POPCORN FRIGHTS UNVEILS FIRST WAVE OF PROGRAMMING FOR 11TH EDITION – 19 PREMIERES, 9 SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS, AND 11 NIGHTS OF PURE UNFILTERED TERROR COMING TO SOUTH FLORIDA AUGUST -!
Highlights include the World Premiere double-bill of Shudder’s BODYCAM and NIGHT OF THE REAPER, the electrifying arrival of Barbara Crampton for a “Straight Outta Crampton” screamfest triple-bill, Lloyd Kaufman presents in person a radioactive MR. MELVIN premiere and Troma trivia chaos, Linnea Quigley returns with three 80s horror cult classics, a live A Quiet Place commentary event with screenwriter Beck/Woods, a one-night-only “A Tale of Two Phantoms” celebration featuring a live score to THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA and a surprise-filled screening of Brian De Palma’s PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE, plus 19 blood-soaked premieres, 9 epic special presentations, and a Florida Focus spotlight with killer mermaids, THE WALKING DEAD’s Chandler Riggs, and a beachside screening of NIGHTMARE BEACH on the very sands where it was filmed.
The Eleventh Annual Popcorn Frights Film Festival will be a hybrid experience presenting both in-theater and virtual film offerings from -.
Horror lives here, and it’s aliiiive! This summer, it’s bigger, bloodier, and bolder than ever as the 11th Annual Popcorn Frights Film Festival returns for an electrifying 11-day takeover of South Florida. As the Southeast’s largest genre celebration, Popcorn Frights is unleashing its most thrilling program yet with the reveal of its highly anticipated First Wave lineup, featuring 19 film premieres and 9 special presentations that bring together horror royalty, cult icons, and scream queens for a cinematic experience with the volume cranked all the way up.
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, whose latest films will be releasing on Shudder and are primed to shred nerves. Buckle up for BODYCAM, a supernatural shocker that follows two cops whose routine call spirals into an unrelenting nightmare filled with cults, curses, and pure pulse-pounding terror. That terror only deepens with NIGHT OF THE REAPER, a synth-soaked, blood-splattered homage to 80s slasher classics, where a quiet Midwestern town is rocked by a babysitter murder—and the killer is just getting started.
Popcorn Frights is also rolling out the red carpet for horror royalty with the arrival of Barbara Crampton, who’s headlining the festival’s special “Straight Outta Crampton” triple-bill screamfest. The program includes the 40th anniversary 4K restoration of Stuart Gordon’s horror masterpiece RE-ANIMATOR, the gloriously grotesque FROM BEYOND, and the East Coast Premiere of TEACHER’S PET, a razor-sharp thriller about a dangerously obsessive teacher and his brilliant student.
But wait… it gets weirder! Cult icon Lloyd Kaufman crashes the festival with a Troma-sized bang to premiere MR. MELVIN, a monstrous reimagining of THE TOXIC AVENGER PART II & III, now fused into one epic radioactive narrative just as Kaufman and Michael Herz originally envisioned. And because no Troma experience is complete without chaos, Lloyd Kaufman will host a raucous Troma-themed horror trivia event before the screening that promises prizes, laughs, and complete cinematic anarchy.
The horror legends keep coming as scream queen Linnea Quigley rises from the dead to lead a triple-bill straight from the fiery depths of 80s horror, made possible by the generous support of Flick Direct. She’ll appear in person to present her most legendary roles, including the yuletide slasher SILENT NIGHT, DEADLY NIGHT, the splatterific cult gem NIGHT OF THE DEMONS, and the 40th Anniversary 4K restoration of THE RETURN OF THE LIVING DEAD, bringing punk rock, brains, and buckets of gore back to the big screen.
Popcorn Frights continues its tradition of championing bold voices in horror with a slate of world premieres, including BLOOD SHINE, a deeply twisted folk-horror tale from filmmakers Emily Bennett & Justin Brooks and producers Aaron B. Koontz & Cameron Burns. Complimenting the feature event will be the world premiere of Emily’s new short AFFIRMATION, a disquieting psychological thriller shot in a single take. Also making its world premiere is TO ALL THE BOOKS, a behind-the-scenes personal documentary from New York Times bestselling author Josh Malerman (BIRD BOX), who will be joined by acclaimed filmmakers and Popcorn Frights alums Scott Beck & Bryan Woods (HERETIC) for a post-screening conversation.
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.
Phantom fans can rejoice at the double-dose spectacle “A Tale of Two Phantoms,” celebrating 100 years of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA with a live original score by genre-bending artist Slavvy (TERRIFIER 2 & 3), followed by a raucous presentation of Brian De Palma’s PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE, complete with a surprise to thrill even the most die-hard Phantom Phans.
Rooted in the festival’s home turf, the ever-popular Florida Focus program puts a spotlight on local horror with the world premiere of AMERICAN CRYPTIDS, directed by Popcorn Frights alum Erynn Dalton and starring Anne Bobby (Clive Barker’s NIGHTBREED), alongside the eerie mermaid folklore shocker MERMAID, and the Tampa-set vigilante techno-thriller HACKED, starring Chandler Riggs (THE WALKING DEAD). To top it off, the fest will host an outdoor beach screening of NIGHTMARE BEACH right on the very sands where the 80s slasher was filmed.
And for horror fans across the country, Popcorn Frights’ acclaimed virtual program returns with more than 20 streaming films, headlined by the world premiere of the emotionally raw Chilean horror WHAT THE TIDE DRAGGED IN, the US premiere of the psychological frightfest EL INSTINTO hailing from Spain, and Southeast US premieres of found-footage thriller ALAN AT NIGHT, dark comedy THE EDITING, Kafkaesque nightmare HEAD LIKE A HOLE, grotesque outbreak thriller ITCH!, and Hungarian ghost story TOMORROW I DIE. The virtual slate also features the East Coast premiere of sci-fi horror PSYCHE, and the Florida premieres of HOUSE OF ASHES and IN THE MOUTH, each pushing the genre envelope in thrilling new directions and designed to blow your genre-loving mind.
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.
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, visit the official Popcorn Frights badge page. To purchase a Virtual All-Access Pass, go to the virtual access section.
Submissions for this year’s festival are still open via Film Freeway through the final deadline of . Shorts, features, documentaries, animation, film, and video — all are welcome and can be submitted at the link: https://filmfreeway.com/popcornfrights
The eleventh edition of the Popcorn Frights Film Festival is made possible with the support of its generous sponsors, including AGFA, Blue Underground, Fangoria, Flick Direct, Kino Cult, MVD, Paramount Scares, Radiance Films, Troma, and its loyal fans.
IN-THEATER FEATURE FILM LINEUP
(First Wave):
OPENING NIGHT DOUBLE-BILL
Bodycam – World Premiere – USA | 2025 | Dir. Brandon Christensen
Night of the Reaper – World Premiere – USA | 2025 | Dir. Brandon Christensen
American Cryptids – World Premiere – USA | 2025 | Dir. Erynn Dalton
Blood Shine – World Premiere – USA | 2025 | Dirs. Emily Bennett & Justin Brooks
Hacked – South Florida Premiere – USA | 2025 | Dir. Shane Brady
Mermaid – Southeast US Premiere – USA | 2025 | Dir. Tyler Cornack
Teacher’s Pet – East Coast Premiere – USA | 2025 | Dir. Noam Kroll
To All the Books – World Premiere – USA | 2025 | Dir. Josh Malerman
VIRTUAL FEATURE FILM LINEUP
(First Wave):
Alan at Night – Southeast US Premiere – USA | 2025 | Dir. Jesse Swenson
The Editing – Southeast US Premiere – France | 2025 | Dir. Audouin Rascovsky
El Instinto – US Premiere – USA | 2024 | Dir. Juan Albarracin
Head Like a Hole – Southeast US Premiere – USA | 2024 | Dir. Stefan MacDonald-Labelle
House of Ashes – Florida Premiere – USA | 2024 | Dir. Izzy Lee
In the Mouth – Florida Premiere – USA | 2024 | Dir. Cory Santilli
Itch! – Southeast US Premiere – USA | 2024 | Dir. Bari Kang
Psyche – East Coast Premiere – USA | 2024 | Dir. Stephon Stewart
Tomorrow I Die – Southeast US Premiere – Hungary | 2024 | Dir. Nikol Cibulya
What the Tide Dragged In – World Premiere – Chile | 2025 | Dir. Patricio Valladares
RETRO FILM LINEUP
(First Wave):
A Quiet Place – Live Commentary Special Presentation – USA | 2018 | Dir. John Krasinski
From Beyond – Straight Outta Crampton Triple-Bill Event – USA | 1986 | Dir. Stuart Gordon
Mr. Melvin – Troma-Sized Festival Premiere – USA | 2025 | Dir. Lloyd Kaufman
Night of the Demons – The Queen of Screams Triple-Bill Event – USA | 1988 | Dir. Kevin Tenney
Nightmare Beach – Special Outdoor Beach Presentation – Italy | 1989 | Dirs. James Justice & Umberto Lenzi
The Phantom of the Opera – A Tale of Two Phantoms Double-Bill Event – USA | 1925 | Dir. Rupert Julian
Phantom of the Paradise – A Tale of Two Phantoms Double-Bill Event – USA | 1974 | Dir. Brian De Palma
Re-Animator – Straight Outta Crampton Triple-Bill Event – USA | 1985 | Dir. Stuart Gordon
The Return of the Living Dead – The Queen of Screams Triple-Bill Event – USA | 1985 | Dir. Dan O’Bannon
Silent Night, Deadly Night – The Queen of Screams Triple-Bill Event – USA | 1984 | Dir. Charles E. Sellier Jr.