News

Folk horror is having a renaissance. Last year, both The Vourdalak and The Devil’s Bath ranked on my Top 10 international horror movies of the year list. They’re both incredible, and I’m naturally always keen to check out the latest and greatest in folk horror, even if that means revisiting Wake Wood for the twelfth time. I love that little movie. Folk horror all day, every day.

Horror streamer Shudder is a must-have for folk horror fans, especially. The Devil’s Bath and The Vourdalak are streaming there, and you can also catch: The Hallow, Pyewacket, A Dark Song, and the sensational documentary Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror among others. Recently added to the handy, curated folk horror list is additionally one of this year’s most surprising horror movies. So much so, it even caught the eye of acclaimed filmmaker Mike Flanagan. Learn more about Fréwaka,...

Over 30 leading experts in the genre film industry accepted the invite to help put together Dread Central’s list of Best Genre Film Festivals & Programs in 2025/2026: visionary festival programmers, influential studio executives, genre-savvy distributors, seasoned sales executives, respected journalists/critics, and acclaimed filmmakers.

In alphabetical order of their last names, here they are with their professional achievements summarized in short bios: Emily Bennett

Writer/Director Emily Bennett is an Academy-recognized screenwriter and Fangoria Chainsaw Award-winning director. Her films Alone With You, Accidental Stars, Lvrs, and Bed have screened at festivals such as Sitges, Fantastic Fest, Brooklyn Horror, Telluride Horror, Bifan, and Fantasia. Her screenplay, Ache, placed quarter finalist in the Academy Nicholl Fellowship (2020).

In 2023, Bennett won a Fangoria Chainsaw Award for her debut feature film Alone With You, which she co-directed with husband and Dp Justin Brooks. Her second feature film, Blood Shine, is currently in post and stars Bennett,...

Dublin-based Keeper Pictures, formerly known as Blinder Films, has a strong presence in Cannes, with producer Evan Horan participating in Efp’s Producers On The Move, and Cara Holmes’ documentary Lesbian Lines highlighted as part of Cannes Docs.

The latter is about a network of underground telephone helplines set up by a community of Irish lesbians.

Keeper’s eclectic international co-production slate also includes Nanouk Leopold’s drama Whitetail, with the Netherlands’ Circe Films and Kaap Holland Films and Belgium’s Savage Films, now in post and Sophie Fiennes’ third documentary collaboration with philosopher Slavoj Žižek The Pervert’s Guide To Utopias,...

Written and directed by Aislinn Clarke, “Frewaka” (2024) is a deeply unsettling folk horror drama that follows a grief-stricken woman who resumes her nursing career duties shortly after her mother’s death. Clarke’s film uses its atmospheric elements, be it the musical score, sound, or camerawork, to reveal many layers of the character’s quiet anguish rooted in her past. So, it is titled aptly, with a phonetic spelling for Fréamhach, an Irish word for ‘roots,’ which, in this film’s context, symbolically refers to familial and cultural roots. The film focuses on the constant push-and-pull that the protagonist feels with the past she has left behind or hopes to leave behind for good. Yet, it creeps up on her in one way or the other.

Spoilers Ahead

Frewaka (2024) Plot Summary & Movie Synopsis:

“Frewaka” is an Irish horror film predominantly unfolding in the Irish language. Clare Monnelly stars in the central role of Siobhan,...

As part of Shudder's "Halfway to Halloween" celebration, Fréwaka is now available to watch and I recently had a chance to talk with writer / director Aislinn Clarke all about this Irish language folk horror movie:

"Shudder, AMC Networks’ premium streaming service for horror, thrillers and the supernatural, today announced the streaming premiere date and released the trailer and poster for FRÉWAKA, from the director/writer of the acclaimed The Devil’S Doorway, Aislinn Clarke. The highly anticipated film, which made its world premiere at the 2024 Locarno Film Festival and its U.K. premiere at the BFI London Film Festival, will make its exclusive streaming debut Friday, April 25 on Shudder as part of the Halfway to Halloween celebration.

“We’re honored to give Fréwaka, the first-ever Irish language horror film, an international platform on Shudder,” said Emily Gotto, Senior Vice President of Acquisitions and Production at Shudder. “With this twist on a traditional haunted house,...

Aislinn Clarke’s Shudder film, Frewaka addresses generational trauma, pain, and suffering in the form of an Irish folk horror. The film begins with a wedding scene from 1973— a young bride steps out of the wedding chaos and comes face-to-face with a goat. In the next shot, we’re transported to the present timeline, where we witness a woman dressed in a gown strangle herself to death. Religious icons adorned every corner of her apartment. We soon discovered that our protagonist, Shoo or Shubhan, was the deceased’s daughter. Shoo’s mother’s body was discovered days after she had hanged herself, underlining the lack of a social life. Shoo didn’t share an affectionate relationship with her mother, and she was haunted by the Christian imagery all around the apartment. Shoo felt the desperate need to distance herself from her mother and the past they shared. She readily accepted...

Nothing is more terrifying than the dingy basement of a big, old house. Think about films like The Conjuring, The Silence Of The Lambs, Barbarian, the list goes on. In her new film, Fréwaka, writer and director Aislinn Clarke adds to that expanding canon with a heart-wrenching folk horror nightmare told almost entirely in the Irish language.

In our exclusive clip from the film, we have a tease at what lurks in this particularly nasty basement…

But first, read the film’s full synopsis:

Irish folkloric terror awaits in this remarkably atmospheric bone-chiller about a care worker who, after suffering a personal tragedy, leaves her Dublin home for a remote assignment in the north country to look after an elderly shut-in… Deep inside her new abode, she finds a portal to something far more sinister.

Now, watch our exclusive clip of the film’s star Clare Monnelly trying to escape...

Filmmakers Nia DaCosta, Prano Bailey-Bond and Aislinn Clarke all touched down at Dublin’s second annual screenwriting festival Storyhouse to discuss the appeal that the genre space has to them as writer-directors.

All three women have worked across genre in the last few years, with DaCosta directing and co-writing Candyman with Jordan Peele and Win Rosenfeld, Bailey-Bond’s debut feature Censor premiering at Sundance and Clarke being best known for her horror titles The Devil’s Doorway and Fréwaka.

“I think there’s something about horror that’s actually really soothing, which sounds really counter-intuitive, but I think it’s an outlet for anxiety and to talk about how you can explore social issues and trauma all through horror,” said Clarke told an audience at Dublin’s Light House Cinema. “That’s the appeal for me and what it could do. It’s a really useful means for exploring a lot of tricky,...

Irish Filmmaker Aislinn Clarke returns with another dose of eerie Irish Horror in her sophomore feature Frewaka, a story about family, and marriage….and monsters that want to eat your children. Clarke’s debut feature, a 16mm Found Footage chiller entitled The Devil’s Doorway (2018) introduced the horror community to her ability to craft a good scare, but it’s her short film Childer (2017) (still one of my personal favourites) that I think really sets the scene for the atmospheric dread of Frewaka. Which is to say that if you’re a fan of brooding unsettling Horror, creepy shadows whispering from the recess of the crawl space, or ominous goats(!), you might want to invest in a bright night light before braving the rural superstitious nightmare that is Frewaka.

Clare Monnelly stars as Shoo, a care giver sent to a remote village to look after the elderly Peig, played by Brid Ni Neachtain...

Exclusive: Aisling Bea, the BAFTA-winning writer behind This Way Up, Savanah Leaf, the BAFTA-winning filmmaker of Earth Mama, and Censor writer-director Prano Bailey-Bond are among the latest speakers added to Element Pictures’ upcoming Storyhouse, its Dublin-based screenwriting festival that celebrates storytellers and storytelling.

Writer-director Aislinn Clarke (Fréwaka), writer Cara Loftus (Spilt Milk), writer Courttia Newland, director Morgan Matthews, writer Richie Conroy and writer-director Tom Sullivan (Arracht) have also been added to the lineup for this year’s event, which will be held at the Irish capital’s Light House Cinema on April 3rd and 4th.

They’ll join previously announced speakers Peter Straughan, who is fresh off of his Oscar win for Best Adapted Screenplay for Conclave, as well as Kenneth Lonergan, Laurie Nunn and Nia DaCosta.

The festival has also announced the hosts...

Shudder is undoubtedly the best streaming service there is for horror fanatics, featuring a variety of thrillers ranging from the 1980s classics to modern masterpieces. In fact, the streaming service became a much more credible alternative for viewers once it began producing original films, which have been absolutely phenomenal thanks to various distinct narratives.

Shudder has unveiled its roster for April, which includes a handful of intriguing originals as well as a whole bunch of additional films, from vintage zombie thrillers to the newest slasher horrors. So, without further ado, here's every movie that will be available on Shudder in April 2025.

'825 Forest Road' Streaming April 4

Written and directed by Stephen Cognetti, the creator behind the Hell House LLC franchise, 825 Forest Road is a forthcoming horror film set in the shady town of Ashland Falls. Following an unspoken tragedy, Chuck Wilson moves to the town with his...

The 25th annual Boston Underground Film Festival took place at The Brattle Theatre in Cambridge, Ma from March 19-23 with a genre-blending lineup that included premieres, festival favorites, anticipated titles, short film blocks, special guests, after parties, and more.

Here’s what I saw at this year’s event…

The Surfer

Like a wave, there’s no stopping the pure energy of Nicolas Cage. The Academy Award winner never phones in a performance, regardless of budget or subject matter, but not every filmmaker can harness his signature eccentricities. Lorcan Finnegan (Vivarium) joins the ranks of those who possess such an abiloity, delivering a sun-baked descent into delirium with The Surfer.

Cage stars as The Surfer, a white collar man who wants to ride the waves with his son on the Australian coast where he grew up. But his paradise is lost thanks to a cult-like gang of local surfers, led by the enigmatic Scally,...

AMC Networks’ Shudder has announced the titles that will be available on the streaming service next month. The Shudder April 2025 slate includes horror, thriller, and supernatural titles.

The April schedule includes 825 Forest Road, Dead Mail, Fréwaka, The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs Season 7, Shadow of God, and repertory titles.

Shudder’s expanding library of films, TV series, and original content is available on most streaming devices in the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand.

825 Forest Road Shudder April 2025 Highlights

Films

825 Forest Road (Shudder Original Film) – New Film Premieres Friday, April 4

From the creator of the Hell House LLC franchise, Stephen Cognetti, the film centers on Chuck Wilson starting a new life after a family tragedy when he moves to the town of Ashland Falls with his wife, Maria, and little sister, Elizabeth. But he quickly discovers that the town has a dark secret.

The ghost...

"There is a house under the house." Shudder has released the trailer for an indie Irish folk horror film titled Fréwaka, made by Irish filmmaker Aislinn Clarke. This first premiered at the 2024 Locarno Film Festival last year, and played at a few other fests including the Sitges Film Festival. Nursing student Shoo takes a placement in a remote Irish village to care for Peig a reclusive, elderly woman who lives in fear, haunted by her experiences in a Catholic asylum... only for Shoo's own troubled upbringing to catch up with her. As they develop a connection, Shoo is consumed by the old woman's paranoia, rituals, and superstitions, eventually confronting the horrors of her past. This stars Clare Monnelly, Bríd Ní Neachtain, and Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya. This earned positive reviews during its festival run. This one in particular: "Much of the horror derives from the disquieting mood Clarke can create by simply...

As if the upcoming edition of the Overlook Film Festival , taking place April 3 – April 6 in New Orleans, Louisiana, wasn’t stacked enough, the festival announced today the full schedule, including some surprise new films and live events.

The full festival schedule can be found at overlookfilmfest.com/schedule.

The new additions to the lineup bring the festival total to 56 films (34 features and 22 shorts) from 15 countries, as well as twelve live events and four immersive experiences, making this the largest Overlook lineup in the festival’s nine year history.

“This year’s giant lineup brings into focus all of the ways we love to be scared, regardless of what flavor of spooky is your jam” said Sheryl Santacruz, festival director of The Overlook Film Festival. “We can’t wait to join with the greatest, most dedicated genre fans in the world to celebrate this sensation that we all love in ways that we never imagined possible,...

Up next from The Devil’s Doorway filmmaker Aislinn Clarke is Irish-language folk horror movie Fréwaka. A chilling new trailer has arrived ahead of the film’s debut as part of Shudder’s Halfway to Halloween celebration.

The horror movie is set to premiere on Shudder on April 25, 2025.

Fréwaka follows “home care worker Shoo, who is sent to a remote village to care for an agoraphobic woman who fears the neighbors as much as she fears the Na Sídhe — sinister entities who she believes abducted her decades before. As the two develop a strangely deep connection, Shoo is consumed by the old woman’s paranoia, rituals, and superstitions, eventually confronting the horrors from her own past.”

Check out the new trailer and poster below, indicating a claustrophobic folk horror movie ahead.

Clare Monnelly, Bríd Ní Neachtain and Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya star in the film written and directed by Clarke.

“We’re honored to give Fréwaka,...

The Boston Underground Film Festival returns for its 25th annual celebration of all things weird, wicked, and wonderful, running from March 19–23 at the Brattle Theatre in Cambridge, Ma.

The festival will host the world premieres of the new Re-Animator 4K restoration with horror legend Barbara Crampton in attendance and Alma & The Wolf with director Michael Patrick Jann (Drop Dead Gorgeous).

There are also regional premieres of The Surfer starring Nicolas Cage, Irish folk-horror Fréwaka, hallucinogenic odyssey Fucktoys, twisted Cinderella story The Ugly Stepsister, absurdist sci-fi comedy Escape from the 21st Century, and the new Texas Chain Saw Massacre documentary Chain Reactions, among others.

Whether you want premieres, genre-bending insanity, or the sheer joy of descending into the darkness with fellow weirdos, Buff 2025 promises a high-voltage lineup of films, special guests, and late-night delirium.

Feature Film Line Up

The Surfer – East Coast Premiere (Opening Night Film)

Director: Lorcan Finnegan

Australia, Ireland,...

Irish Film & TV Academy Names Rising Star Nominees

The Irish Film & Television Academy (IFTA) and Screen Ireland (Fís Éireann) have unveiled the four Rising Star nominees ahead of the IFTA Awards Ceremony on February 14 in Dublin. They are Say Nothing and Masters of the Air actor Anthony Boyle, writer/director Aislinn Clarke, Clinton Liberty and Alisha Weir. “These four Healy talented Rising Stars represent the new wave of Irish professionals who are leading our homegrown industry on the world stage,” said Áine Moriarty, CEO of IFTA. Previous winners include Saoirse Ronan, Michael Fassbender, Nicola Coughlan, Domhnall Gleeson and Jamie Dornan. The Awards will take place at the Dublin Royal Convention Centre, with more details of the event set to follow. Screen Ireland Coimisiún na Meán.

‘Night Agent’s Kylo Freeman Signs With Ignite Elite Artists

Exclusive: Night Agent,...

Frewaka Photo: Courtesy of Locarno Film Festival

The opening night film of this year’s Belfast Film Festival, and already a hit with audiences in Locarno and London Aislinn Clarke’s supernaturally themed Irish language chiller Fréwaka takes a bold and yet wonderfully nuanced look at Ireland’s history. Its curious title comes from the Irish fréamhacha, or roots, and it mingles ancient lore with historical concerns around occupation, religion, child abuse, the state-sanctioned abuse of women, and the generational trauma tangled up with these things. All this is woven into the story of care worker Shoo (Clare Monnelly), who is dispatched to help the elderly Peig (Bríd Ní Neachtain) as she recovers from a stroke, and who finds herself taking on much more than she bargained for.

“Damian McCann is a director here in Belfast, and he had asked me to write a film for him. I think it was in 2018,” Aislinn tells me.

The 24th edition of the festival kicks off on a spooky note on Halloween with Aislinn Clarke’s Irish horror, Fréwaka.

With 25 premieres and three world premieres the programme also features a mix of classics including The French Connection as part of the Art of Action strand. One of many eagerly anticipated films includes Jesse Eisenberg’s A Real Pain, Rumours and the latest from legendary director Mike Leigh, Hard Truths.

As part of the festival will be a special 40th Anniversary screening of Anne Devlin after which a Q&a with director Pat Murphy and star Brid Brennan. The festival will close with Sam O’Mahony’s The Wise Guy.

In Conversation event this year will see Bff curator Jessica Kiang chat with Radu Jude, Golden Bear winning director of Do Not Expect Too Much from the End of the World.

With an exciting and varied programme, festival director Michele Devlin...

Written and directed by Aislinn Clarke (The Devil’s Doorway), the Irish horror movie Fréwaka has been acquired by the horror streamer Shudder, Variety reports this week.

Shudder has picked up North American, U.K., Irish, Australian and New Zealand rights to Fréwaka, and the outlet notes that the streaming service will premiere the film in 2025.

Irish horror movie Fréwaka follows home care worker Shoo, who is sent to a remote village to care for an agoraphobic woman who fears the neighbors as much as she fears the Na Sídhe — sinister entities who she believes abducted her decades before.

As the two develop a strangely deep connection, Shoo is consumed by the old woman’s paranoia, rituals, and superstitions, eventually confronting the horrors from her own past.

Clare Monnelly, Bríd Ní Neachtain and Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya star.

“I’ve followed Shudder since its inception and have seen it grow to become a world-leading platform for smart,...

AMC’s genre streamer Shudder and picked up North American, U.K., Irish, Australian and New Zealand rights to “Fréwaka,” billed as the first Irish-language horror.

Written and directed by Aislinn Clarke and starring Clare Monnelly, Bríd Ní Neachtain and Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya, the film — which features both the Irish and English language — recently world premiered at the 2024 Locarno Film Festival, and will have its U.K. premiere at the BFI London Film Festival on October 11, 2024. “Fréwaka” will debut on Shudder in 2025.

“Fréwaka” following home care worker Shoo, who is sent to a remote village to care for an agoraphobic woman who fears the neighbors as much as she fears the Na Sídhe — sinister entities who she believes abducted her decades before. As the two develop a strangely deep connection, Shoo is consumed by the old woman’s paranoia, rituals, and superstitions, eventually confronting the horrors from her own past.

“I...

Aislinn Clarke’s atmospheric 2020 film Fréwaka brings viewers into the depths of Irish folklore to depict very real horrors of trauma. Shot entirely in Irish, the film follows Shoo, a care worker sent to a remote village to care for older resident Peig. Both women harbor painful pasts that still haunt them.

As Shoo forms an unlikely bond with the fierce yet vulnerable Peig, the elderly woman’s rural superstitions and beliefs in sinister faerie creatures called the Na Sídhe start to consume Shoo. Peig is convinced the Na Sídhe kidnapped her on her wedding night decades prior. Dark forces also seem to be infiltrating Peig’s crumbling home, which Shoo and Peig become trapped within.

Memories of abusive upbringings and past traumas resurface for both characters. Clarke utilizes local folklore to represent the visceral, lingering impacts of trauma that can never fully be escaped. She deftly illustrates how the...

Aislinn Clarke’s atmospheric 2020 film Fréwaka brings viewers into the depths of Irish folklore to depict very real horrors of trauma. Shot entirely in Irish, the film follows Shoo, a care worker sent to a remote village to care for older resident Peig. Both women harbor painful pasts that still haunt them.

As Shoo forms an unlikely bond with the fierce yet vulnerable Peig, the elderly woman’s rural superstitions and beliefs in sinister faerie creatures called the Na Sídhe start to consume Shoo. Peig is convinced the Na Sídhe kidnapped her on her wedding night decades prior. Dark forces also seem to be infiltrating Peig’s crumbling home, which Shoo and Peig become trapped within.

Memories of abusive upbringings and past traumas resurface for both characters. Clarke utilizes local folklore to represent the visceral, lingering impacts of trauma that can never fully be escaped. She deftly illustrates how the...

Paddy Duffy’s The UnHolylands starring James Nesbitt is among the world premieres at the 24th Belfast Film Festival (October 31-November 9).

Duffy’s coming-of-age comedy sees two brothers attempt one last house party before their university days are over. It also stars Ciaran McCourt, Peter Jeffries and Sean Daly.

Further world premieres include Michael Head’s comedy The Spin starring Derry Girls’ Tara Lynne O’Neill and Will McConnell’s experimental drama Beautiful And Loud And Clear.

Competition

Eight films comprise Belfast’s third annual international competition including Xiaoxuan Jiang’s To Kill A Mongolian Horse, winner of best directing and...

J.R.R. Tolkien famously said that “cellar door” is the most beautiful pairing of words in the English language. You’re not likely to think so fondly of the phrase, however, while watching “Fréwaka,” an old-dark-house horror movie in which said door — red and creaky and decorated with a rusty horseshoe that radiates the very opposite of good luck — proves the portal to a whole realm of unlovely things. The second feature from Irish writer-director Aislinn Clarke may as well share a title with her first, “The Devil’s Doorway,” which landed prominent distribution (including a deal with IFC Midnight) by applying well-worn genre devices to more locally specific nerve points. “Fréwaka” does much the same: It may not be revelatory, but it’s shivery nonetheless.

Like its predecessor, this is an outwardly straightforward chiller, suited to genre-specific events and platforms, but with some darker devil in the details — indies like “Relic...

Writer and director Aislinn Clarke, based in Belfast, Northern Ireland, made a name for herself with her 2018 debut horror film The Devil’s Doorway. Her new movie Fréwaka, which had its world premiere at the 77th edition of the Locarno Film Festival, uses Irish and English and is billed as the first-ever Irish-language horror.

“Shoo is sent to a remote village to care for an agoraphobic woman who fears sinister entities, the Na Sídhe,” reads a plot description. “As they develop a connection, Shoo is consumed by the old woman’s paranoia, rituals and superstitions, eventually confronting the horrors of her past.”

The film, which stars Clare Monnelly, Bríd Ní Neachtain (The Banshees of Inisherin), and Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya, screened in an out-of-competition slot at Locarno77.

Clarke sat down with THR in Locarno to discuss her fascination with horror and religion, and why scary films have global appeal.

I’m sorry to...

Are you afraid? Aislinn Clarke’s claustrophobic horror “Fréwaka” just sold to Japan (Hakuhodo Dy Music & Pictures Inc.) and Spain (Filmin).

“It’s great to see the response to ‘Fréwaka’ and the appreciation for smart horrors on the market. It seems that the exploration of the themes of Irish mythology and placing them in the contemporary setting makes it exciting and relevant for distributors across the world,” said Jan Naszewski of Poland’s sales outfit New Europe Film Sales, which is already in “advanced talks” with North America and U.K.

In the film – written and directed by Clarke, also behind “The Devil’s Doorway” – home care worker Shoo (Clare Monnelly) heads to a remote village to care for agoraphobic Peig (Bríd Ní Neachtain). It’s not an easy feat. Peig is terrified of the “Na Sídhe” – sinister entities who she believes abducted her decades before. As the two develop a deeper connection,...

Fréwaka is a chilling Irish-language folk horror that not only draws inspiration from Ireland’s rich well of creepy folklore, traditions and mythology, but serves as a startling rumination on the cruel, ill-treatment of women throughout its history. It tells of Shoo (Clare Monnelly), a troubled care worker sent to a remote village to care for Peig (Bríd Ní Neachtain), an older agoraphobic woman who claims the Na Sídhe – sinister, malevolent faerie folk - abducted her on her wedding night decades before.

Written and directed by Aislinn Clarke, Fréwaka is a kindred spirit of several notable Irish horror titles, including The Daisy Chain (2008), The Hole In The Ground (2019) and You Are Not My Mother (2021), which all utilise the presence of otherworldly folkloric entities, particularly the faerie changeling, to offer commentary on Ireland’s troubled social history, women’s autonomy, and intergenerational trauma....

The Locarno Film Festival (August 7-17) has revealed the line-up for its 77th edition, with directors including Hong Sangsoo, Wang Bing and Ben Rivers world premiering their latest films in its international competition.

Playing out of competition at Locarno are world premieres from directors including Radu Jude, Fabrice du Welz, Aislinn Clarke, Bertrand Mandico, and Marco Tullio Giordana. Locarno’s famed Piazza Grande screenings include world premieres from Paz Vega, César Díaz and Gianluca Jodice.

Locarno’s international competition comprises 17 films, all of them world premieres, which will vie for the coveted Golden Leopard awards.

Scroll down for full line-up...

The Nun II (202 - Directed by Michael Chaves Killer Nun (1979) - Directed by Giulio Berruti

Horror movies about nuns play on the common fears and religious rituals many people experience throughout their lives, making them some of the best scary movies out there. More often than not, nuns themselves are not the ones to be feared, but when they become possessed by demons or devils within the fictional narrative, they become something much more sinister. Conversely, some of the greatest nun horror movies depict the dangers of religious fundamentalism and fervor that can turn violent at the drop of a hat.

Nun horror movies are gaining popularity again with the release of Sydney Sweeney's R-rated Immaculate, but the genre has always included plenty of stellar films. Horror movies are most effective when they transform everyday occurrences, objects, and people and ask the audience to imagine what would happen if...

Screen Ireland has introduced a ‘locked box’ system for its development funding process, to further support the development of Irish screenwriters and production companies across Ireland.

Development funding loans are repayable on the first day of principal photography. In the new locked box funding system, this repayment will be held by Screen Ireland for that relevant production company to re-invest in the development of new Irish feature film projects.

The locked box system will apply to any Screen Ireland development-supported Irish feature film projects that have not yet contracted for production.

This re-investment is subject to project eligibility criteria – that is,...

From left: A Dark Song (Samson Films/IFC Midnight), The Hole In The Ground (A24), and Caveat (Shudder) Graphic: The A.V. Club It’s St. Patrick’s Day time again, which means only one thing for a lot of horror movie fans: Mainlining the Leprechaun films for yet another year.

From left: A Dark Song (Samson Films/IFC Midnight), The Hole In The Ground (A24), and Caveat (Shudder)Graphic: The A.V. Club

It’s St. Patrick’s Day time again, which means only one thing for a lot of horror movie fans: Mainlining the Leprechaun films for yet another year.

“You will see the El Niño of all Berlins with a downpour of projects… Unless you have a great project it will get lost.”

One month on from the AFM a positive yet realistic mood prevails with sellers reporting solid market deal flow as they and their partners return to packaging and production in the wake of the SAG-AFTRA strike.

Most sales executives who spoke to Screen were heartened by buyer attendance. Asian buyers in general returned – although South Korea is challenging – and there was strong attendance too from Eastern Europe, Benelux and Scandinavia.

After a months-long production halt the...

Malcolm Gaskill’s book Hellish Nell: The Curious Case of Britain’s Last Witch Trial is getting a movie adaptation, with Deadline reporting that Aislinn Clarke (The Devil’s Doorway) will direct the upcoming Hellish Nell for Studiocanal and The Picture Company.

Deadline details, “Hellish Nell is a chilling horror-thriller based on the real-life medium Helen Duncan, the last UK citizen convicted and imprisoned for witchcraft. The movie follows Helen’s harrowing journey as her innate powers change her life and those closest to her. ”

Chris Basler wrote the screenplay, an adaptation of Gaskill’s book. The Picture Company partners Alex Heineman & Andrew Rona will produce through their deal with Studiocanal.

Here’s the official synopsis for the book, first published in 2001: “One of the last criminal trials using the 1735 Witchcraft Act was, improbably, in London in 1944. The accused was Helen Duncan, a middle-aged Scotswoman. This is her extraordinary story.

Exclusive: Aislinn Clarke is set to direct Hellish Nell, the genre thriller for Studiocanal and The Picture Company.

From Black List writer Chris Basler, Hellish Nell is a chilling horror-thriller based on the real-life medium Helen Duncan, the last UK citizen convicted and imprisoned for witchcraft. Based on the book Hellish Nell: Last of Britain’s Witches by Malcolm Gaskill, the movie follows Helen’s harrowing journey as her innate powers change her life and those closest to her.

Aislinn Clarke is the first woman to direct a horror film in her native Ireland. There, she made her debut with The Devil’s Doorway. That film was released by IFC Midnight in 2018 after premiering at Sitges, where Clarke was nominated for the Bingham Ray New Talent Award. She followed with Frewaka, and is in post production on the Irish language horror film produced by DoubleBand Films and Wildcard. She is the...

Exclusive: New Europe Film Sales has boarded international sales on Northern Irish director Aislinn Clarke’s second feature Fréwaka ahead of the AFM, where it will unveil first footage.

The Irish and English-language production follows Clarke’s 2018 found footage horror The Devil’s Doorway, which was acquired by IFC for the U.S.

Billed as the first ever Irish-language horror, Fréwaka revolves around care worker Shoo, who is haunted by a personal tragedy.

Shoo is sent to a remote village to care for an agoraphobic woman, who fears both the neighbors and the Na Sídhe – sinister folkloric entities she believes abducted her decades before.

As the pair develop a deep connection, Shoo becomes consumed by the old woman’s paranoia, rituals, and superstitions, eventually confronting the horrors from her own past.

The title originates from the Irish word “fréamhacha”, meaning roots that are entwined underground.

The cast features Clare Monnelly (Moone...

Exclusive: Principal photography has wrapped in Northern Ireland on the coming-of-age comedy-drama The Wise Guy from local production outfit Out of Orbit, starring Darrell D’Silva (Wrath Of Man).

The Wise Guy is the debut feature from writer-director Sam O’Mahony and tells the story of Francis Burns, a lonely boy (and devout atheist) who desperate for guidance and protection, finds an unconventional mentor hiding in the nearby woods; an American Gangster.

The screenplay was developed through Northern Ireland Screen’s New Writer Focus scheme, with production funding coming from Northern Ireland Screen’s New Talent Focus Fund supported by Invest Ni and from post-production house Yellow Moon.

Previous feature films to come through Northern Ireland Screen’s New Talent Focus scheme include Out of Orbit’s The Dig, A Bump Along the Way by Shelly Love, Bad Day for the Cut by Chris Baugh, and The Devil’s Doorway by Aislinn Clarke.

Aislinn Clarke (The Devil’s Doorway) has just started production on Fréwaka, a horror film that’s currently lending in Ireland, reports ScreenDaily.

Fréwaka follows the story of a student palliative care nurse, played by Monnelly, who is plagued by a trauma from her past that has a disorienting effect on her present – her relationship, her career and her ability to function.

The feature stars Clare Monnelly (Moone Boy), Bríd Ní Neachtain (The Banshees of Inisherin and a recent IFTA winner for Róise & Frank), and Ukrainian actress Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya (F20), adds the site

Fréwaka will be told in both Irish and English. The title originates from the Irish word fréamhacha, meaning roots.

Clarke’s feature film The Devil’s Doorway, pictured, was the first Irish horror to be directed by an Irish female filmmaker.

Fréwaka is produced by Dermot Lavery for DoubleBand Films and Patrick O’Neill for Wildcard, with Greg Martin acting...

Irish and English-language feature stars Clare Monnelly, Bríd Ní Neachtain and Ukrainian actress Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya.

Production begins in Ireland this week on Fréwaka, a horror film written and directed by Aislinn Clarke.

The feature stars Clare Monnelly (Moone Boy), Bríd Ní Neachtain (The Banshees of Inisherin and a recent IFTA winner for Róise & Frank), and Ukrainian actress Aleksandra Bystrzhitskaya (F20).

Fréwaka follows the story of a student palliative care nurse, played by Monnelly, who is plagued by a trauma from her past that has a disorienting effect on her present – her relationship, her career and her ability to function.

Fréwaka...

The Academy awards fellowships for both the US and international.

Four Screen UK & Ireland Stars of Tomorrow have been selected as finalists for the Gold Fellowship for Women, an award offered for emerging female filmmakers by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences (AMPAS).

Fellowships will be given in two categories: one for the US, and one for international. Six finalists have been selected for the domestic fellowship, with five – including all four former Screen Stars – for the international award.

Among them are producer Farah Abushwesha, a Screen Star in 2017, who is creative director at emerging talent showcase Rocliffe and...

Syfy Celebrates Pride Month With Pride Of Chucky ‘Child's Play’ Movie Marathon On June 9: "Universal City, Calif. – June 8, 2021 – In celebration of Pride Month, Syfy will be airing a murderer’s row of “Child’s Play” movies all day on Wednesday, June 9, starting at 8 a.m. Et. The marathon will call attention to the well-loved horror series’ LGBTQ+ elements and serve up some summer scares at the same time.

All of this arrives ahead of Syfy and USA’s upcoming “Chucky” series, which premieres this fall with” Child’s Play” mastermind Don Mancini at the helm. For more on the upcoming original series “Chucky” visit https://www.syfy.com/chucky.

In his announcement of the marathon on Twitter, Mancini posted a Syfy-exclusive video in which he explains how the series has transformed over the years into a LGBTQ+-friendly space.

“Starting with ‘Bride of Chucky,’ I started to deliberately inject some LGBTQ elements into the franchise,...

Etheria Film Night has unveiled its 2021 Official Short Films Showcase Lineup, which will stream exclusively on Shudder, AMC Networks’ streaming service for horror films and thrillers.

The films will be available Friday, June 25, through July 25. The festival is a showcase of horror, science fiction, fantasy, action and thriller films directed by women. This year’s edition will feature nine short films and honor “The Walking Dead” showrunner and executive producer Angela Kang with the 2021 Etheria Inspiration Award, given annually to a person in the entertainment industry who has inspired women to pursue careers working in genre film and television. Producer Gale Anne Hurd (“Terminator”) will present the award to Kang with the ceremony included as part of the official Etheria 2021 content streaming on Shudder.

“The 2021 lineup has some of the funniest things we’ve ever programmed alongside some of the darkest and most disturbing things we’ve ever programmed,” says...

Hello, dear readers! As you probably already know, we’ve been celebrating Indie Horror Month here on Daily Dead for a few days already (you can catch up with our Ihm 2021 features Here). Today, we’re launching the first installment of the Indie Horror Month Marketplace where, each Saturday, we’ll be highlighting indie artists from the world of books, merchandising, artistry, and more. And for this first installment, we’re going to be celebrating a variety of talented independent authors out there whose work champions the worlds of horror and science fiction.

So, whether you’re in the mood for fiction or non-fiction, there’s definitely something here for every type of fan, so check out some killer books below—you can even treat it like your very own book fair!

Non-fiction:

1000 Women in Horror, 1895-2018

Blowing a kiss back through time and space from Aaliyah to Jill Rae Zurborg,...

Happy December, everyone! Now that we’re officially in the thick of the holiday season, today’s installment of the Daily Dead Holiday Gift Guide is focused on books for horror and sci-fi fans of all ages. Call me old fashioned, but I love finding a book or two under the tree every year, and in 2020, we had a ton of great books hit the shelves that would make for a great gift to give (or maybe you’re looking to spoil yourself a little bit).

Non-fiction:

Taking Shape II: The Lost Halloween Sequels

Authors Dustin McNeill and Travis Mullins are back to bring you an inside look at Twenty-four lost Halloween sequels you never saw on the big screen! Learn about these fascinating unmade visions direct from their creators, many of whom have never spoken publicly on the subject before. At 600 pages, Taking Shape II is brimming with untold franchise history.

The project is backed by Northern Ireland Screen’s New Talent Focus scheme.

Principal photography will begin next week on newcomer Lynne Davison’s Northern Irish crime thriller Mandrake, the latest project backed by Northern Ireland Screen through its New Talent Focus scheme.

Produced by Village Films, Mandrake is about a probation officer, played by Deidre Mullins, tasked with rehabilitating a notorious killer ‘Bloody’ Mary Laidlaw back into society following a two-decade sentence. Derbhle Crotty co-stars with Paul Kennedy. Seamus O’Hara, Nigel O’Neill and Ian Beattie.

Northern Ireland Screen’s New Talent Focus scheme aims to deliver one debut feature...

Here’s another interview in Nerdly’s socially distanced series of chats with filmmakers as part of the Nerdly Out Loud podcast for Nerdly.co.uk. This time Kevin sits down with Special Delivery director John McPhail (Anna and the Apocalypse), whose short film forms part of 20th Digital’s Bite Size Halloween.

20th Digital Studio is to premiere a series of 30 diverse, genre-bending short films for Halloween 2020. Bite Size Halloween ranges from horror comedy to psychological thrillers and everything in between. Created by up-and-coming filmmakers, these films will screen across digital and broadcast platforms Freeform, FX, and Hulu’s Huluween platform hub and YouTube channel.

Bite Size Halloween 2020 features 30 exciting new filmmakers, amplifying their voice in the film community. This year’s cohort includes a well-rounded group of filmmakers representing different countries, identities, and backgrounds. The long term goal of 20th Digital Studio’s short film programs is to...

Here’s another interview in Nerdly’s socially distanced series of chats with filmmakers as part of the Nerdly Out Loud podcast for Nerdly.co.uk. This time Kevin sits down with Eye Exam director Aislinn Clarke (The Devils Doorway), whose short film forms part of 20th Digital’s Bite Size Halloween.

A woman is waiting for her eye exam when the last customer runs out screaming.

20th Digital Studio is to premiere a series of 30 diverse, genre-bending short films for Halloween 2020. Bite Size Halloween ranges from horror comedy to psychological thrillers and everything in between. Created by up-and-coming filmmakers, these films will screen across digital and broadcast platforms Freeform, FX, and Hulu’s Huluween platform hub and YouTube channel.

Bite Size Halloween 2020 features 30 exciting new filmmakers, amplifying their voice in the film community. This year’s cohort includes a well-rounded group of filmmakers representing different countries, identities, and backgrounds.

Here’s another interview in Nerdly’s socially distanced series of chats with filmmakers as part of the Nerdly Out Loud podcast for Nerdly.co.uk. This time Kevin sits down with The Mime co-directors Gavin Williams (Await Further Instructions) and Mark Lediard, whose short film forms part of 20th Digital’s Bite Size Halloween.

A self-involved pedestrian accidentally angers a sinister street Mime, and pays a heavy price.

20th Digital Studio is to premiere a series of 30 diverse, genre-bending short films for Halloween 2020. Bite Size Halloween ranges from horror comedy to psychological thrillers and everything in between. Created by up-and-coming filmmakers, these films will screen across digital and broadcast platforms Freeform, FX, and Hulu’s Huluween platform hub and YouTube channel.

Bite Size Halloween 2020 features 30 exciting new filmmakers, amplifying their voice in the film community. This year’s cohort includes a well-rounded group of filmmakers representing different countries, identities,...