When I first started working on my regional horror films book, I had no idea I was tapping into some latent fascination with organizing horror films geographically. Apparently, a few film programmers also share this affliction. First there was the Doc Films festival a few years ago, and now Cinefamily (a Los Angeles theater) offers up its "United States of Horror" festival the entire month of October (I'm a little late to the party, so you've already missed some of the films).
Every night at Midnight, the theater is showing a film from one of (almost) 30 different states. While a few of the selections are not the type of independent regional films we concern ourselves with on this blog, the line-up is outstanding.
Among the highlights so far were a screening of Chester Turner's Black Devil Doll From Hell and Tales From the Quadead Zone, with the director in attendance (sorry, it happened back on Oct. 12), as well as screenings of Death Bed (Michigan), Homebodies (Ohio), Abby (Kentucky), and Winterbeast (Massachusetts).
If you are lucky enough to be in L.A. at any point the rest of this month, check out the upcoming schedule:
Oct. 17 - Dark August (Vermont)
Oct. 18 - Last House on Dead End Street (New York)
Oct. 19 - Basket Case (New York)
Oct. 20 - The Deadly Spawn (New Jersey)
Oct. 21 - The Alien Factor (Maryland)
Oct. 22 - Squirm (Georgia)
Oct. 23 - Shakma and Shock Waves (Florida)
Oct. 24 - If Footmen Tire You, What Will Horses Do? (Mississippi)
Oct. 26 - The Evil Dead (Tennessee)
Oct. 27 - The Town That Dreaded Sundown (Arkansas)
Oct. 28 - Eaten Alive (Texas)
Oct. 29 - Endangered Species (Colorado)
Oct. 30 - The Brotherhood of Satan (New Mexico)
Oct. 31 - Chopping Mall (Southern California) - with an appearance by director Jim Wynorski
Wow, that sounds like it was amazing. Wish I could have been there....sadly I'm an East Coaster.
ReplyDeleteInteresting. Bought your book from Amazon about a month ago & have thoroughly enjoyed it, & as it happens the absence of Brotherhood of Satan (filmed, according to the IMDb, in both New Mexico & California, the latter of which might make it off-limits under your guidelines) was something I've been meaning to ask about.
ReplyDeleteOthers I'm curious about would be Witchmaker (1969, filmed in Marksville, La.) & The House of Dreams (1963, filmed in Decker, Ind.)
Dan