Local film festival scares up a respectable following.

Last year saw the inception of San Diego’s first film festival dedicated to macabre cinema and art. The response was so overwhelmingly positive that a second year was a certainty. On November 4th and 5th, Horrible Imaginings Film Festival expands to two days of film and art, including short films, animated shorts, music videos and feature films, as well as a haunted gallery of dark or macabre art. The 10th Avenue Theatre and Arts Centre at 930 10th Avenue in downtown San Diego will host this event of thrills and chills. Horrible Imaginings is the brainchild of Monster Island Resort Podcast host Miguel Rodriguez. “It has become clear that the horror genre is something that can be embraced and understood by San Diego audiences,” Rodriguez said. “It is healthy to explore and express the dark parts of our psyche through the safe forum that film and art offers us. This genre has as much to offer as any other.”

Horrible Imaginings Film Festival will continue the dual mission of bringing exposure to promising new filmmakers, while reviving classic films that many people may not have seen. This mission ensures a comprehensive exploration of what the genre has to offer. Rodriguez is very proud to offer Georges Franju’s 1960 dark French masterpiece Les yeux sans visage (Eyes Without a Face) and Ishiro Honda’s original Japanese uncut masterpiece Gojira (Godzilla) as his headlining revival features. These are very rare and exciting screenings, and examplars of the horror genre.

Horrible Imaginings also celebrates diversity in both content and creators. The films offer and eclectic array of ways that fear can be expressed–from horror comedy, to drama, to more extreme examples. Likewise, the creators of the films are equally as diverse. Nine of the filmmakers are women, one filmmaker is gay, and others come from Mexico, Spain, Portugal, Australia, the Netherlands, and Canada. From countries all over the world, horror and fear prove to be universal emotions.

The Haunted Art Gallery, featuring the work of local and national artists who choose to express dark themes, was a staple of the first Horrible Imaginings and will be making an encore appearance. Two floors of art will be on display for audience members during breaks between films. The Haunted Gallery Opening Reception will take place on Thursday, October 27th and continue through the festival’s end on Saturday, November 5th. Gallery hours during non-festival days will be from 6pm to 10pm. During the festival, there will be long breaks dedicated to the gallery and for dinner. Local burger aficionados Hodad’s will be providing big discounts for people with a Horrible Imaginings ticket. Hodad’s is located right next door to the theatre. This year’s Horrible Imaginings Film Fest is shaping up to be a memorable and terrifying way to keep Halloween alive in San Diego this year!

In addition to Godzilla and Eyes Without a Face, there is an exciting program of films, including:

Two Additional Independent Features:
Long Pigs (87 mins) Dir: Chris Power and Nathan Hynes
The Taint (67 mins) Dir: Drew Bolduc and Dan Nelson

Two Animated Shorts:
Blenderstein (4 mins) Dir: Zach Bellissimo
Mac & Cheese (3 mins) Dir: Gijs van Kooten

Two Music Videos:
Sophia Segal’s “Bypass” (7 mins) Dir: Sophia Segal
Shantelle’s “Unamonos” (7 mins) Dir: Aaron Soto

Twenty-five Short Films
Shadows (9 mins) Dir: Bryan Wolford
Demon Possessed Wife 4 mins Dir: Dan Ochs
Juan Con Miedo (11mins) Dir: Daniel Romero
Road Rage (10 mins) Dir: Barbara Stepansky
JustUs (6mins) Dir: Lori Bowen
Edgewood Drive (20 mins) Dir: Mando Franco
Scrutinize (5mins) Dir: Brenda and Elisabeth Fies
Star Beast (4 mins) Dir: Bob Rose
Late Bloomer (13 mins) Dir: Craig Macneill
Fabrica De Munecas (11 mins) Dir: Ainhoa Menéndez
The Familiar (22 mins) Dir: Kody Zimmermann
Billy Bob’s Zombie Emporium (4 mins) Dir: Kevin Perkins
Giant Rubber Monster Movie (15 mins) Dir: Thomas Berdinski
Show Me (13 mins) Dir: David Schneider
Scream Machine (15 mins) Dir: Julia Camara
Doppelganger (6 mins) Dir: Drew Daywalt
METH (25 mins) Dir: Michael Maney
12/15/1996 (11 mins) Dir: Mae Catt
Doll Parts (10 mins) Dir: Karen Lam
My Undeadly (4 mins) Dir: Dave Reda
AXED (38 mins): Dir: Joshua Long
Survivlismo (9 mins) Dir: José Pedro Lopes
Omega Shell (15 mins) Dir: Aaron Soto
Candy (9 mins) Dir: Mark Bessenger
The Many Doors of Albert Whale (6 mins) Dir: Marichelle Daywalt

For more details, visit the Horrible Imaginings Film Festival website and Monster Island Resort. Follow Miguel Rodriguez on Twitter. Get to know Horrible Imaginings on Facebook.