POPCORN FRIGHTS UNVEILS FIRST WAVE OF PROGRAMMING FOR 11TH EDITION – 19 PREMIERES, 9 SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS, AND 11 NIGHTS OF PURE UNFILTERD TERROR COMING TO SOUTH FLORIDA AUGUST 7-17!

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 August 7-17, 2025

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 August 7-17 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, click here, to order a Virtual All-Access Pass, click here.

Submissions for this year’s festival are still open via Film Freeway through the final deadline of July 18. 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
*Director Brandon Christensen expected in person

OPENING NIGHT DOUBLE-BILL
Night of the Reaper
World Premiere
USA | 2025 | Dir. Brandon Christensen
*Director Brandon Christensen expected in person

American Cryptids
World Premiere
USA | 2025 | Dir. Erynn Dalton
*Director Erynn Dalton & screenwriter Joseph Zettelmaier expected in person

Blood Shine
World Premiere
USA | 2025 | Dirs. Emily Bennett & Justin Brooks
*Directors Emily Bennett & Justin Brooks expected in person

Hacked
South Florida Premiere
USA | 2025 | Dir. Shane Brady
*Director Shane Brady, actors Chandler Riggs, Owen Atlas, and Collin Thompson, along with producer Emily Zircher expected in person

Mermaid
Southeast US Premiere
USA | 2025 | Dir. Tyler Cornack

Teacher’s Pet
East Coast Premiere
USA | 2025 | Dir. Noam Kroll
*Actress Barbara Crampton expected in person

To All the Books
World Premiere
USA | 2025 | Dir. Josh Malerman
*Director Josh Malerman and producer Scott Beck & Bryan Woods expected in person

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
*Screenwriters Scott Beck & Bryan Woods and author Josh Malerman expected in person

From Beyond
Straight Outta Crampton Triple-Bill Event
USA | 1986 | Dir. Stuart Gordon
*Actress Barbara Crampton expected in person

Mr. Melvin
Troma-Sized Festival Premiere
USA | 2025 | Dir. Lloyd Kaufman
*Director Lloyd Kaufman expected in person

Night of the Demons
The Queen of Screams Triple-Bill Event
USA | 1980 | Dir. William Lustig
*Actress Linnea Quigley expected in person

Nightmare Beach
Special Outdoor Beach Presentation
Italy | 1989 | Dirs. James Justice & Umberto Lenzi
*Director William Lustig expected in person

The Phantom of the Opera
A Tale of Two Phantoms Double-Bill Event
Centennial Anniversary, 2K Restoration
USA | 1925 | Dir. Rupert Julian
*Live Original Score Performance by Slavvy

Phantom of the Paradise
A Tale of Two Phantoms Double-Bill Event
USA | 1974 | Dir. Brian De Palma
*Swan Principal Archivist Ari Kahan expected in person

Re-Animator
Straight Outta Crampton Triple-Bill Event
40th Anniversary, 4K Restoration
USA | 1985 | Dir. Stuart Gordon
*Actress Barbara Crampton expected in person

The Return of the Living Dead
The Queen of Screams Triple-Bill Event
40th Anniversary, 4K Restoration
USA | 1985 | Dir. Dan O’Bannon
*Actress Linnea Quigley expected in person

Silent Night, Deadly Night
The Queen of Screams Triple-Bill Event
USA | 1984 | Dir. Charles E. Sellier Jr.
*Actress Linnea Quigley expected in person