Back like we never left, our annual showcase of NYC local shorts returns with a buffet of genre film goodness.

Red Flag, dir. Malin Barr, Cleo Handler; Be Bad, dir. Lauren Hart; By The Window, dir. Case Avron; Wild Animals, dir. David B Jacobs; I Prefer Monsters, dir. Dylan Brown; Tinkerhell, dir. Noah Sterling; Hammer, dir. Alejandra Parody, Ben Sottak; Stigmata, dir. Ben Gordon; Jump Cut, dir. James Martin Morrison

World Premiere

As a kid, Sayara’s father trained her in martial arts combat. As an adult, her skills are kept secret as she works as a janitor in an Istanbul gym. When her sister is killed by the gym owner’s and his powerful friends, Sayara channels her hidden talents to go on a revenge-obsessed, extremely gory warpath to make them pay. Returning to Brooklyn Horror after 2017’s Housewife (BHFF’s Opening Night Film that year), Turkish horror maverick Can Evrenol enhances his visually decadent brutality with unflinching social commentary for his most visceral film yet. -Matt Barone

Based on Sheridan Le Fanu’s seminal novella Carmilla, The Blood Spattered Bride holding up as one of Spanish horror’s best vampire films. On its surface, this sexually provocative classic centers on a woman whose new marriage is a bust, due to how much she loathes her domineering husband, and who finds solace with, not to mention sexual satisfaction and neck-draining from, a beautiful and seductive centuries-old bloodsucker. Beneath its visual splendor and kinky vampire elements, though, Vicente Aranda’s film is a sneakily shrewd dissection of his country’s fascism and gender politics. -Matt Barone

Starring: Lili Taylor, Christopher Walken, Annabella Sciorra, Edie Falco

A vampiric doctoral student tries to follow the philosophy of a nocturnal comrade and control her thirst for blood.

Starring: Shannon Beeby, Ryan Jonze, Jeffrey Combs, Erin Way

World Premiere

Haunted by a tragic accident in her past, Lilly lives as an exile on the outskirts of town. The ten year anniversary of this crushing event sends her guilt-ridden fractured mind over the edge, plunging her into a drug and booze fueled fever dream of conspiring townsfolk and supernatural terrors. Martin Melnick’s feature debut is highlighted by standout performances from Shannon Beeby and beloved icon Jeffrey Combs with striking cinematography courtesy of the director himself. -Joseph Hernandez

East Coast Premiere

Trying to navigate his way around a career-stalling controversy, filmmaker Jimmy is also at odds with lifelong best friend Stiggs, who resents Jimmy’s constant boozing and drug use. One possible path to reconciliation: Battling an army of aliens while trapped inside of Jimmy’s Los Angeles apartment. Deeming this answer to lo-fi splatter films like The Evil Dead and Bad Taste, Joe Begos taps back into his down-and-dirty-and-nasty Bliss energy for this single-location exercise in madcap insanity, wall-to-wall viscera and virtuoso camerawork. -Matt Barone

Starring: Andi Hubick, Andrew Chown, Beatrice Schneider, JoAnn Nordstrom, Molly Lewis, Anna Mirodin, Cara Pifko

Fans of anthology series like The Twilight Zone and Creepshow, here’s one for you. Based on stories found in Reddit’s No Sleep community, Screambox’s Tales from the Void stakes its claim in the horror omnibus canon with a modern, Internet-minded lens and an impressive lineup of indie genre filmmakers. Brooklyn Horror will present the world premieres of two episodes, the maternal nightmare “Carry” (directed by Maritte Lee Go) and the children’s sleepover tale “Whistle in the Woods” (directed by Francesco Loschiavo), as well as “Plastic Smile,” a creepy doll showstopper from BHFF alums John Adams and Toby Poser (Where the Devil Roams). -Matt Barone

East Coast Premiere

To his friends’ surprise, Louie invites his fiance Irene to join them at his bachelor party. As the bizarre night progresses, alarming facts about their relationship come to light, and what begins as debaucherous partying free falls into full-on madness. The wild feature debut from co-directors Jack Clark and Jim Weir, BIRDEATER is pure psychological and social dread that’ll have you absolutely squirming. -Joseph Hernandez

Starring: Sterling Macer Jr., John Fleck, Tomas Boykin, Micki Jackson, Nick Heyman

New York premiere

A blood-stained note arrives at a county post office, leading its experienced “dead letter” mailroom clerk and his associates down a perilous path to discover its origins. Meanwhile, an entrepreneurial synthesizer engineer enters a precarious partnership with an overbearing investor. Perfectly capturing an authentic retro aesthetic, Joe DeBoer and Kyle McConaghy’s indie horror-synth thriller is a total gem and should launch this directing team into the stratosphere. -Joseph Hernandez

Starring: Salvatore Papa, Arturo Pirovano, Giuseppe de Liguoro, Pier Delle Vigne, Augusto Milla

L’Inferno (1911) is the first feature length horror film ever released. An adaptation of Dante’s classic journey through hell, this masterpiece of silent film employs elaborate costumes, special effects, and set design to create an awe-inspiring and ethereal world. The original Montopolis score brings new life to this horror classic with a mix of psych rock, dark wave and terrifying sound effects performed live. Montopolis is following up their critically acclaimed tour of Man with a Movie Camera with a national arthouse cinema tour of L’inferno in 2024.