#weird event

Natural History of Horror: The Science of Scary, October 10, 2019 – April 19, 2020,  Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County, 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90007. Info and exhibition events: nhm.org/horror.

NecronomiCon Providence: Welcome to The International Festival of Weird Fiction, Art, and Academia, August 22-25, 2019, Providence, Rhode Island 02903. Poster art by Brandon Kawashima, info: necronomicon-providence.com.

2019 H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival, 4-6 October, 2019, The Hollywood Theatre, 4122 NE Sandy Blvd, Portland, Oregon 97212, USA. Info: hplfilmfestival.com.

Join us for the 24th Annual H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival at the Hollywood Theatre in Portland, OR on October 4-6, 2019! Our guest of honor is Victoria Price, daughter of Vincent Price. She'll be giving us an inside look of growing up in the shadow of the world's most beloved horror actor, and we'll be featuring some of his more Lovecraftian films! We’ll also be joined by Roger Corman, who directed The Haunted Palace (1963 starring Vincent Price), one of the first Lovecraft film adaptations ever! Plus, Richard Stanley will be back to premiere his new feature adaptation of The Color Out of Space for our audience. This will be a year to remember!

Friday, October 4, 7:00 pm. Meet & Greet with Guests, 4-6 pm. Films & Events 7-11 pm. Join us on Friday for Opening Ceremonies, Short Film Blocks and the regional premiere of The Color Out of Space followed by Q&A with director Richard Stanley. Get the first crack at seeing some of the 40+ independent short and feature films from around the world, hours of panel discussions, author readings, live events, and special guests. We are joined by Guest of Honor Victoria Price and special guests Roger Corman and Richard Stanley.

Saturday, October 5, 1:00 pm. Events 10 am - 11 pm. Films & Events 1-5 pm, 7-11 pm. Join us on Saturday for a special screening of The Haunted Palace on 35mm with director Roger Corman and Guest of Honor Victoria Price. The H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society will perform a 1930s style Radio Play Live on the main stage! Enjoy 40+ independent short and feature films from around the world, hours of panel discussions, author readings, live events, and special guests. We are joined by Guest of Honor Victoria Price and special guests Roger Corman and Richard Stanley.

Embodying Fantastika, 8th, 9th and 10th August 2019, Lancaster University, UK. Info: embodyingfantastika.com.

‘Fantastika’ is an umbrella term that embraces the genres of Fantasy, Science Fiction and Horror but can also include Alternate History, Gothic, Steampunk or any other radically imaginative narrative space. The sixth annual Fantastika conference will aim to define, challenge and debate conceptualisations of embodiment. We seek to investigate how various bodily forms are addressed or ruptured across a myriad of canvases, whether it be through (re)construction, transposition or indeed destabilisation. The conference will diagnose how Fantastika texts may extend upon or confront definitions of what it even means to be ‘embodied’, inviting researchers from fields such as posthumanism, medical humanities and other relevant fields to collaborate through productive discussion.

    Thursday 8th August 11.30–12.30 Registration and Lunch 12.30–14.30 Training #1: Building your digital profile / Academic CV writing 14.30–15.00 Break 15.00–17.00 Training #2: Theorising Embodiment with Fantastika Frameworks

    Friday 9th August 8.30–9.15 Welcome and Registration 9.15–10.30 Panel Session:     Panel 1a: Trans(forming) Bodies – Taylor Driggers, Thomas Moules, Felix Kawitzky     Panel 1b: Mechanising the Human – Molly Cobb, Zoe Wible, Courtney Kidd     Panel 1c: The Objects We Live With – Leonie Rowland, Marita Arvaniti, Kerry Dodd 10.45–12.00 Panel Session:     Panel 2a: Re(production) – Eleonora Rossi, Katie Stone, Sheryl Hamilton     Panel 2b: The Return of the Discarded – Lyu Guangzhao, Sarah Dodd, Chelsea Haith     Panel 2c: Un(healthy) Bodies – Chase Ledin, Mia Harrison, Virginia Conn 12.00–13.30 Lunch 13.30–15.00 Keynote #1: Professor Sherryl Vint – ‘Suspending Death, Reinventing Life’ 15.00–15.45 Break 15.45–17.00 Panel Session:     Panel 3a: Confronting Monstrosity – Shellie McMurdo, Megen de Bruin-Molé     Panel 3b: Posthuman Archives – Tom Kewin, Dan Byrne-Smith     Panel 3c: Clowns, Comedy and the Carnivalesque – Oliver Rendle, Valentino Paccosi

The 4th International Vampire Film and Arts Festival, aka ‘VampFest’, July 9th-13th 2019, Highgate Village, East Finchley and Camden Town, London. Info: ivfaf.com.

A week-long party with real bite is coming to London this summer as the World’s biggest Vampire Festival arrives from Transylvania. The 2019 International Vampire Film & Arts Festival – aka Vampfest – will take place in various locations across Highgate Village, Camden Town and East Finchley from July 9th-13th. In Highgate and East Finchley it will showcase the best in classic and new vampire films, literature, theatre and the latest academic research into the genre, while in Camden Town after dark things will get scary and sinful with the spectacular VampFire Ball. The festival has been running for three years in the home of the vampire legend and the birthplace of the real Dracula: Sighisoara in Transylvania. Now, the vampires have decided to pack their coffins and travel, drawn by London’s own legend of the Highgate Vampire. Guests can expect the latest and greatest in all things vampire, including film premieres and classics; theatre shows in our very own haunted theatre; Q&As from special guests including Interview With a Vampire filmmaker Stephen Woolley and several legendary Hammer actors; renowned authors Kim Newman and Nick Groom; talks from film industry professionals and critics, including Mark Kermode; book readings and signings; workshops, seminars, scary talks, scary walks, masterclasses, plays, exhibitions and lots of parties.

Programme Highlights:

Blood and Lust. Late night screenings of the best Hammer Vampire movies every night from Tuesday at the iconic Phoenix Cinema in East Finchley, culminating with the screening of the Christopher Lee classic ‘Dracula’ on Saturday. Thursday night is our big Hammer Vampire night, where, along with a classic movie, we’ll showcase the best of their fanged classics with an illustrated talk from Hammer vampire expert Bruce Hallenbeck. He’ll be joined by the stars of the movies – the Hammer Vampire Scream Queens – for an audience Q&A and then signing and photo opportunities in the bar area.

The Vampire Academic Conference (VAC). Lauderdale House in Highgate hosts the presentation of the latest and best academic papers on all things vampire. This year’s featured topics include Hammer’s Vampires; The legend of the Highgate Vampire, and the 200th anniversary of Polidori’s seminal classic ‘The Vampyre’. The VAC features two amazing keynote talks: the first from the ‘Prof of Goth’, Nick Groom, and the second from legendary author Kim Newman.

The Vampire Creative Congress (VCC). Bringing together vampire experts and creatives from film, literature and games (along with anyone with a general interest in vampires) for a series of talks, debates, readings and masterclasses. Topics cover self-publishing your own vampire novel; getting an agent; pitching your vampire project and raising the finances to make a vampire movie. Hosted at the historic Lauderdale House, within view of the legendary Highgate cemetery.

Mark Kermode Presents ‘Near Dark’. Author and critic Mark Kermode presents Kathryn Bigelow’s vampire classic, ‘Near Dark’, followed by a Q&A with Mark at the Phoenix Cinema.

Interview with a Vampire Filmmaker. On Saturday, 25 years on from the release of what is widely regarded as one of the best vampire films ever made, we’ll be screening ‘Interview with a Vampire’, starring Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt. Straight afterwards, the BAFTA-winning producer, Stephen Woolley, talks us through the making of the classic movie, including how the setting for the talk – the Phoenix Cinema – turned into Theatres Des Vampires for the film. He also produced another vampire classic in Byzantium. Then join us later for our ‘Interview with a Hammer Vampire’ themed Festival Wrap Party.

IVFAF Film Screamings & The Golden Stakes Awards. Come and see some of the best new vampire movies from around the world… if you dare..! Each film screaming session at the Upstairs at the Gatehouse Theatre will feature two short films and one feature film, along with talks and Q&As with the filmmakers. Watch them with a critic’s eye and register your vote for the film which you want to win this year’s prestigious Golden Stake Award. That awards ceremony will take place at the Phoenix Cinema and will be presented by critic and broadcaster Mark Kermode.

Théâtre Des Vampires. Performed across three nights at the Upstairs at the Gatehouse Theatre, IVFAF’s theatre programme this year focuses on making you laugh – and occasionally shiver with fear. ‘Dracula’s Ghost’, ‘Sherlock Holmes Vs the Sussex Vampire’ and ‘Evan Helsing – Welsh Valleys Vampire Hunter’ feature the best of British on-stage talent.

Bram Stoker’s Dracula London Walking Tour. On Friday and Saturday, renowned storyteller and Bram Stoker expert Anthony Davis takes you on a walking tour around Stoker’s London haunts, exploring the writer’s vampiric relationship with the man who was one of the models for the bloodsucking count.

Ok....so I freaked out a bit just know. So I woke up to go to the dentist and when i came back home I went back to bed (it was only 10am and I wanted more sleep). I really didn't sleep just eyes closed. I could here my mom and dad geting ready to go out. I could hear someone coming into my room, I thought it was my mom so I didn't move or anything, I was going to open my eyes and yell "boo" but my eyeslinds where so heavy I couldn't open them. I felt 'my mom' lean down and give a small kiss to my right cheek then left the room. A couple of hours latter I was helping my mom get ready for dinner and told her I new you came into my room ans kissed my cheek. She looked at me confused ans said 'I didn't go into your room and kiss your cheek'. She asked my dad and said he didn't do it either (didn't think he would do that anyway). Its only the 3 of use living here! Who the hell kissed my right cheek! It was real! I felt it on my cheek! 😰