Dead by Dawn horror fest, Edinburgh, April 21st-24th

[cynix]

Just got this update from the mailing list...

So it's finally time to start announcing what's going into Dead by Dawn 2005. Although the programme isn't complete yet (still waiting on news on some titles...), here's a taster of what you can look forward to!

There are two fantastic takes on escalating urban nightmares. One is the UK Premiere of THE DARK HOURS from Canadian film-maker Paul Fox - the story of a shrink with whose hipocratic oath hasn't stopped her from testing a potential cure in a non-FDA-approved drug on one of her seriously unstable patients. Sadly for her and those she loves, he survives long enough to start asking some deeply unpleasant questions. It all culminates in a game of truth or dare. Which he insists on playing with a pair of pliers...

Another glorious discovery is Jim McMahon's movie BLOODSHED. On an American farm, a man and his traumatised younger brother try to survive in the wake of a family tragedy. Only, malicious local gossip has it that the brothers murdered their parents. Who knows. They certainly seem a bit odd. Anyway, happily for horror movie fans, a bunch of arrogant local teens decide to taunt the brothers and as is the way of these things, incur the wrath of two men capable of much worse than even the rumours could ever guess. www.drainbamagefilms.com Director Jim McMahon, his co-writer, the leads and other cast and crew will introduce and discuss this World Premiere.

Remember a great Irish short called Braineater we showed a few years back? Well. they're back with a follow up debut feature DEAD MEAT. Synopsis - a zombie invasion happens to a bunch of unsuspecting farmers. Think what would happen if Gary Larsson's cows went bad

There's an indie Japanese feature GUSHER NO BINDS ME (THE BOTTLED FOOLS) which is a bizarre little claustrophobic, skin-crawly surreal nightmare...as if lifts weren't horrible enough already.

From Germany, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DORKS. Now the title might not inspire the most enthusiasm, but it really is the funniest German horror-comedy since Premutos. It made me laugh out loud. Ok, so it's the only German horror-comedy since Premutos...but still, it's so much fun.

Also there's Jeff "Squirm" Lieberman's return to the genre, SATAN'S LITTLE HELPER which is remarkably sick (who the hell else would wrap Amanda Plummer in clingfilm?) and deeply twisted.

Alex Turner's excellent civil war horror movie DEAD BIRDS, after screening at Midnight Madness in Toronto gets its UK Premiere.

As for guests, apart from the ones already announced here, we'll be joined by the very lovely KEN FOREE (From Beyond, Romero's Dawn of the Dead).

On the short film front there are two retrospectives from two British directors who rock.

One is a retrospective of Sam Walker's work. Sam is the right kind of twisted. Just wait till you see these three shorts - DUCK CHILDREN, POOL SHARK and TEA BREAK. The first will make you feel so wrong, the second is for just when you thought you'd got over Jaws and the third seems to be the result of someone who's had too much time on their hands and bile in their blood while stuck in a temp job... Sam, his writer and art director will all be here to intro and discuss his work.

Second is a retrospective of Robert Morgan's work. We'll be showing all four of his films, which will include a chance to see SEPARATION again, along with THE MAN IN THE LOWER LEFT HAND CORNER OF THE PHOTOGRAPH, THE CAT WITH HANDS and his first fully live-action short, MONSTERS. Robert will be here to intro and discuss his work.

This year, the festival is also going to include a series of short films which aren't technically horror films. The fact is that we thought long and hard about including these films because although these aren't what wouldn't traditionally defined as horror movies, they are horrific. With any horror film, we hope to make everyone feel vulnerable, unsettled and upset, to varying degrees and these four films will do exactly that, so with that in mind, there's a section called WHAT YOU MAKE IT.

Elsewhere in the shorts programme there's a film to stop you using tweezers ever again, proof that you should NEVER stop for petrol in the middle of nowhere, a lesson from hell in being a better roommate, reasons why you should never try to take credit for the devil's work, some seriously nasty scarecrow business, something to put you off surgery (and relationships) for life, an old-fashioned dark-and-stormy-night ghost story, the sneaky truth about corporate competition, lessons in home protection and yet more reasons why the countryside should be avoided at all costs.. Amongst many other things

Neil Marshall, that fecking lovely man who made the sublime Dog Soldiers, is in the process of editing his new movie THE DESCENT but although the film won't be ready in time for the festival, he will be here to introduce the trailer (Dead by Dawn audience will be the first people anywhere to see it) and to do a Q&A too.

There'll be more fun trailers, we're just not gonna tell you when

There's a ton more stuff to announce, and if all my recent nagging pays off, you'll get an update next week.

Cheers
Adele

Adele Hartley
Festival Director
Dead by Dawn, Scotland's International Horror Film Festival
12th edition - 21-24 April, 2005
in association with Filmhouse (www.filmhousecinema.com)
Member of the European Fantastic Film Festivals Federation (www.melies.org)
Mail: 88 Lothian Road, Edinburgh EH3 9BZ
T: +44 (0)7980 98 77 79 / F: +44 (0)131 229 6482
www.deadbydawn.co.uk