First Wave of Horror Films Announced for 2018 Popcorn Frights Film Festival

Get ready, South Florida, for some fuel for your nightmares. Popcorn Frights Film Festival, the Southeast's largest horror film festival, has announced its first wave of programming for the 2018 edition. The lineup includes world premieres, live performances, and special guests.

This year's festival will be held August 10 through 16 at Popcorn Frights' new home, Fort Lauderdale's Savor Cinema. "We viewed all the data and saw that a large population of our festivalgoers live in Broward. We'll have 150 more seats here, so we won't have to turn as many people away. Right next to Savor Cinema, there's a garage with free parking, so people won't have to spend as much money going to our screenings," Igor Shteyrenberg cofounder of the festival, said in an interview with New Times last month.

Opening night will offer a triple bill: Havana Darkness, the first English-language horror flick to be shot in Cuba; the Florida premiere of Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich; and Anna and the Apocalypse, which will be screened with an immersive live musical performance. "The live theater performance will feature actors dressed as Christmas-themed zombies singing tunes and interacting with the audience. It's going to be wild," Shteyrenberg promised.
Also on deck is a double feature of Chuck Russell-directed '80s movies. Russell himself will be in the theater to present a 30th-anniversary screening of The Blob and a 31st-anniversary screening of A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors. "Chuck Russell is flying out for this. He's a master of horror, one of the greats.
If you've never seen the remake of The Blob, there's nothing like it — all practical effects. It's out of this world."

Other movies announced include The Dark, Prospect, Boogeyman Pop, St. Agatha, Wolfman's Got Nards, What Keeps You Alive, and the charmingly titled Satan's Slaves. Another wave of films will be announced before the August opening.

Festival premiere badges, which grant entry to every single screening, are available at popcornfrights.com for $99 per person or $169 for a couple. Single screening tickets won't be available until July 2, which gives you time to build up courage to face Freddy Kruger and a myriad of other bloody maniacs.

Popcorn Frights Film Festival. August 10 through 16 at Savor Cinema, 503 SE Sixth St., Fort Lauderdale; popcornfrights.com. Badges cost $99 to $169; single ticket prices have yet to be announced.