The second Nightstream Virtual Film Festival is about to be upon us and earlier today the full lineup was announced. Once again, this collaboration from the country’s best genre film festivals (Boston Underground, Brooklyn Horror, North Bend, and Overlook) is bringing us a slew of festival hits to sink our teeth into from the safety of our homes.
Nightstream 2021 will be taking place virtually from October 7 – 13. Take a look below for the full list of feature films and click over to nightstream.org for tickets and more information.
FEATURE FILMS
After Blue (Dirty Paradise)
France | 2021 | 130 Min. | Bertrand Mandico
On a strange planet habitable only by women, a teen and her mother embark on a fantastical journey in pursuit of a murderous criminal named Kate Bush in an effort to reverse their exile. An Altered Innocence Release
Alien on Stage
UK | 2021 | 83 Min | Danielle Kummer, Lucy Haley
Bus drivers from southwest England attempt a most ambitious stage adaptation of Alien in this overwhelmingly charming, hilarious and inspiring documentary.
All My Friends Hate Me
UK | 2021 | 93 Min | Andrew Gaynord
A weekend of reconnecting with old friends devolves into a barrage of existential dread and paranoia for one unlucky chap in this dark and hilarious cringe-fest. A Super Ltd Release.
Agnes
United States | 2021 | 93 Min | Mickey Reece
What should be a routine exorcism turns into a violent struggle and a crisis of faith for a priest, his apprentice and the other nuns in the convent in the latest from director NIGHTSTREAM alum Mickey Reece. A Magnet Release.
Beyond the Infinite Two Minutes
Japan | 2021 | 70 Min | Junta Yamaguchi
A cafe owner discovers a time paradox in this mind-blowing, sci-fi one-take adventure from Japan shot on an iPhone. An Indiecan release.
Bloody Oranges
France | 2021 | 100 Min | Jean-Christophe Meurisse
A retired couple’s survival depends on a dance competition while a crooked politician is accused of tax fraud and a teenager turns the tables on a crazed pervert in this surreal, twisted, and socially charged explosion.
Cannon Arm and the Arcade Quest
Denmark | 2021 | 97 Min | Mads Hedegaard
A man of few words, Kim Cannon Arm finds his outlet in the unforgiving 1983 Konami game Gyruss, for which he’s known for playing 49 hours straight with one coin. At 55 years old, he decides to break his own record and go on the quest for the untouchable 100 hours.
Code Name: Nagasaki
Norway | 2021 | 70 Min | Fredrik Hana
When he was only five, Marius’ mother unexpectedly left his family to return to Japan and broke off all contact. Now twenty years later, he and his best friend Fredrik document their soulful search for her using the magic of genre storytelling.
Cosmic Dawn
World Premiere
Canada | 2021 | 98 Min | Jefferson Moneo
A young woman must choose how far into a bizarre UFO cult she’s willing to go in order to solve the mystery of her mother’s disappearance. A Cranked Up Films Release.
Hellbender
United States | 2021 | 82 Min | Toby Poser, Zelda Adams, and John Adams
Sheltered by her mom from the outside world, Izzy’s daily routine consists of chores and jam sessions for their mother-daughter rock band. As Izzy grows up and starts to break free, her interactions with strangers send her hurtling down a dark path her mom was trying desperately to protect her from. A Shudder Release.
King Car
Brazil | 2021 | 99 Min | Renata Pinheiro
Against joining his family’s taxi business, Ninho has a change of heart when he realizes that his aspirations for a greener future for Brazil might be compatible with this line of work by way of his natural gift—he can communicate with cars. A Dark Star Pictures Release
Landlocked
United States | 2021 | 75 Min | Paul Owens
Virtual Premiere
A video camera turns into a looking glass to the past in this lo-fi yet highly ambitious head-turner, following a young man who gets to reconnect with his family’s history through old, strangely immersive home movies.
Mad God
United States | 2021 | 83 Min | Phil Tippett
30 years in the making, SFX creature-maestro Phil Tippett’s animated experimental nightmare is ready to invade your dreams.
Mother Schmuckers
Belgium | 2021 | 70 Min | Harpo Guit and Lenny Guit
A pair of dim-witted brothers have 24 hours to rescue their mother’s lost dog in this extreme gross-out comedy.
Name Above Title
Portugal | 2021 | 59 Min | Carlos Conceição
Accidental stardom strikes a serial killer when bystanders witness him kiss a dying woman on the street and interpret the scene as the ultimate act of kindness.
Poser
United States | 2021 | 87 Min | Ori Sergev and Noah Dixon
The Columbus, Ohio music scene serves as a killer backdrop for this uber-cool thriller about a podcaster who becomes obsessed with a popular local musician. An Oscilloscope Laboratories Release.
Satoshi Kon: The Illusionist
France | 2021 | 81min | Pascal-Alex Vincent
The late Satoshi Kon, master Japanese animator of films such as Perfect Blue and Paprika, is paid tribute by a collection of his closest collaborators and world-renowned directors influenced by his magnificent body of work.
Shapeless
United States | 2021 | 88 Min | Samantha Aldana
A young musician threatens her mental health and physical safety by keeping her eating disorder a secret in this visceral, Cronenbergian thriller.
Stanleyville
Canada | 2021 | 88 Min | Maxwell McCabe-Lokos
Locked inside a large room, five eccentric strangers take on a series of bizarre challenges in what could be described as “if Quentin Dupieux remixed Sartre’s No Exit.” An Oscilloscope Laboratories Release.
The Greenhouse
UK | 2021 | 88 Min | Thomas Wilson-White
A woman in mourning over her late mother discovers a way to travel back in time and relive her happiest memories, but that joy comes at a dangerous cost in this inventive and emotionally charged sci-fi drama.
The Taking
United States | 2021 | 76 Min | Alexandre O. Philippe
From the stunning visuals of Monument Valley to the consolidation of the American mythos, Alexandre O’Philippe brilliantly deconstructs the American western to better explain the establishment of social myths in America.
This is GWAR
Virtual Premiere
United States | 2021 | 110 Min | Scott Barber
You think you know GWAR? Well, THIS IS GWAR! Much more than a fanboy documentary, prepare to get closer than ever before to the people behind the legendary band and witness their inspirational journey to bloody success!
To the Moon
World Premiere
United States | 2021 | 82 Min | Scott Friend
A married couple’s peaceful retreat off-the-grid is disturbed by the arrival of a family member whose unpredictably bizarre antics wreak psychological havoc on their minds.
We’re All Going to the World’s Fair
United States | 2021 | 86 Min | Jane Schoenbrun
Escaping into an elaborate online game, a shy teenager begins to lose her grip on reality in this uniquely empathetic and unsettling genre hybrid. A Utopia Distribution release.
Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror
United States | 2021 | 192 Min | Kier-La Janisse
Author, film programmer, horror scholar, and all-around cinematic polymath Kier-La Janisse presents the authoritative deep dive documentary on folk horror. A Severin Films Release.
NIGHTSTREAM RETRO
Boardinghouse
Restoration World Premiere
United States | 1982 | 88 Min | John Wintergate
A bizzaro and hallucinogenic gore fest following Jim (played by writer/director John Wintergate), a psychic playboy who rents out an old L.A. boardinghouse— once the site of gruesome murders, to a group of “beautiful women with no ties”.
Jack Be Nimble
Restoration World Premiere
New Zealand | 1993 | 96 Min | Garth Maxwell
Estranged twins Jack and Dora are attempting to re-unite, much to the chagrin of their evil stepsisters in this cult-classic gothic fairy tale. An Altered Innocence Release.
NIGHTSTREAM is proud to present a quartet of rare folk-horror films in our retro program, curated and preluded with an extended intro by filmmaker, writer, programmer, and editor Kier-La Janisse (WOODLANDS DARK AND DAYS BEWITCHED)
Alison’s Birthday
Australia | 1981 | 97 Min | Ian Coughlan
19-year-old Alison attends her ill-fated birthday party and finds herself at the center of an ancient family curse. Australian folk-horror at its best, available for the first time since its VHS release.
Clearcut
Russia | 1991 | 98 Min | Ryszard Bugajski
A peaceful lawyer becomes entangled in criminal acts following his involvement with Indigenous activists, including one man who seeks more lethal measures to protect their land from a logging company.
Eyes of Fire
4K Restoration
United States | 1983 | 86 Min | Avery Crousne
An adulterous preacher, banished from a small British colony, leads his motley crew of followers through an enchanted forest unaware of the heart of darkness they have wandered into.
Lake of the Dead
Norway | 1958 | 76 Min | Kåre Bergstrøm
A group of friends stay at a remote cabin where it is said that a man killed his sister and her lover and then drowned himself in the lake—and anyone who stays in the cabin will be driven to the same fate.
All films in the folk-horror sidebar are Severin Releases.
