We announce the Official Selections of the category BEST FEATURE FILM of DarkVeins Horror Fest 2023, a festival dedicated to horror cinema and now in its seventh year.
The DarkVeins Horror Fest is an international event dedicated to horror, dark, gothic, extreme genre cinematography and is curated by the Dark Circle Cultural Association.
As a reminder, in recent days the Official Selections for Best Poster and Best Trailer.
Other Official Selections will be announced in the coming days.
Among the films competing in the category BEST FEATURE FILM, in this seventh edition of the DarkVeins Horror Fest 2023 The following feature films were selected:
- Happy Halloween (USA - 2023) by Brittney Greer;
- A Black Sky in Station 13 (Belgium - 2023) by Arno Pluque;
- Cannibal Mukbang (USA - 2023) by Aimee Kuge;
- Eight Eyes (USA - 2023) by Austin Jennings;
- Pantafa (Italy - 2023) by Emanuele Scaringi;
- Wolf Hollow (USA - 2023) by Mark Cantu;
- Wild Bones (UK - 2022) by Jack James;
- The Sound of Summer (Japan - 2022) by Guy.
Below is more info on the finalist films:
Happy Halloween (USA - 2023):
Produced, written and directed by Brittney Greer, Happy Halloween Is a horror slasher about the night of October 31.
The cast includes Emma Reinagel, Aline O'Neill, Graham Weldin, Cameron Mabie, Jack Cathcart, Mickey Stone, Teri Austin, Jennifer Buttell, Kodie Brown, Chloe Jewell, Gabriel Richard Hazlett, and Seth Sims.
The soundtrack is by Chris Porcelli while the VFX are by Ryan Smith and Darrell Claunch.
A Black Sky in Station 13 (Belgium - 2023):
A Black Sky in Station 13 is a drama-horror written and directed by Arno Pluquet and stars Hugues Hausman.
In A Black Sky in Station 13 the actor is Bob, a man who lives with his brother Simon and has his father in a vegetative state following a serious accident. Bob avoids all contact with society by shutting himself away more and more. Obsessed with aliens and constantly seeking contact with another world, Bob hopes to find the woman of his dreams who will accompany him to another galaxy.
Cannibal Mukbang (USA - 2023):
Cannibal Mukbang is a horror film produced, written and directed by Aimee Kuge, here directing her first feature film.
This is a female-driven story and features an introverted nerd who finds himself dangerously caught up in the crazy world of Mukbang after falling madly in love with a mysterious woman...
The film explores the relationship with food, sexuality and revenge and leads to the question, "How far would someone go for love?"
In the cast: April Consalo, Nate Wise and Clay von Carlowitz.
Eight Eyes (USA - 2023):
Written by Matt Frink and directed by Austin Jennings, Eight Eyes is a horror film that draws on 1970s genre cinema. The film is produced by Justin A. Martell (Subspecies V: Blood Rise) and Matt Manjourides (Castle Freak).
The story features a couple who embark on a journey through the former Yugoslavia but end up experiencing an interminable and frightening nightmare when a mysterious local resident offers to be their guide.
In the cast: Emily SweetKey (V/H/S/99), Bradford Thomas (Cannibal Mukbang) and Bruno Veljanovski (Subspecies V: Blood Rise).
Pantafa (Italy - 2023):
Pantafa is a folk horror film about sleep paralysis. The film is directed by Emanuele Scaringi (The Prophecy of the Armadillo) and stars Polish actress and model Kasia Smutniak.
The title refers to the "pantafa" or "pantafica," a spectral figure in Abruzzi and Marche folklore.
The story of Pantafa follows the story of Marta (Kasia Smutniak), a woman who moves with her daughter Nina to Malanotte, a small mountain village. The little girl suffers from sleep paralysis, and it will become more difficult every day for Marta to help her daughter in a place that will seem more and more sinister.
The cast also includes Greta Santi, Mario Sgueglia, Mauro Marino, Francesco Colella, Giuseppe Cederna, Ugo De Cesare and Betti Pedrazzi. The screenplay, on the other hand, is by Vanessa Picciarelli, Emanuele Scaringi and Tiziana Triana.
Wolf Hollow (USA - 2023):
Wolf Hollow is a horror film about lycanthropy and is written and directed by Mark Cantu (Massacre Academy).
The story follows a group of filmmakers who stumble upon a den of werewolves.
In addition to the iconic Lynn Lowry (The City Will Be Destroyed at Dawn, Shivers - The Demon Under the Skin) and Felissa Rose (Sleepaway Camp), the cast also includes Hannah FiermanKey (V/H/S), Brian Ceponis (Massacre Academy), Christina Krakowski and Noah Welter.
Wild Bones (UK - 2022) by Jack James:
Written and directed by Jack James, Wild Bones stars Roxy Bugler, Mary Roubos, Liz Farhadi and Tom Cray.
Wild Bones was shot during the lockdown and is the director's second feature film. The film deals with themes of isolation, relationships, and altered feelings in the family context.
Plot: Fay, a woman traumatized by the past, tries to rebuild her relationship with her sister Candace. Together, the two will try to convince each other of the truth about their family and their history.
The Sound of Summer (Japan - 2022):
The Sound of Summer Is an extreme horror film directed by Guy.
The story takes place during a scorching summer when a woman becomes convinced that the "cicada man," an individual who roams the city streets with boxes full of live cicadas, has inserted a swarm of insects into her body.
This will begin a dangerous and hallucinatory descent into paranoia and self-mutilation for her.
The cast includes Kaori Hoshino and Shinya Hankawa.
