Back at the New York City Horror Film Festival in the fall of 2016, I saw a super cool poster for an original horror film The Barn. I missed it when it premiered there and it took my nearly a year to finally see a screening at this year’s New Jersey Horror Con and Film Festival. At that con, I met and spoke with writer/editor/director Justin M. Seaman. Based on a story he wrote in his childhood, Seaman put his heart and soul into this film, and it was worth it. You can read my review of the film and the screening Q&A here.

With a week to go before Christmas, horror fans looking for the perfect gift can stop searching. The Barn is now on Blu-ray and would make any horror fan happy, particularly fans who grew immersed in the video store culture of the 1980s. Right before Halloween, I got to speak with the creator of The Barn about his inspirations, the challenges of independent filmmaking, and more. See what he had to say along with some thoughts on the Blu-ray release below.

The New York City Horror Film Festival wrapped up Sunday, in a four day genre extravaganza that featured over 40 full length and short genre films. The highlight was last night when Chucky himself, Brad Dourif appeared to accept the Lifetime Achievement Award. Over four decades ago Dourif was nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Billy Bibbit, his first credited role in the Oscar winning One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. His IMDb page reads like a who’s who of writers, directors, and classics. Amongst his films are The Lord of the Rings series, Dune, The Eyes of Laura Mars, and Alien Resurrection. But his career will likely forever be tied to a red-headed “Good Guy” doll. In 1988’s Child’s Play we met Charles Lee Ray aka Chucky, a serial killer who uses a voodoo curse to transfer his soul into a doll. Six sequels later, the rest they say is history. The auditorium at the Cinepolis Chelsea was packed to see the man behind the doll.

More below.

With Halloween quickly approaching, the New York City Horror Film Festival took over the Cinepolis Chelsea in Manhattan this past weekend. When all’s said and done, over 40-feature length and short genre films will be screened. Filmmakers, screenwriters, actors, and more showed up to support their films and take part in Q&As with the audience. Friday night, the cast and crew from The Night Watchmen showed to support their indie-horror comedy and it made another great night of horror.

More below.

Thursday night, October 26th, this year’s New York City Horror Film Festival (NYCHFF) took over the Cinepolis Chelsea in Manhattan. It’s year 15 for the festival, which was started by the late Michael J. Hein. The festival, which ends Sunday night, will feature over 40 feature length and short genre films. The highlight will be the presentation of the Lifetime Achievement Award to Chucky himself, Brad Dourif on Saturday. Thursday night kicked off with two film programs, Q&As with directors and actors, and trivia giveaways by the hosts.

With Halloween quickly approaching, most people are in full horror movie mode. Cable channels are pumping out the classics and seriously, who am I to tell you NOT to watch John Carpenter’s Halloween on Halloween?! But if you’re craving something new to fill your yearly quota for guts and gore, check out the awesome selection of new and indie genre films at this year’s New York City Horror Film Festival (NYCHFF). The Festival celebrates its 15th year in 2017 and runs Thursday night, October 26th through Sunday, October 29th at the Cinepolis Chelsea Theater in the heart of Manhattan.