35th anniversary, Uncut and Uncensored 4K restoration.

It was a dicey proposition for longtime George A. Romero friend and collaborator Tom Savini: Remake Romero’s game-changing zombie classic NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD for a new generation. As fans in 1990 learned, Savini was the right man for the job, honoring the original film while also tweaking and modernizing its characters in all the right ways. The result: One of the best horror remakes ever made. For the film’s 35th anniversary, Brooklyn Horror is thrilled to present a special screening of the newly Savini-approved “uncut” version of NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD ’90. —Matt Barone

Featuring an introduction by cinematographer Ernest Dickerson. 35th anniversary.

Joel is a minister in training who has a crisis in faith, so he leaves his small town in North Carolina to visit his friend K in New York. Joel quickly becomes a target of a gorgeous succubus who targets men in the club scene and K must try and save him before he becomes her next meal. DEF BY TEMPTATION is a 90s touchstone that is as smart as it is witty. You’ll have a blast watching this monstrous femme tear through lecherous men. —Tori Potenza

Featuring a post-screening discussion with Ernest Dickerson. Leviathan Award presentation, 30th anniversary screening.

It’s truly the night from Hell inside a seedy New Mexico boarding house. Mysterious drifter Frank Brayker (William Sadler) has just checked in and brought with him the wrath of a charming and sadistic demon known as The Collector (Billy Zane) and his horde of ghoulish minions, putting Frank’s life, as well as the lives of the house’s colorful crew of inhabitants (including Jada Pinkett and Thomas Haden Church), in mortal danger.

The first theatrical TALES FROM THE CRYPT PRESENTS film, the wild and gruesome DEMON KNIGHT cemented director Ernest Dickerson as a horror powerhouse, adding to his already decorated resume as a veteran cinematographer (with credits that include Spike Lee’s DO THE RIGHT THING and MALCOM X) and feature filmmaker (having first turned heads with his excellent 1992 directorial debut, the Tupac-Shakur-led drama JUICE). The Newark, New Jersey, native and NYU grad has also blessed the horror genre with countless gems post-DEMON KNIGHT: the underrated Blaxploitation throwback BONES (2001), the MASTERS OF HORROR episode “The V Word,” and several critically acclaimed episodes of AMC’s THE WALKING DEAD, among other works. To salute his great contributions to the genre we all love, Brooklyn Horror is privileged to welcome Dickerson to the festival for this special 30th anniversary screening of DEMON KNIGHT, which will include the presentation of our Leviathan Award and a post-film Q&A. —Matt Barone

Featuring a post-screening Q&A with director Lily-Hayes Kaufman and cast/crew TBA.

It’s 2017 and Lyoyd Kaufman and his faithful Troma team are once again storming the streets of the Cannes Film Festival to promote their latest work. Surrounded by costly studio billboards and installations, Troma’s signature attention stealing street-level marketing tactics are now being met with constant opposition by police leaving this found family wondering if their days of championing independent film are over. This intimate documentary explores the New York institution’s complicated 50+ year legacy and their defiant stance in support of artistic freedom for all. —Joseph Hernandez

Four Brooklyn Horror feature film veterans return to the festival with excellent new short films, each rooted in classic literary inspirations; more specifically, a trio of classic fairy tales remixed and a chilling Algernon Blackwood adaptation.

The Sleeping Beauty, dir. Mattie Do (USA, Thailand, Laos); Jaques the Giant Slayer, dir. Justin Benson, Aaron Moorhead (USA); Cinderella, dir. Adam Egypt Mortimer (USA); The Occupant of the Room, dir. Kier-La Janisse (Canada)

Featuring a post-screening discussion with the filmmakers.

NYC is home to some of the best genre filmmaking on the planet and it’s Brooklyn Horror’s proud honor to showcase this cold hard fact every year with our locals-only Home Invasion program.

The Binding; dir. Ryan Kennedy; Y.M.G., dir. Alexandra Warrick; Brian Won’t Wear Condoms, dir. Genna Edwards; The Man & the Scarecrow, dir. Justin Knoepfel; Some Dark Matter, dir. Molly Fisher; You Have Her Eyes, dir. Jordan Sommerlad, Cory Stonebrook; Rebrand, dir. Edoardo Ranaboldo

Featuring a post-screening Q&A with the filmmakers.

Brooklyn Horror’s signature celebration of genre-bending horror is back with a fresh dose of short-form innovation, including coming-of-age trauma, a harrowing depiction of witchcraft accusations and the worst game night imaginable.

Overgrown, dir. Nathan Ginter (USA); Far from the Plains, dir. Luigi Sibona (UK); Barlebas, dir. Malu Janssen (Belgium, Netherlands); Would You Rather, dir. Sophie O’Donovan (Ireland); Metal, dir. Samuel McIntosh (USA); Belloe, dir. Jayden Rathsam Hua (Australia)

Screening on 35mm

Refusing to sell his property to a local mob boss, a nightclub owner is brutally murdered by the mobster’s goons, leaving his wife thirsty for revenge. Her desired method: Using a voodoo priestess’s skills to summon a small army of the living dead. With that delightfully twisted set-up, the Blaxploitation knockout SUGAR HILL goes to town in delivering one hell of a good time with pure sleaze, shock, and figurative tongue firmly planted in cheek. One of the better ’70s horror films that folks don’t talk about enough, it’s a no-brainer for Brooklyn Horror’s “Zombies!” sidebar that we’re excited to screen in glorious 35mm. —Matt Barone

Fans of animated psychedelia, this one’s for you. Provocative and phantasmagoric in equal measure, BELLADONNA OF SADNESS is a triumph of unique animation and uncompromising storytelling, following a young woman who conspires with the Devil himself, taking the form of an elf, to seek vengeance on the sinister overlord who raped her, turning her into a black-robed agent of destruction. With its watercolor-esque visuals, surreal energy and explicit edge, director Eiichi Yamamoto’s film is the perfect animated midnight movie and ripe for a rediscovery. —Matt Barone

4K restoration

In celebration of Heavy Metal magazine’s triumphant return to print, Brooklyn Horror is proud to present the influential adult animation classic HEAVY METAL in a beautiful 4K restoration. Replicating the experience of reading an issue of the revered magazine, this anthology style film tells the tale of an evil green orb that infects the lives of all who dare to cross its path. Helping bring the pages to life is an all-star creative team including the likes of Bernie Wrightson, Dan O’Bannon and Ivan Reitman. —Joseph Hernandez