visually striking movie by Del Toro. The fantasy parts of the movies are really great. Honestly, I want to see more of that world. The real was less interesting to me. I think I am more a The Devil's Backbone kind of person.

EwanS93’s ★★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Mike Scott’s ★★★★½ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Pat Healy’s ★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Nolan’s ★★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

The Pale Man is Vidal, Vidal is the devil. If you need proof look at the shots of both of them at the head of the table during their respective feasts. Like shiit Del Toro just out here screaming <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=fascism+memes+dumb+&amp;tbm=isch&amp;ved=2ahUKEwiIqvfooZz4AhV9HjQIHY0zA7UQ2-cCegQIABAC&amp;oq=fascism+memes+dumb+&amp;gs_lcp=ChJtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1pbWcQAzoECCMQJzoFCCEQqwI6BAgeEApQlQVY7g5g1BBoAHAAeACAAasBiAHtBZIBAzQuM5gBAKABAcABAQ&amp;sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-img&amp;ei=X8CfYsj-EP280PEPjeeMqAs&amp;bih=669&amp;biw=390&amp;prmd=inv&amp;rlz=1CDGOYI_enUS793US793&amp;hl=en-US#imgrc=syd6ie2XJCwBFM" rel="nofollow">fuck fascism</a>. Don’t even get me started on the pile of children’s shoes by the Pale Man. Movie got me even more excited for the addition of frogs in Minecraft.

mike’s ★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Andrew van der Bijl’s ★★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

notjadakiss’s ★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Jonas Knutsson’s ★★★★ diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

ian’s diary entry for Pan's Labyrinth

Jim Henson, but for grown ups! Del Toro, once again, never ceases to impress me with his design or imagination - but, always seems to fall short for me when it comes to actual story telling. This one is different. There is a mystery and a darkness here that I find consistently compelling and getting at the heart of something deeper. The political text here is also one that I am intensely curious about and I think it makes for a very well backdrop for a dark gothic fantasy in which a young girl feels all alone. It is also immensely interesting to see a film in which a influence is undoubtedly a Harry Potter film which is unsurprising since Cuaron and del Toro are contemporaries and we’re working on the projects at similar times, yet it is fascinating and striking that it is clearly and influence and to what it extent it is. Although, it could be perhaps the other way around - I can not be sure. This does take the cake as my favorite from the modern gothic horror auteur and by a very wide margin as I feel much of his other work so far to be rather hallow and not in an intentional way one might get from say a noir such as Nightmare Alley which I liked but was not head over heels for. It is simply that the material matches the aesthetic, tone, and scope of what the director is capable of and it all seems to fall perfectly into place.