Tag: Film Festivals

Vancouver Horror Show Film Festival Conjures a Killer First Wave for 2026

Celebrating Halloween with the Vancouver Horror Show Film Festival can’t look any better with Michael Dougherty in attendance!

Vancouver Horror Show Film Festival
Runs Oct 14–18 at the Cineplex Cinemas International Village and The Rio. Photographer Credit Emmett Race

The Vancouver Horror Show Film Festival returns for its ninth year, and its first wave has a fine Halloween-season hook: a 19th anniversary screening of Trick ’r Treat with writer-director Michael Dougherty in attendance. The presentation also includes a new 4K restoration of Season’s Greetings, the animated short that first introduced Sam before he became one of modern horror’s best-known little monsters.

Four features have been announced so far. Hammer Films brings Ithaqua to B.C. audiences, with Luke Hemsworth starring in a frozen 19th-century Canadian outpost besieged by hunger, cold and an ancient flesh-eating evil. It marks Hammer’s first original monster in 60 years. You can read our review here, as we got an early look during London’s Fright Fest. An interview with director Casey Walker can be read here.

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Japan Cuts 2026, Honouring The Best Films From The Land of the Rising Sun

In New York City, Japan Cuts 2026 promises to highlight the best in what contemporary Japanese cinema can offer, and it looks great. What’s offered this year is a teaser before planning begins for their emerald celebration.

Japan Cuts 2026
Runs July 8th to 18th, 2026 at the Japan Society in New York, USA.

Before a certain genre film festival begins in Montreal, some eyes, and many patrons, will descend upon New York for Japan Cuts 2026, an event focused on what makes films from this country special. Not only is the Japan Society working hard to foster closer industry relationships and bring U.S. and Japanese co-productions together, like Toho and Legendary Pictures’ Monsterverse, but it also celebrates contemporary cinema. And this year, Canon became their major corporate sponsor!

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Sherman Alexie Heads to Victoria for 3rd Annual F1RST Celebration of Indigenous Film

herman Alexie headlines the third edition of F1RST Celebration of Indigenous Film at The Vic Theatre in Victoria, July 17–19. The festival brings a newly restored print of The Business of Fancydancing alongside a full slate of Indigenous cinema.

F1RST: A Celebration of Indigenous FilmIf you grew up reading The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian or caught Smoke Signals (or its spin-off, made years later, Hey Viktor! featuring Cody Lightning; review link), let’s just say this year’s F1RST Celebration of Indigenous Film is worth checking out, locals and tourists to Victoria, BC alike.

Now in its third year, this event is bringing Sherman Alexie to The Vic Theatre. The writer behind some of the most recognized Indigenous storytelling in contemporary literature and film is headlining this edition, and the centerpiece is a newly restored print of The Business of Fancydancing, the film he wrote and directed, followed by a post-screening Q&A. He’ll also sit down with actor and physician Evan Adams (Smoke Signals, Bones of Crows) for a featured conversation on acting, writing, and directing.

From the Press Release:

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Annecy 2026: Top Ten Picks on What To Look Out For

From steampunk anime and folk fantasy to surreal satire, musical odysseys, and unsettling horror from around the world, Annecy 2026 promises to have a bit of everything for fans of animation. That includes previews on upcoming streaming series.

annecy 2026Every year, the Annecy International Animation Film Festival offers a fantastic glimpse into what’ll be headed to theatres, streaming or television soon. While not everything will be made available for other regions, especially with European made works, I’m always holding out hope. At Annecy 2026, this year’s selections have me excited. From steampunk alternate histories and existential animated satire to folk fantasy and deeply personal musical odysseys. Several projects also continue the growing trend of international co-productions blending artistic traditions from Europe and Asia in ways that feel genuinely fresh.

Here are some of the standout titles currently catching our attention.

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A Geek’s Essential Guide to the Sundance Film Festival 2026

Sundance remains one of the few major festivals still offering a meaningful online component. Here are five geek-friendly picks to watch for, from philosophical sci-fi and midnight body horror to an AI documentary that feels uncomfortably timely.

Sundance Film Festival MarqueeFrom one corner of the world to another, Sundance remains one of the few major festivals that still keeps a meaningful online component. For anyone who can’t travel to Salt Lake City, Utah, the at-home run is scheduled for one weekend, from January 29 to February 1, 2026.

Other festivals that have confirmed online offerings include Chattanooga and Panic Fest. Virtual access is often geo-locked due to licensing agreements. Some viewers use VPNs to get around those restrictions, but that’s a personal call, and not one I’m about to moralise for you. For geeks who must see a film, the cleanest option is often the most annoying one: wait until it’s legally available in your region.

With that in mind, here are five essentials I’m keeping my eye on, including one title that should be available online.

In the Blink of an Eye

In the Blink of an Eye Movie PosterThis isn’t necessarily a time travel film, but it plays with time the way memory does. Past, present, and future overlap as three lives cross paths in ways humans can’t fully grasp.

In the distant past, a Neanderthal family struggles to survive after being displaced, doing what they can to protect their children with little more than primitive tools. In the present day, Claire (Rashida Jones), a driven post-grad anthropologist studying proto-human remains, begins a relationship with fellow student Greg (Daveed Diggs). And two centuries later, on a spaceship bound for a distant planet, Coakley (Kate McKinnon) and a sentient onboard computer confront a disease afflicting the ship’s oxygen-producing plants.

This one sounds more philosophical than anything else. Mortality, legacy, maybe reincarnation, it’s all on the table. Life can disappear in the blink of an eye. That’s true whether it’s an asteroid, an illness, or a single choice made at the wrong moment.

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A Quick Look at the 2026 Victoria Film Festival

The 2026 Victoria Film Festival runs Feb 6–15, featuring 91 feature films, 39 shorts, pop-up screenings, immersive art, and special guest appearances across nine venues. The full program is now available online.

2026 Victoria Film Festival Current LogoThe 2026 Victoria Film Festival is ready to roll from February 6 to 15. For its 32nd year, this local event continues to celebrate bold, quirky storytelling from Vancouver Island, across Canada, and around the world. This year’s lineup features 91 feature films and 39 short films screening across nine venues, alongside live music, visual art installations, pop-up screenings, and special guest appearances.

Highlights include onstage conversations with Canadian screen icons Mary Walsh and Sheila McCarthy, a post-screening Q&A with world-renowned artist Robert Bateman, retro-inspired immersive art experiences, and new partnerships that take the festival beyond traditional cinema spaces. Additional surprises and program changes may emerge as the event approaches. Full details and tickets are available at victoriafilmfestival.com.

Beyond the screenings, this year’s festival leans into atmosphere and community. Returning venues sit alongside new spaces, signalling a program that continues to reshape how audiences encounter film, through intimate conversations, retro-tinged art experiments, and neighbourhood-scale micro-cinema events. While genre offerings appear lighter this year, we’ll be sharing our own picks once the guide goes live.