Abertoir 2021: Welsh Horror Film Festival Unveils Lineup
Our friends at Abertoir, the Welsh horror film festival have let us know their plans for this year’s edition. Going with the hybrid version there is an in-person event during the first week of November in the coastal town of Aberystwyth. The following week there will be an online edition for three days.
Welsh horror film The Feast was already announced as the opening film for the festival. Welsh director Prano Baily-Bond will be present to talk about her award winning film Censor after a special screening at the festival.
Other festival hits include Lamb, Titane, and Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes. Other films to keep an eye out for include See For Me, an excellent home invasion thriller that I really like, and Ich-Chi, a folk horror film from rural Russia. Speaking of folk horror, Linda Hayden will attend screenings of two of her films, Taste the Blood of Dracula and Blood on Satan’s Claw.
Other rep screenings include Neil Brand performing his own accompaniment to the 1924 silent classic, The Hands of Orlac, screenings of two classic Hammer films, The Curse of Frankenstein and The Revenge of Frankenstein, and a double-bill of Paul Morrissey’s cult films Blood for Dracula and Flesh for Frankenstein.
It’s a bit of the old and a bit of the new, an excellent balance of contemporary hits and classic fare. And this was just the final batch of titles. Other hits like The Sadness, When I Consume You and Sweetie, You Won't Believe It are also on the docket of the in-person program. Looks like a great time will be had in Aberystwyth, Wales, in a few weeks.
ABERTOIR, WALES’ INTERNATIONAL HORROR FESTIVAL, UNVEILS ITS FULL PROGRAMME FOR HYBRID 2021 EVENTAbertoir Horror Festival takes place this year at Aberystwyth Arts Centre 2-7 November and online 12-14 November. Featuring nearly 40 brand new, unreleased feature films from Wales, Iceland, Russia, Kazakhstan, Taiwan, Japan, USA, Canada and more; Abertoir promises to be as expansive and bold as ever.Abertoir Horror Festival returns for its 16th edition in a hybrid format – a physical event, returning to Aberystwyth Arts Centre for the first time since before Covid-19, and a virtual event, providing access to those who cannot travel to attend.The festival opens November 2nd with the Welsh premiere of Gwledd (‘The Feast’), a brand new Welsh-language horror film which has been impressing audiences and critics at festivals all over the world. Director Lee Haven Jones, writer/producer Roger Williams, and stars Annes Elwy and Steffan Cennydd will be present at the screening for a post-film discussion. The celebration of Welsh horror is celebrated later in the festival with a special screening of the award-winning Censor, with its local director, Prano Bailey-Bond, present to discuss the film.Titane, Julia Ducournau’s much anticipated follow-up to the 2016 break-through Raw, and winner of Palme D’Or at Cannes, will close the physical part of the festival on November 7th, hot on the heels of screenings at BFI London Film Festival, Busan International Film Festival and Sitges Film Festival.Abertoir will present the UK premieres of Ich-Chi, an atmospheric folk horror film from the Yakutia region of Russia, presented primarily in the Yakut language; and Slumber Party Massacre, Danishka Esterhazy’s inventive reimagining of Amy Holden Jones and Rita Mae Brown’s 1982 slasher parody.Other recent festival highlights receiving their Welsh premieres include the haunting Icelandic folk horror tale Lamb; Ruth Paxton’s feature film debut A Banquet; intense home invasion thriller See For Me; Broadcast Signal Intrusion, starring Harry Shum Jr. (Crazy Rich Asians); and inventive time-travel comedy Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes.A long tradition of celebrating the classics of the horror genre is back in full force at Abertoir, with 2021’s guest of honour being Linda Hayden, who will attend alongside screenings of two of her most iconic films, Taste the Blood of Dracula and Blood on Satan’s Claw, followed by an in-depth interview with the actress about her incredible career.Acclaimed musician and historian Neil Brand will present on the history of sound and music in horror, as well as perform his own accompaniment to the 1924 silent classic, The Hands of Orlac.Author Tony Dalton will present a talk on his friend, Hammer Horror director Terence Fisher, following the publication of his authorised biography. The talk will be part of a special session including screenings of two classic Hammer films, The Curse of Frankenstein and The Revenge of Frankenstein.Abertoir will also host a double-bill of Paul Morrissey’s cult films Blood for Dracula and Flesh for Frankenstein, starring Udo Kier, in restored versions screening for the first time in Europe.The virtual part of the festival, starting November 12th, will include UK premieres of Straight to VHS, a fascinating documentary about a Uruguayan cult filmmaker that blurs the lines between fact and fiction; Don’t Say Its Name, a supernatural horror film made by and about the Indigenous people of Canada; and House of Snails, a Spanish film in which an author isolates himself to work in a strange community.The virtual programme will also include this year’s Short Film Competition. 23 short films from around the world are in competition this year, and the Abertoir audience will vote to decide a winner, with an additional Méliès d’argent awarded for the best European short. The Méliès d’argent is awarded by members of the Méliès International Festivals Federation and is widely recognised as one of the top awards in genre filmmaking.Virtual Q&As will include a conversation with director Jane Schoenbrun and star Anna Cobb of We’re All Going to the World’s Fair; and a Q&A after satirical horror comedy Keeping Company, with director/writer Josh Wallace, writer/actor Devin Das and actors Ahmed Bharoocha and Jacob Grodnik. Author Gavin Baddeley will present an irreverent look at iconic horror characters, starting with Frankenstein’s Monster, and special effects legend Paul Hyett will host a unique online special effects masterclass.The full festival schedule is available now on Abertoir’s website, as well as ticketing information. Full festival passes – allowing access to the physical and virtual events – are just £60, while virtual only passes start at £25. Individual tickets will be on sale soon for both parts of the festival. Abertoir is supported by Ffilm Cymru Wales, Film Hub Wales and Aberystwyth Arts Centre.
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