Featuring a post-screening Q&A with writer/director James Ross II.
Riley suffers from disturbing night terrors where a demonic entity hunts her through a hellish maze. When her best friend suddenly goes missing, she fears the demon may have followed her into the real world. Ambitious and certifiably creepy, PARASOMNIA is a smartly structured and visually haunting feature debut from James Ross II. —Joseph Hernandez
Starring: Steve Oram, Margaux Dietrich, Sahajak Boonthanakit
A British pastor, living in Bangkok with his wife and young daughter, sees his tranquil life upended when a viral video showing extreme animal cruelty leads to his daughter’s kidnapping. To find and rescue her, he’ll have to put his faith to the test and confront the city’s darkest corners. No stranger to savage and bleak storytelling, iconoclastic British filmmaker Simon Rumley (RED, WHITE & BLUE; BHFF 2017 selection FASHIONISTA) plunges viewers straight down into the depths of mankind’s depravity and emerges with one of the grimmest yet most profound psychological horror films of the year. —Matt Barone
Left with severe memory loss following a horrific accident, Diana enters a mysterious experimental treatment plan with the support of her loving husband Homer. The isolation of the hospital, peculiar methods and exceedingly delirious visions lead Diana to wonder, what the hell is really going on here? Quirky and inventive dark fantasy grounded in comically relatable relationship dynamics, HONEY BUNCH marks an exciting sophomore effort for directors Madeleine Sims-Fewer and Dusty Mancinelli and a beastly acting showcase for rising star Grace Glowicki. —Joseph Hernandez
The formation of a human pyramid in a high school soccer field portents a deadly city-wide hive mind —groups of people wielding murderous gymnastics formations to swallow up anyone who rebels against the whole. Just as bonkers as it sounds and then some, director Yuta Shimotsu has made good on the exciting promise of his disturbing debut feature BEST WISHES TO ALL, following it up with an imaginative fascist take-down that also feels like a new Junji Ito nightmare come to life. —Joseph Hernandez
Brooklyn Horror has been lucky enough to partner with the incredibly talented band The Flushing Remonstrance and we are excited to have them back once again as we both celebrate our 10 year anniversaries. This year the band will be scoring the cult silent film classic Häxan which details the horrors of the witch trials in Eastern Europe. —Tori Potenza
Starring: Rose-Marie Perreault
Stricken by insomnia, new mother Pénélope goes for a walk one night with her baby and unexpectedly ends up in the middle of a robbery. The aftermath of this traumatic event is even worse than the incident itself as Pénélope struggles through sleepless nights and suffers from terrifying hallucinations and her unraveling mind. First-time feature director Chloé Cinq-Mars utilizes an exceptionally disturbing sound design and her own confident technical execution to deliver a potent examination of postpartum psychological horror. —Matt Barone
Featuring a post-screening Q&A with the director Connor Marsden.
Living in an alternate 1980s filled with graffiti-covered squalor and danger around every corner, antihero Henry Violence (Rohan Campbell, HALLOWEEN ENDS) comes to the rescue of his former lover as she sinks deeper into their no-hope world of drugs and crime. Unfortunately, Henry must double-cross a powerful drug lord in the process, setting into motion a kinetic parade of blood-drenched carnage. Never letting up with its vibrant punk energy, writer-director Connor Marsden’s visually pulsating and thoroughly grimy VIOLENCE is a fully lived-in, cinematic shotgun blast of action-heavy horror. —Matt Barone
Featuring a post-screening Q&A with writer/director Avalon Fast, producer Taylor Nodrick and producer Jacob Glickman.
Emily’s life has been scarred by tragedy and she needs to get away. Persuaded by her dad she decides to go to a remote Christian summer camp to work as a counselor for the summer and meets a group of girls that exhibit a confidence and power she is impossibly drawn to. CAMP is an ethereal dreamy sophomore feature from one of the most exciting up and coming filmmakers, Avalon Fast. —Tori Potenza
Featuring a post-screening Q&A with director Kurtis David Harder and cast members Cassandra Naud and Emily Tennant.
Identity snatching carnage goes twice as hard in Kurtis David Harder’s direct sequel to his 2022 hit, INFLUENCER. Now living in Southern France with newfound love, CW tries to leave her dark tendencies behind but old habits die hard when spoiled IG content creator Charlotte (Georgina Campbell, BARABARIAN) and a familiar face from her past threaten to destroy her best laid plans. Thematically bolder and gleefully maniacal, INFLUENCERS provides a major expansion to the world of the original while holding true to its cautionary tale spirit. —Joseph Hernandez
Starring: Josh Fadem, James Urbaniak, Tipper Newton, Vera Drew, John Ennis, Barbara Crampton
Featuring a post-screening Q&A with director Mickey Reece.
One day, office worker Joe’s (Josh Fadem) life is as mundane as it gets; the next day, though, he’s witnessed a murder and put at the center of a string of missing women reports and in the crosshairs of a serial killer whose unorthodox methods are tech-forward and psychologically warped. The latest dose of idiosyncratic excellence from indie maverick Mickey Reece, EVERY HEAVY THING blends sharp, pitch-black comedy with serial killer horror flourishes, unpredictable narrative turns, and a strong cast that includes Barbara Crampton and Vera Drew. —Matt Barone
