The Vancouver Horror Show Film Festival (VHS) will be tripling its programming as the beloved local festival moves to a digital platform in its third year. Set to run October 20th through 26th, The VHS will be housed online this year and run via TicketSpice for seven days of terror. The 2020 lineup includes 42 short films and seven feature-length films. With more than half of the programming comprised of Canadian-made films, the international festival is showcasing diverse works from 13 different countries. Though the choice to pivot programming to online this year was made as a response to the Covid-19 pandemic, festival director David Taylor sees it as “an opportunity to expand in new ways. Our online platform opens programming up to the world, for the first time ever, The Vancouver Horror Show can be attended by anyone, anywhere.” Attendees are encouraged to “get scared…from home!”
Viewers will have a chance to weigh-in with an audience choice award powered by FestiVote, and to test their mettle with nightly trivia about each program following the screenings. The online platform has paved the way to a brand new series for Vancouver Horror Show in year three: The Screenplay Table Read Series. VHS is partnering with co-directors Tomer Adorian and Alison Preece from The Poet Acts Theatre Company in New York City to produce this extension of festival programming. Through Zoom, festival attendees will be invited to attend a live table read. Professional actors, under the direction of Adorian, will perform a reading of the top selected screenplays. This provides the writers a chance to workshop their pieces and ask questions of the actors, directors, and festival experts. It also offers ticket holders an inside look at how things move from page to stage.
Most excitingly for our readers, The VHS is thrilled to welcome Andrea Subissati, Executive Editor of Toronto-based Rue Morgue Magazine, to this year’s panel of judges. Subissati is also the co-founder of the horror lecture series The Black Museum, and co-host and producer of the Faculty of Horror Podcast.
For a full programming list and to buy tickets, please visit VHS 2020 here.
