The Popcorn Frights Film Festival is back with its eleventh this year, both in-person and virtually, from August 7-17. The Southeast’s largest genre celebration announces its first wave of programming this morning, from new premieres to repertory screening classics.
For the first time ever, the festival will kick off with an Opening Night World Premiere Double-Bill from fan-favorite filmmaker and two-time Popcorn Frights award-winner Brandon Christensen (Superhost, Z). Popcorn Frights is also rolling out the red carpet for horror royalty with the arrival of Barbara Crampton, Lloyd Kaufman, and Linnea Quigley in attendance for special screenings.
In a one-of-a-kind genre celebration, Popcorn Frights, in partnership with Paramount Scares, will present a special screening of A QUIET PLACE with live commentary by screenwriters Scott Beck & Bryan Woods, moderated by Josh Malerman. The event will also include a “See No Evil, Hear No Evil” interactive game with exclusive prizes, offering fans a uniquely immersive horror experience.
A second wave of Popcorn Frights 2025 titles with more than two dozen additional feature film premieres for in-theater and virtual programming will be announced next week.
In the meantime, read on for the packed first wave of Popcorn Frights 2025 programming:
IN-THEATER FEATURE FILM LINEUP
OPENING NIGHT DOUBLE-BILL
Bodycam
World Premiere
United States | 2025 | 75 Min. | Dir. Brandon Christensen
*Director Brandon Christensen expected in person
During a routine domestic disturbance call, a tragic accident thrusts two police officers into a relentless nightmare that unveils the existence of a terrifying cult.
OPENING NIGHT DOUBLE-BILL
Night of the Reaper
World Premiere
United States | 2025 | 93 Min. | Dir. Brandon Christensen
*Director Brandon Christensen expected in person
After a brutal murder of a teenage babysitter, college student Deena returns home for the weekend and takes on a babysitting job, while the local sheriff uncovers chilling evidence suggesting the killer may be planning a deadly sequel.
American Cryptids
World Premiere
United States | 2025 | 102 Min. | Dir. Erynn Dalton
*Director Erynn Dalton and screenwriter Joseph Zettelmaier expected in person
Starring Anne Bobby, Daniel Roebuck, and Lukas Hassel, this Florida-set folktale follows two feuding families—one human, one supernatural—whose failed truce sparks bloodshed, forcing the youngest generation to choose between breaking the cycle or succumbing to a fate of violence.
Blood Shine
World Premiere
United States | 2025 | 100 Min. | Dirs. Emily Bennett & Justin Brooks
*Directors Emily Bennett & Justin Brooks, and producer Cameron Burns expected in person
A religious zealot devoted to light rituals meets a horror filmmaker in NY, pulling him into a dreamlike maze of spirituality and transcendence.
Hacked
South Florida Premiere
United States | 2025 | 85 Min. | Dir. Shane Brady
*Director Shane Brady, actors Chandler Riggs, Owen Atlas, and Collin Thompson, along with producer Emily Zircher expected in person
Inspired by true events, this gripping story begins in 2021 when an ordinary Florida couple is hacked and robbed of $20,000—unleashing the dark, imagined revenge they only wish they could have taken.
Mermaid
Southeast US Premiere
United States | 2025 | 105 Min. | Dir. Tyler Cornack
At his lowest point, a drug-addicted Florida man discovers a wounded mermaid and, as word of his secret spreads, he’ll stop at nothing to protect her—featuring a sinister performance by Robert Patrick.
Teacher’s Pet
East Coast Premiere
United States | 2025 | 90 Min. | Dir. Noam Kroll
*Actress Barbara Crampton expected in person
Just days from heading to Yale, a brilliant high school senior is drawn into a dangerous game of cat and mouse when her obsessive new English teacher reveals a chilling past, igniting a gripping battle of wits and survival.
To All the Books
World Premiere
United States | 2024 | 91 Min. | Dir. Josh Malerman
*Director Josh Malerman and producers Scott Beck & Bryan Woods expected in person
This raw and inspiring fly-on-the-wall documentary follows acclaimed novelist, filmmaker, and musician Josh Malerman—author of Bird Box and Emmy-winning music for Shameless—as he confronts the terror of the blank page and the unpredictable highs and lows of a wildly creative life.
VIRTUAL FEATURE FILM LINEUP
Alan at Night
Southeast US Premiere
United States | 2025 | 91 Min. | Dir. Jesse Swenson
An internet prankster documents the increasingly odd behavior of his new roommate, Alan.
The Editing
Southeast US Premiere
France | 2025 | 72 Min. | Dir. Audouin Rascovsky
Eccentric director John Von Kubrick disappears with the only footage of his latest film, forcing his two producers—who borrowed from the Japanese mafia to finance the project—into a desperate, life-or-death hunt to recover both him and the film.
El Instinto
US Premiere
Spain | 2024 | 92 Min. | Dir. Juan Albarracín
A brilliant architect crippled by agoraphobia and isolated for three years reluctantly accepts help from a prestigious dog trainer whose methods soon reveal a psychotic obsession.
Head Like a Hole
Southeast US Premiere
Canada | 2024 | 93 Min. | Dir. Stefan MacDonald-Labelle
In financial dire straits, a man accepts a strange, high-paying job where he must take up residence in a home and measure a hole in the wall of the basement to determine whether or not it’s growing in size.
House of Ashes
Florida Premiere
United States | 2024 | 95 Min. | Dir. Izzy Lee
A grieving widow must survive psychological and supernatural horrors while under house arrest.
In the Mouth
Florida Premiere
United States | 2024 | 85 Min. | Dir. Cory Santilli
A perpetual worrywart finds himself unable to leave his house after discovering a giant version of himself protruding from his front lawn.
Itch!
Southeast US Premiere
United States | 2024 | 82 Min. | Dir. Bari Kang
Amid a deadly outbreak known as the ITCH, a widower and his estranged daughter seek refuge in a department store—only to discover that the true terror lies within.
Psyche
East Coast Premiere
United States | 2024 | 71 Min. | Dir. Stephon Stewart
Adrift in limbo, a young woman and computer embark on a quest to uncover the meaning of life.
Tomorrow I Die
Southeast US Premiere
Hungary | 2024 | 85 Min. | Dir. Nikol Cibulya
In this mystical-realist ghost story, a pregnant woman invites her brother and best friend to a family cabin, where she reveals a haunting premonition of her own death and must confront childhood traumas before embracing motherhood.
What the Tide Dragged In
World Premiere
Chile | 2025 | 88 Min. | Dir. Patricio Valladares
After their mother’s funeral, two sisters visit a remote beach to scatter her ashes, but when one is swept away by a current and later found behaving strangely, unsettling secrets begin to surface.
IN-THEATER RETRO LINEUP
A Quiet Place
Live Commentary Special Presentation
United States | 2018 | 90 Min. | Dir. John Krasinski
*Screenwriters Scott Beck & Bryan Woods and author Josh Malerman expected in person
A family struggles for survival in a world invaded by blind alien creatures with ultra-sensitive hearing.
From Beyond
Straight Outta Crampton Triple-Bill Event
United States | 1986 | 85 Min. | Dir. Stuart Gordon
*Actress Barbara Crampton expected in person
A group of scientists creates the Resonator, a machine that reveals hidden dimensions beyond human perception—only to unleash horrifying life forms the moment the experiment succeeds.
Mr. Melvin
Troma-Sized Festival Premiere
United States | 2025 | 127 Min. | Dir. Lloyd Kaufman
*Director Lloyd Kaufman expected in person
A never-before-seen reimagined cut of The Toxic Avenger sequel, fusing Part II and Part III into one epic two-hour resurrection.
Night of the Demons
The Queen of Screams Triple-Bill Event
United States | 1988 | 90 Min. | Dir. Kevin Tenney
*Actress Linnea Quigley expected in person
On Halloween night, ten teenagers throw a party in an abandoned funeral parlor, only to awaken an evil force that traps them inside and unleashes demonic spirits, turning their celebration into a living hell.
Nightmare Beach
Special Outdoor Beach Presentation
Italy | 1989 | 90 Min. | Dirs. James Justice & Umberto Lenzi
After the execution of a motorcycle gang leader convicted of murder, a helmeted biker goes on a killing spree during spring break in Florida.
The Phantom of the Opera
A Tale of Two Phantoms Double-Bill Event
Centennial Anniversary, 2K Restoration
United States | 1925 | 93 Min. | Dir. Rupert Julian
*Live Original Score Performance by Slavvy
A mad, disfigured composer seeks love with a lovely young opera singer.
Phantom of the Paradise
A Tale of Two Phantoms Double-Bill Event
United States | 1974 | 91 Min. | Dir. Brian De Palma
*Swan Principal Archivist Ari Kahan expected in person
A disfigured composer sells his soul to ensure the woman he loves will sing his music, only to be betrayed by a sinister record tycoon who steals his work to launch his decadent rock palace, The Paradise.
Re-Animator
Straight Outta Crampton Triple-Bill Event
40th Anniversary, 4K Restoration
United States | 1985 | 84 Min. | Dir. Stuart Gordon
*Actress Barbara Crampton expected in person
After an odd new medical student arrives on campus, a dedicated local and his girlfriend become involved in bizarre experiments centering around the re-animation of dead tissue.
The Return of the Living Dead
The Queen of Screams Triple-Bill Event
40th Anniversary, 4K Restoration
United States | 1985 | 91 Min. | Dir. Dan O’Bannon
*Actress Linnea Quigley expected in person
When two bumbling employees at a medical supply warehouse accidentally release a deadly gas into the air, the vapors cause the dead to rise again as zombies.
Silent Night, Deadly Night
The Queen of Screams Triple-Bill Event
United States | 1984 | 79 Min. | Dir. Charles E. Sellier Jr.
*Actress Linnea Quigley expected in person
After witnessing his parents’ murder by a killer in a Santa suit as a child—and haunted by his grandfather’s warning that Santa punishes the naughty—18-year-old Billy leaves the orphanage and dons the red suit himself, unleashing a holiday spree of terror.
Individual tickets and All-Access Badges for the in-theater experience—hosted at Savor Cinema Fort Lauderdale and Cinema Paradiso Hollywood—are now available. Virtual All-Access Passes can also be purchased for streaming access to the full digital lineup. To order an In-Theater All-Access VIP Badge, click here, to order a Virtual All-Access Pass, click here.
The post Popcorn Frights 2025 First Wave Includes Special Screening of ‘A Quiet Place’, Premieres, and More appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.
