DEAD SHACK

  • 12 Local British Columbia Films to Screen in Vancouver International Film Festival’s 2017 BC Spotlight

    [caption id="attachment_23661" align="aligncenter" width="1217"]Dead Shack - Peter Ricq Dead Shack[/caption] The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) has unveiled the festival’s much-anticipated Sea to Sky programming stream: a showcase of the inspired works from British Columbia. Sea to Sky’s name reflects this province’s diverse creators and the astonishing range of storytelling techniques they employ. The 2017 BC Spotlight film lineup features 12 titles. On the heels of world premiere announcements at the Toronto International Film festival, Kathleen Hepburn’s Never Steady, Never Still, Wayne Wapeemukwa’s Luk’Luk’I and Kyle Rideout’s Public Schooled will play to eager hometown audiences. Jason James’ Entanglement, Peter Ricq’s Dead Shack, Scooter Corkle’s Hollow in the Land and Cody Bown’s Gregoire will likewise hit Vancouver screens having already made their marks on the festival circuit. VIFF will also be home to five world premieres, including Ana Valine’s Once There Was a Winter, Melanie Wood’s Shut Up and Say Something, Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers’ c’əsnaʔəm, the city before the city (in partnership and collaboration with the Musqueam First Nation and the c’əsnaʔəm, the city before the city curatorial team), Boris Ivanov’s On Putin’s Blacklist and LaTiesha Ti’si’tla Fazakas and Natalie Boll’s Meet Beau Dick: Maker of Monsters. All films in the BC Spotlight will compete in the #mustseeBC competition. Launching on September 14, this social media campaign invites film fans to preview these features and the still-to-be-announced BC shorts, promote local creators across social networks and vote online to determine this year’s most anticipated local films. By successfully engaging thousands of fans through social media, the winning film receives a special red carpet screening during the festival. Totally Indie Day, presented by STORYHIVE, is a dynamic day designed to provide hands-on advice from top experienced industry professionals to emerging content creators through targeted business, creative and personal development opportunities. This tent pole industry event supports rising feature film directors, by connecting them with award-winning screenwriters, directors and producers from some of the most popular and successful screen-based content series, today. Attendees also have the chance to meet with Canadian and US distributors and network with industry professionals.

     Vancouver International Film Festival  2017 BC Spotlight film series:

    c̓əsnaʔəm, the city before the city DIR. ELLE-MAIJA TAILFEATHERS IN PARTNERSHIP AND COLLABORATION WITH THE MUSQUEAM FIRST NATION AND THE C’ƏSNAʔƏM, THE CITY BEFORE THE CITY CURATORIAL TEAM We live our lives on land that was never ceded or sold by those who were living here at ‘first contact,’ and yet we know precious little about the Lower Mainland before real estate. This film aims to correct that with a meaningful reminder of the history and prehistory of this land and her first people. VIFF alumnus Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers, in collaboration with the Musqueam First Nation and the UBC Museum of Anthropology curatorial team, shares this reflection on a time when BC was indeed super and natural. Dead Shack DIR. PETER RICQ With their best attempt at a wholesome family vacation already being sabotaged by f-bombs and baser desires, three teenage friends are suddenly sent careening on a detour into over-the-top, gory horror in this ode to ’80s genre flicks from Peter Ricq (whose band HUMANS supplies the synth score). Thanks to the equal attention lavished on characters and physical comedy/carnage (courtesy of first-rate practical effects), this severed-tongue-in-cheek film’s blunt force trauma packs all the more punch. Entanglement DIR. JASON JAMES Intent on ending his misery, Ben (Silicon Valley’s Thomas Middleditch) merely adds to a laundry list of embarrassments. So it’s no surprise when subsequent efforts to connect with the woman who was nearly his adoptive sister (Jess Weixler) send him into a darkly comic tailspin that leaves him questioning every relationship in his life, as well as his increasingly tenuous grip on reality. Jason James’ sophisticated film poignantly questions whether it’s ever advisable to let things go. Gregoire DIR. CODY BOWN Shot in his hometown of Fort McMurray before it was ravaged by wildfires, Cody Bown’s drama draws on real life events to capture snapshots of a community teetering on a precipice and a collection of twentysomethings whose seemingly directionless lives have intersected. Bown draws remarkable performances from an ensemble cast (headed by Jared Abrahamson); his film will resonate with anyone who’s reached that stage in life where there’s no other option than making a life-changing decision. Hollow in the Land DIR. SCOOTER CORKLE When a body is found in a trailer park and her missing brother (Jared Abrahamson) becomes the number one suspect, headstrong Alison (Dianna Agron) decides to take things into her own hands, setting out to track him down and clear his name before the cops find him first. The harder this amateur detective looks, the more people turn up dead, and soon she becomes a suspect herself. In a town tucked away between a mountain range, secrets get buried deep. If Alison’s not careful, she’ll get buried with them. Luk’Luk’I DIR. WAYNE WAPEEMUKWA February 2010: as Canada battles the US for Olympic hockey supremacy, a handful of engrossing, life-and-death dramas unfold in the back alleys, seedy bars and SROs of Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. Filmmaker Wayne Wapeemukwa invites some of the city’s marginalized citizens to step into starring roles, and he shines a light on the urban realities we’re often too eager to avert our eyes from. In the process he crafts a discordant city symphony that charts Vancouver’s complexities. Meet Beau Dick: Maker of Monsters DIR. LATIESHA TI’SI’TLA FAZAKAS, NATALIE BOLL Admirers of Pacific Northwest art are notably unanimous in their admiration of the oeuvre of the late Kwakwaka’wakw artist Beau Dick, whose generosity and prolific nature embodied the very spirit of potlatch. LaTiesha Ti’si’tla Fazakas and Natalie Boll share an intimate profile of this man’s rare charisma; his carvings, which remain revered in art circles; and his passionate activism, which culminated in the breaking of coppers in Victoria and Ottawa as an act of protest against legislative injustices. Never Steady, Never Still DIR. KATHLEEN HEPBURN Set against a spectacular northern BC backdrop, Kathleen Hepburn’s debut is the intimate story of a devoted mother wrestling with Parkinson’s (Shirley Henderson, astonishing in a demanding role) and a son saddled with his first adult responsibilities (future star Théodore Pellerin). Eloquently scripted, and directed with both tenderness and assurance, the film uses its note-perfect, naturalistic performances and intricately calibrated revelations to create powerful, cathartic drama. On Putin’s Blacklist DIR. BORIS IVANOV An engaging and timely tour d’horizon of Mother Russia and her place in the world today. We witness the wounded pride of Russians as the Soviet Empire crumbles, and the jingoistic xenophobia born out of an increased reliance on foreign investment. Propaganda and demonization of the “other” result in institutionalized racism and a culture of disdain. Boris Ivanov brings us up to speed on the shameful adoption crisis, the state-sanctioned hacking of the Internet and the heartless treatment of LGBTQ citizens. Once There Was a Winter DIR. ANA VALINE The Canadian north’s unforgiving nature is amplified to chilling effect in this claustrophobic, white-knuckle thriller from Ana Valine (Sitting on the Edge of Marlene). What is supposed to be a quick stop at a remote trailer turns into a standoff between embittered brothers, with an innocent woman (Kate Corbett) caught in the crossfire. As old wounds are reopened and fresh blood is spilled, the wolves at the door pose little threat in comparison to the personal demons being unleashed inside. Public Schooled DIR. KYLE RIDEOUT Book-smart but unschooled in the ways of life, home-schooled teen Liam (Daniel Doheny) has a bright future laid out, even if casual conversation amounts to a social minefield for him. But then he lays eyes on the wooden leg of the prettiest girl in public school and decides on self-sabotage; the result is an extended Grade 12 stay. This comedy from Kyle Rideout (Eadweard) is fuelled by chemistry between Liam and his helicopter mom (Judy Greer) that is so spectacularly awkward it would make Oedipus blush. Shut Up and Say Something DIR. MELANIE WOOD Internationally acclaimed spoken-word artist Shane Koyczan gives a poignant and powerful voice to those relegated to the margins: the bullied, awkward and visibly different. In this entrancing documentary, Melanie Wood reveals a bashful alchemist who creates dazzling rhetorical fireworks. With candour, Koyczan shares his momentous and deeply personal journey to finally meet his estranged father. The result is his most important poem yet—and the more intimate his words are, the more universal they become.

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  • Fantasia 2017 Unveils Poster and First Wave of Films, Opens with Action Thriller THE VILLAINESS

    2017 Fantasia poster The Fantasia International Film Festival celebrates its 21st Anniversary in Montreal this summer, taking place from July 13-August 2, 2017, with its Frontières International Co-Production Market and Industry Rendez-Vous Weekend being held July 20-23. The full lineup of over 130 feature films will be announced July 5. In the meantime, the festival is excited to reveal a selected First Wave of titles, along with several special happenings. In celebration of Montreal’s 375th anniversary, veteran Fantasia artist Donald Caron has created a poster the festival describes as “a visual love letter to our city with a piece that truly speaks for itself.” [caption id="attachment_22723" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]THE VILLAINESS THE VILLAINESS[/caption] Fantasia 2017 will start with a thunderous smash! After leaving the Cannes audience absolutely mesmerized with its groundbreaking and spectacular fight scenes and Kim Ok-vin’s ferocious, yet poignant interpretation, Jung Byung-gil’s action thriller THE VILLAINESS (North American Premiere) will be the Opening Film of this year’s edition of the Fantasia International Film Festival. Following this astonishing jolt of raw adrenaline, who else than the Grand Maestro of international genre cinema could keep the pace? Fantasia favorite Takashi Miike, who received a well deserved Lifetime Achievement Award last year, will once again please his hordes of Montreal fans with the exuberant JOJO’S BIZARRE ADVENTURE: DIAMOND IS UNBREAKABLE (North American Premiere), masterfully adapted from Hirohiko Kitakubo’s cult manga and featuring a stellar cast led by Kento Yamazaki. This Summer, Fantasia will be saluting the groundbreaking work of independent American filmmaker Larry Cohen. Widely recognized as one of the godfathers of progressive, socially conscious genre cinema with such individualistic landmarks as the IT’S ALIVE films, BLACK CASEAR, Q, and THE STUFF, in addition to his distinctive screenwriting work for a plethora of other filmmakers, Cohen’s output has always been smart, character-driven, and boldly confrontational. Larry Cohen will be awarded before the World Premiere of Steve Mitchell’s KING COHEN, a phenomenal documentary about the filmmaker’s extraordinary history and work, that features appearances by Martin Scorsese, John Landis, Yaphet Kotto, J.J. Abrams, Fred Williamson, Rick Baker, Joe Dante, and Eric Bogosian, among many others. Following our past live performance events of METROPOLIS and THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, Gabriel Thibaudeau and Fantasia are re-teaming for a presentation of a unique cinematographic concert of Paul Leni’s 1928 classic THE MAN WHO LAUGHS, rightfully recognized as an early masterpiece of horror cinema. Thibaudeau’s original score for the film, which has been performed worldwide over the past 20 years, from Paris to São Paulo, Tokyo to New York, will be interpreted live by a nine-piece orchestra under the direction of the composer, featuring the Quatuor Molinari. Do not miss this true homage to silent cinema’s golden age! Georgian-born French filmmaker Géla Babluani created one of the most significant thrillers of the last 15 years with his enthralling debut, the classic 13 TZAMETI. Now, after a seven-year hiatus following that film’s 2010 US remake, he has returned with MONEY’S MONEY – a taut robbery thriller whose stellar cast includes Benoît Magimel, Olivier Rabourdin, Vincent Rottiers, and Féodor Atkine. Fantasia will proudly be showcasing the film’s World Premiere. Fantasia’s Axis Section presents two new animated films by Japan’s Yuasa Masaaki, who will attend the festival in person. Masaaki’s 2004 opus MIND GAME, showcasing his free-spirited sensibility, remains an all-time animated highlight of the festival’s programming history. First up, a wild jumble of characters and events that come together on one strange night in Kyoto, in the madcap, musical romantic comedy NIGHT IS SHORT, WALK ON GIRL (International Premiere). And then there’s LU OVER THE WALL (North American Premiere) – boy meets mermaid in this manic anime mash-up of Gothic folklore, wild fantasy, and feelgood teenage J-pop jams! Fantasia will be presenting a special screening of Luc Besson’s hotly anticipated fantasy spectacular VALERIAN AND THE CITY OF A THOUSAND PLANETS. Based on the adored French comic series by Pierre Christin and Jean-Claude Mézières, the film stars Dane DeHaan, Cara Delevingne, Clive Owen, and Rihanna – and promises to be one of the most visually extravagant genre works the screen has ever seen. The lives of an addict, a Luchador, a cartel organ smuggler, and an ex-con collide in this wildly original crime/drama/blacker-than-black comedy/thriller that’s as informed by Mexican subcultures as it is by American cinema. A ferocious feature debut by Ryan Prows, LOWLIFE is one of the most gobsmacking crime film discoveries that we’ve come across in years. Beg, cheat, or steal to be at our World Premiere and witness the birth of an unforgettable instant classic. Director Cho Sun-ho amazes with his masterfully crafted first feature film A DAY (International Premiere), which tells the story of a famous doctor stuck in a time loop where he must try to save his daughter from a fatal car accident over and over again. Going far beyond the GROUNDHOG DAY concept in terms of emotional implication and unpredictable twists, this riveting thriller will keep you on the very edge of your seat! Cho Sun-ho is definitely a name to remember! Fantasia is proud to be presenting the World Premiere of FRIENDLY BEAST, a bold and brilliant feature debut from Brazilian writer/director Gabriela Amaral Almeida. Easily one of the most provocative works you’ll encounter this year, the film concerns a restaurant owner going over the edge when an armed robbery is attempted at his establishment. He holds everyone captive at gunpoint – criminals and customers alike – and situations corrode into a nightmare state, guided by manipulation and raw compulsion. Ted Geoghegan’s sophomore feature, following 2015’s acclaimed WE ARE STILL HERE, confronts audiences with a very different kind of horror: our collective history. Set in 1814, MOHAWK tells the white-knuckle tale of two young Mohawk warriors and their British lover pursued by murderous American military renegades Hell-bent on blind revenge, and features a striking ensemble cast that includes Kaniehtiio Horn, Eamon Farren, Ezra Buzzington, Jonathan Huber (WWE Superstar Luke Harper), and Noah Segan. History often hurts, but sometimes it hits hard enough to kill. The CAMERA LUCIDA Section is back at Fantasia for its eighth consecutive year! Opening with the Québec Premiere of David Lowery’s A GHOST STORY, a metaphysical exploration of love, longing, destiny and mortality that reunites the PETE’S DRAGON’s director with actors Rooney Mara and Casey Affleck, the section will once again showcase some of world cinema’s boldest and most innovative voices, at the very edge of genre cinema. World premiering at Fantasia, Giordano Giulivi’s THE LAPLACE’S DEMON unfolds like an all-time great TWILIGHT ZONE episode directed by the three-headed offspring of Guy Maddin, Mario Bava, and Val Lewton! It will send you right over the edge with its unique mix of faux-vintage aesthetics, probabilistic science-fiction, and Gothic style. A total discovery, it beautifully balances pastiche, homage, and invention! Also in the section, Yuya Ishii’s THE TOKYO NIGHT SKY IS ALWAYS THE DENSEST SHADE OF BLUE (Canadian Premiere) is an offbeat rom-com, a slacker dramedy, and a poetic ode to the Big City, all rolled into one virtuosic film from the director of THE GREAT PASSAGE, and based on the poetry of Tahi Saihate. Geng Jun’s FREE AND EASY (also a Canadian Premiere) sees a soap salesman, a monk, and some lazy cops collide in a factory town in the Northeast of China. Putting the “dead” firmly back in deadpan, Geng’s comedy unfolds as an absurdist caper of Beckettian proportions, making for a great portrait of small-town crime in the wake of China’s rapid industrialization. The rest of this year’s Camera Lucida lineup will be revealed on July 5. Years ago, Thailand gave the world ONG BAK. Then Indonesia surprised us with THE RAID. This year, it’s Cambodia’s turn to redefine the limits of action cinema with spectacular stunts and breathtaking fights at an unrelenting, frenetic pace. Explosively directed by Jimmy Henderson, JAILBREAK highlights the beauty and the know-how of a national cinema worth discovering. Don’t miss this! YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE, the hilarious feature debut of Spanish stunt coordinator Federico Cueva, who has worked extensively on the films of Alex de la Iglesia and Santiago Segura, is an explosive action/comedy that sees a framed con man (Peter Lanzani) having to impersonate an orthodox Jew in order to escape ruthless killers – played by Segura, Gerard Depardieu, and Hugo Silva! Fantasia offers you the chance to be the first to see this incredible actioner outside its home country! Fantasia favorite Yuichi Fukuda (HK: FORBIDDEN SUPERHERO) is back, with his biggest film yet: GINTAMA, based on Hideaki Sorachi’s long-running, best-selling shonen manga series – adapted to the big screen in all its comedic, swashbuckling, fourth-wall-breaking glory! Fukuda runs completely wild with the manga’s many sight gags and extravagant costumes, in what proves to be at once a must for diehard fans and a treat for manga enthusiasts in general; a crash-course in live-action done right! From the Oscar-winning director of THE COUNTERFEITERS and the ANATOMIE films comes the crushingly intense COLD HELL – a film that crackles with elements of Giallo, horror, thriller, and full-throttle action cinema, anchored with powerful doses of socio-political confrontation. A tough-as-nails Turkish taxi driver (Violetta Schurawlow) in Vienna witnesses a murder and finds herself stalked by a fundamentalist serial killer inspired by Islam. After a lifetime of being under siege, she’s not about to run from anyone. What follows is anything but the usual cat and mouse formula, as ideology and hate clash up against ferocious, end-of-the-rope anger. Danish madmen Casper Christensen and Frank Hvam became a comedy team for the ages in the unforgettable KLOWN series – the first film having won a Cheval Noir at Fantasia, where it had its North American Premiere. Now, they’re together again, as co-writers and stars, in Jesper Rofelt’s DAN DREAM, an ‘80s-set comedy about a group of eccentric men striving to make an electric car. Fantasia’s audience will be the very first to see the film outside of Denmark. Get excited! If Nicolas Machiavelli would’ve written a comic book with an edgy sense of humor, it would look like Usamaru Furuya’s manga Teiichi no Kuni. Akira Nagai, director of the Fantasia 2016 success IF CATS DISAPPEARED FROM THE WORLD, adapts this witty mix of political satire and coming of age story without falling one second into outrageous cynicism. With a dynamic performance from actor Masaki Suda who bring just enough humanity to his aspiring politician character, TEIICHI: BATTLE OF THE SUPREME HIGH (North American Premiere) is the perfect film to maintain a bit of sanity in today’s political context. [caption id="attachment_19876" align="aligncenter" width="1200"]BRIGSBY BEAR BRIGSBY BEAR[/caption] After celebrating its World Premiere at Sundance and its European launch at Cannes (Critic’s Week), Dave McCary’s extraordinary BRIGSBY BEAR will have its Canadian bow at Fantasia. Brigsby Bear Adventures is a children’s TV show produced for an audience of one: James (Kyle Mooney). When the show abruptly ends, James’s life changes forever, and he sets out to finish the story himself. Co-starring Mark Hamill, Claire Danes, and Greg Kinnear, BRIGSBY BEAR is an inventive and touching outsider comedy about the power of storytelling that easily ranks among the most charming films you’ll encounter this year. Liu Jian’s award-winning 2010 debut, PIERCING 1, marked him as China’s first world-class independent animator, and established an austere, understated visual style and caustic social commentary that has carried through to his latest. Making its Canadian Premiere at Fantasia 2017, Liu’s bold second feature, the Berlinale breakout HAVE A NICE DAY is a bitter, bitingly funny slice of low-key neo-noir, in which a memorable bunch of nobodies chase a bag of cash and strike hopeless bargains with fate. ADDITIONAL FIRST WAVE TITLES INCLUDE: 68 KILL USA – Dir: Trent Haaga Matthew Gray Gubler and AnnaLynne McCord incinerate the screen in this crazy scumbag thrill-ride of white-trash crime and kink that manages to subversively play with gender and be a toxic anti-romantic bloodbath of a comedy in the same breathless blow. Winner: Audience Award (Midnighters), SXSW 2017. Canadian Premiere. BAD GENIUS Thailand – Dir: Nattawut Poonpiriya When Lynn (Chutimon Chuengcharoensukying) discovers that her academic skills can bring her thousands of baht if she helps her wealthy friends cheat at exams, she elaborates a complex scheme. What if OCEAN’S ELEVEN would somehow meet THE BREAKFAST CLUB? Well, it happened! A breathtaking coming-of-age thriller that is way smarter than anything you can expect! Official Selection: New York Asian Film Festival. Canadian Premiere. BASTARD SWORDSMAN Hong Kong – Dir: Tony Liu Who will truly master the silkworm technique and bring balance to the martial world? The last surviving 35mm copy of the Shaw Brothers gem will blast you with its avalanche of unfettered lunacy. First Canadian screening in 30 years! BITCH USA – Dir: Marianna Palka The provocative tale of a woman (Palka) who snaps under crushing life pressures and assumes the psyche of a vicious dog. A sharp, feminist satire that’s alternately uncomfortably funny and confrontational with a warrior soul, BITCH is a stunning achievement in every sense. Official Selection: Sundance 2017, Chicago Critics Film Festival 2017. Canadian Premiere. DEAD MAN TELLS HIS OWN TALE Argentina – Dir: Fabián Forte Misogynist alpha male Angel has it all – money, power, family, sex. His only problem is, he’s dead. Gender politics are unpacked in Fabián Forte’s subversive black comedy dosed with unexpected terror. Official Selection: Morbido 2016, Fantasporto 2017. Canadian Premiere. DEAD SHACK Canada – Dir: Peter Ricq A rural Canadian mix of DEAD ALIVE, SCOUTS GUIDE TO THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE, and ’80s kids’ movies! Director Peter Ricq (creator of the animated series FREAKTOWN) keeps things fast, light, and full of fight. Official Selection: Neuchetal Fantastic Film Festival 2017, Lund 2017. North American Premiere. THE ENDLESS USA – Dir: Justin Benson and Aaron Moorehead Two brothers return to the cult they fled from years ago to discover that the group’s beliefs may be more sane than they once thought. SPRING and RESOLUTION announced Benson and Moorehead as unconventional genre forces to be reckoned with. THE ENDLESS – in which the gifted filmmaking duo also star – confirms their brilliance beyond any question. Official Selection: Tribeca 2017. Canadian Premiere. GAME OF DEATH Canada – Dir: Sebastien Landry and Laurence Baz Morias A hard-partying pack of teens are forced into a desperate game of kill-or-be-killed after playing the wrong retro game in this high-energy, blood-spattered brainchild of Montreal filmmakers Sebastien Landry and Laurence Baz Morais. Official Selection: SXSW 2017, Jeonju International Film Festival 2017. Canadian Premiere. KILLING GROUND Australia – Dir: Damien Power A young couple (Harriet Dyer; Ian Medows) on a romantic getaway in the Australian wilderness encounter a dangerous pair of locals (Aaron Pedersen; Aaron Glenane) and a make deadly discovery in this inventively intense thriller that brings audiences back to the glory days of Aussie genre cinema and sun-drenched outback horror. Official Selection: Sundance Film Festival. Canadian Premiere. KODOKU MEATBALL MACHINE Japan – Dir: Yoshihiro Nishimura People are turning into bizarre organic/mechanical creatures who terrorize the last survivors of a decimated, dome-covered Tokyo. Yoshihiro Nishimura (TOKYO GORE POLICE), Japan’s master of extreme make-up effects, is back with more of his gory creativity and his formidable capacity to create hellish – but funny – monsters. Official Selection: SXSW 2017, Night Visions 2017, The Overlook Film Festival 2017. Canadian Premiere. MAYHEM USA – Dir: Joe Lynch Amid a frightening viral outbreak that leaves the infected temporarily unable to control their impulses – and subsequently not criminally responsible for their behaviour – a lawyer (THE WALKING DEAD’s Steven Yeun) and shafted homeowner (Samara Weaving) fight to confront the top executives who wronged them. A cheerfully ferocious middle finger salute to cutthroat corporate culture. Official Selection: SXSW 2017. Canadian Premiere. M.F.A. USA – Dir: Natalia Leite After being sexually assaulted by a fellow classmate, an art student (Francesca Eastwood) becomes an avenging vigilante, refusing the vulnerability of victimization and exacting cold-blooded – and bloody – revenge. Official Selection SXSW 2017, Galway Film Fleadh 2017. Canadian Premiere. MON MON MON MONSTERS Taiwan – Dir: Giddens Ko In a shabby Taipei neighborhood plagued by nocturnal killings, four teenage boys find trouble… and trouble finds them. A twisted coming-of-age film from the writer of MACHI ACTION and an impressive blend of genres, bouncing from comedy to horror in matters of seconds without ever making a mess. Official selection: Hong Kong International Film Festival 2017, Udine Far East Film Festival 2017, New York Asian Film Festival 2017. Canadian Premiere. MUSEUM Japan – Dir: Keishi Ohtomo Fantasia favorite Keishi Ohtomo (the RUROUNI KENSHIN trilogy) is back with MUSEUM, based on Ryosuke Tomoe’s 2013 manga of the same name. It’s overworked cop vs. sadistic, frog-headed killer in this gruesome and deranged, horror-tinged thriller in the tradition of David Fincher’s SE7EN! Official Selection: Sitges 2016, Busan 2016. Canadian Premiere. MY FRIEND DAHMER USA – Dir: Marc Meyers Ross Lynch stars in the haunting, sad, funny, and true story of Jeffrey Dahmer in high school, based on Derf Backderf’s critically acclaimed 2012 graphic novel of the same name and Meyers’s own 2014 Black List script. Also starring Anne Heche, Dallas Roberts, and Vincent Kartheiser. Official Selection: Tribeca 2017. Canadian Premiere. NAPPING PRINCESS Japan – Dir: Kenji Kamiyama The divide between teenage Kokone’s fanciful reveries and the real world is crumbling in NAPPING PRINCESS, a sleek Japanese anime that blends steampunk fantasy and plugged-in techno-thrillers. From acclaimed director Kenji Kamiyama (GHOST IN THE SHELL: SAC, CYBORG 009, and EDEN OF THE EAST). Canadian Premiere. NIGHT OF THE VIRGIN Spain – Dir: Roberto San Sebastián The first time is often clumsy and awkward, but for Nico the virgin, it’s the beginning of an endless nightmare. An unmissable comedy/horror rollercoaster of blood and lust that features some of the most grotesquely imaginative grossouts we’ve seen in years. Official Selection: Fantaspoa 2017, FrightFest 2017. Canadian Premiere. PORK PIE New Zealand – Dir: Matt Murphy A trio of young misfits in pursuit of lost love race the length of the country in a stolen Mini Cooper S. Avoiding the law and with nothing to lose, they become folk heroes and most wanted criminals as they find themselves caught in the crosshairs of a media frenzy and escalating police operation. North American Premiere. REPLACE Germany/Canada – Dir: Norbert Keil Afflicted with a dermatological disease, young and beautiful Kira discovers she can replace her skin with that of other girls. REPLACE is a visually sumptuous and grotesque horror/science-fiction creation, co-scripted by Richard Stanley and co-starring genre legend Barbara Crampton. Canadian Premiere. RON GOOSSENS, LOW-BUDGET STUNTMAN Netherlands – Dir: Steffen Haars and Flip Van der Kuil A failed stunt makes Ron Goossens an overnight national celebrity in Holland, in the incendiary new comedy from the team who gave you the insane NEW KIDS films! Official Selection: Fantaspoa 2017, Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival 2017. North American Premiere. SEQUENCE BREAK USA – Dir: Graham Skipper A loner’s budding romance is menaced by a mysterious arcade game that’s a portal to the cosmos in this masterful melding of retro ’80s horror nostalgia and Lovecraftian doom. The directorial debut of actor Graham Skipper (THE MIND’S EYE), SEQUENCE BREAK won Best Feature Film at the 2017 Chattanooga Film Festival. International Premiere. SPLIT South Korea – Dir: Choi Kook-hee A fallen bowling champion (OLDBOY’s Yoo Ji-tae) attempts to team up with an autistic prodigy (POETRY’s David Lee) to rack big money with underground bowling gambles. Built like a genuine sports drama, SPLIT has way more to offer than the traditional competition story… but it will still make you cheer for the protagonists until the end credits! Official Selection: New York Asian Film Festival 2017. Canadian Premiere. SUPER DARK TIMES USA – Dir: Kevin Phillips An emotionally incinerating and strangely dream-like gaze into the shadowy crevices of teenage psychology, directed with vivid imagination, telling a powerful story about adolescence’s end and the darkening of innocence, friendship, loyalty… and murder. Official Selection: Rotterdam Film Festival 2017. Canadian Premiere. THOUSAND CUTS France – Dir: Eric Valette From the maker of MALEFIQUE and ONE MISSED CALL comes a compelling story about wine, drugs, neighbors, neophobia, and politics, in which a hitman seeks a place to hide. Starring Tomer Sisley (SLEEPLESS NIGHT). Official Selection: Rotterdam Film Festival 2017. North American Premiere. TOKYO IDOLS UK/Canada/Japan – Dir: Kyoko Miyake “Idols”, girl bands and their pop music, permeate every moment of Japanese life. TOKYO IDOLS peeks behind the curtains of this industry, explores a cultural phenomenon driven by an obsession with young female sexuality, and the growing disconnect between men and women in hyper-modern societies. Official Selection: Sundance 2017, Hot Docs 2017, DOXA 2017, Japan Cuts 2017. Québec Premiere. TOM OF FINLAND Finland – Dir: Dome Karukoski Award-winning filmmaker Dome Karukoski (LAPLAND ODYSSEY) brings the life and work of one of the most influential and celebrated figures of twentieth century gay culture to the screen in this extraordinary story of revolution and acceptance through counter-cultural art. Official Selection: Goteborg Film Festival 2017, Edinburgh International Film Festival 2017, Tribeca 2017. Canadian Premiere. VAMPIRE CLEANUP DEPARTMENT Hong Kong – Dir: Yan Pak-Wing and Chiu Sin-Hang A motley crew of misfits tackle the bloodthirsty hopping vampires descending on Hong Kong! Laughter, kung fu, horror, and insanity, with a gallery of HK icons! Official Selection: Udine Far East Film Festival 2017, Bucheon International Film Festival 2017. Canadian Premiere. WHAT A WONDERFUL FAMILY! 2 Japan – Dir: Yoji Yamada The Hirata family is back, and Grandpa is acting up again! This sequel reunites legendary director Yoji Yamada (of the TORA-SAN series) with the exceptional cast of the first film for another round of hilarious, multi-generational slapstick comedy! Official Selection: Beijing International Film Festival 2017, Shanghai International Film Festival 2017. Canadian Premiere. WU KONG China/Hong Kong – Dir: Derek Kwok Award-winning director Derek Kwok (GALLANTS) reboots the famous Monkey King legend from the popular novel, with fresh vigour of epic proportions that you’ll love for 10,000 years. To be released during the same week in China and North America. Québec Premiere.

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