News

Stars: Aleigha Burt, Tabitha Getsy, Trisha Arozqueta, Jasmine Nguyen, Jessie Roddy | Written by Jason-Michael Anthony, Hendreck Joseph | Directed by Raven Carter

Across the film festival’s storied history, FrightFest has been a terrific launching pad for many first-time filmmakers. Within 2025’s roster is Raven Carter, who makes her feature debut with Noseeums. The story opens with a foreboding scene, as college student Ember (Aleigha Burt) screams in silence while disappearing into a void. Viewers then witness a moment from the character’s childhood, as young Ember has a disturbing dream involving a Black woman on the receiving end of bloody violence.

In the present day, Ember is grappling with heartbreak...

Torchlight Studios is set to make its feature debut at FrightFest London this month with Noseeums, a spectral Southern horror-thriller steeped in history, folklore and vengeance. Directed and co-written by 26-year-old Raven DeShay Carter, the film will have its world premiere at the Odeon Luxe Leicester Square on 23 August, followed by a Q&a with Carter and her collaborators.

Filmed in the Florida backwoods, Noseeums blends supernatural chills with a deeply rooted social commentary, exploring the legacy of Black land rights lost in the post-Civil War South. The title takes its name from the tiny, near-invisible biting insects notorious in Florida, which in the film serve as harbingers of something far more sinister.

The story follows Ember, a college student played by Aleigha Burt, who accepts an invitation from her wealthy white roommate and friends to spend a weekend at a secluded lake house. The trip quickly turns uneasy as...