Beyond Fest, the highest-attended genre film festival in the US, has revealed its complete slate of 2020 programming over seven nights of double-bill features including the world premieres of Christopher Landon’s Freaky, the West Coast premiere of Justin Simien’s Bad Hair and more!
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Following a sold-out Summer residence with the American Cinematheque at the Mission Tiki Drive-In, Beyond Fest returns to the socially-distanced safety of the drive-in Friday, October 2 to Thursday, October 8 to generate funds for the 501c3 non-profit film institution.
With a diverse slate celebrating all corners of genre cinema, Beyond Fest is proud to open with a double-barreled-double-bill curated by director Jim Cummings including the World Premiere of his electric werewolf tale, The Wolf of Snow Hollow, paired with Joe Dante’s classic, The Burbs. Closing night honors are bestowed upon Blumhouse and Beyond Fest alumni Christopher Landon for the World Premiere of their gloriously outrageous body-swap-slasher Freaky, billed with a special rep screening of Tucker & Dale vs. Evil selected by the director himself.
Festival alumni are celebrated as agitator-extraordinaire Adam Egypt Mortimer returns to conquer Beyond Fest with the World Premiere of his newest Spectrevision mindmelt, Archenemy, Steven Kostanski blasts his OTT midnight vibes with the North American Premiere of Psycho Goreman, and Bryan Bertino brings the terror, unleashing The Dark and the Wicked for its US theatrical bow.
“We covet the theatrical experience above all and following the overwhelming success of our drive-in program we never hesitated in keeping Beyond Fest a physical experience” Beyond Fest Co-Founder, Christian Parkes, said in a statement. “We specifically wanted to give COVID-19 a resilient middle finger and provide a safe, communal respite for filmmakers and film fans to celebrate the best genre cinema on the biggest screens possible.”
Other hotly anticipated titles making their West Coast debuts include Rose Glass’ stunning first feature Saint Maud, alongside her selection of Rob Reiner’s Misery, Moorhead and Benson’s latest genre-melting, time-bending, head trip Synchronic, Justin Simien’s satirical Sundance stunner Bad Hair, and the US Premiere of medieval-gothic-horror, The Reckoning, from longtime agent provocateur, Neil Marshall.
A timely dissolution of the American Dream is given center stage as the Maestro David Lynch is saluted with a triple bill consisting of three of his finest features: Blue Velvet, Lost Highway, and Mulholland Drive.
“In a year that has seen the world turn upside-down, it’s good to see some things never change” Head Programmer Evrim Ersoy said in a statement. “Beyond Fest stands tall with an eclectic slate of programming that will challenge audiences and transform the drive-in experience into something never before done.”
Finally, Beyond Fest celebrates Brandon Cronenberg with a special pre-festival event featuring the West Coast Premiere of his stunning body-horror, Possessor Uncut, paired with John Frakenheimer’s sci-fi classic Seconds as picked by Brandon himself. This special warm-up event is scheduled the week before the festival opens on Thursday September 24, 2020.
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Beyond Fest 2020 Program
9/24
SPECIAL EVENT
Possessor Uncut
West Coast Premiere
Director: Brandon Cronenberg
Country: USA
Runtime: 103 minutes
Year: 2020
+
Seconds
Repertory Screening
Director: John Frankenheimer
Country: USA
Runtime: 106 minutes
Year: 1966
10/2
The Wolf of Snow Hollow
World Premiere
Director: Jim Cummings
Country: USA
Runtime: 83 minutes
Year: 2020
+
The Burbs
Repertory Screening
Director: Joe Dante
Country: USA
Runtime: 103 minutes
Year: 1989
10/3
Blue Velvet
Repertory Screening
Director: David Lynch
Country: USA
Runtime: 120 minutes
Year: 1986
+
Mulholland Drive
Repertory Screening
Director: David Lynch
Country: France, USA
Runtime: 147 minutes
Year: 2001
+
Lost Highway
Repertory Screening
Director: David Lynch
Country:France, USA
Runtime: 134 minutes
Year: 1997
10/4
Saint Maud
West Coast Premiere
Director: Rose Glass
Country: UK
Runtime: 84 minutes
Year: 2019
+
Misery
Repertory Screening
Director: Rob Reiner
Country: USA
Runtime: 107 minutes
Year: 1990
10/5
Synchronic
West Coast Premiere
Directors: Aaron Moorhead and Justin Benson
Country: USA
Runtime: 96 minutes
Year: 2019
+
Bad Hair
West Coast Premiere
Director: Justin Simien
Country: USA
Runtime: 115 minutes
Year: 2020
10/6
The Dark and the Wicked
US Premiere
Director: Bryan Bertino
Country: USA
Runtime: 95 minutes
Year: 2020
+
The Reckoning
US Premiere
Director: Neil Marshall
Country: UK
Runtime: 110 minutes
Year: 2020
10/7
Archenemy
World Premiere
Director: Adam Egypt Mortimer
Country: USA
Runtime: 90 minutes
Year: 2020
+
Psycho Goreman
International Premiere
Director: Steven Kostanski
Country: Canada
Runtime: 92 minutes
Year: 2020
10/8
Freaky
World Premiere – Free screening
Director: Christopher Landon
Country: USA
Runtime: 101 minutes
Year: 2020
+
Tucker & Dale vs. Evil
Repertory Screening
Director: Eli Craig
Country: Canada
Runtime: 89 minutes
Year: 2010
