A decade ago, two friends with $500 and a love of scary movies decided to start a film festival. About 400 people showed up at Miami’s O Cinema Wynwood and for Igor Shteyrenberg and Marc Ferman, that was a success.
A decade later, the founders expect about 10,000 people to take part in this year’s Popcorn Frights at two Fort Lauderdale movie houses, along with some films screening online via the festival’s website.
The 10th anniversary festival, which runs from Thursday, Aug. 8 through Sunday, Aug. 18, offers a lineup that ranges from new foreign and indie horror to 1980s Hollywood slasher classics. And in a decidedly non-frightening twist, admission for most films is free.
“It’s our tenth anniversary; we wanted to give back to the community,” Ferman says of the decision to offer tickets at no cost and with the pay what you will model.
Technically, the all-volunteer festival is using a pay-as-you-go model — when you book your tickets online, you’re given the option to pay as much or as little as you like. Donations are happily received but, the organizers stress, you don’t have to pay anything. A handful of special screenings have admission. (For those who want to be sure not to miss anything at a festival where organizers say every event will be sold out, a ticket that guarantees seating for every screening is available for $66.60. Drop the zero to get the joke.)
For Shteyrenberg and Ferman, the open-door policy keeps with the philosophy of a festival where every dollar made has always been reinvested in the festival or given to the community.
“With this in mind, as we envisioned our milestone tenth anniversary, we collectively decided to host the event for free as a gift to our community for their years of support,” says Shteyrenberg. “By opening these doors so widely, we hope to inspire the next generation of storytellers and creatives in South Florida.”
Screenings will take place at Savor Cinema, the cinema in a former church just south of the New River in downtown Fort Lauderdale, and the Paradigm Cinemas: Gateway Fort Lauderdale, the Mid-Century Modern landmark on Sunrise Boulevard just north of downtown with the original neon pink-framed 1951 marquee. The communal experience of seeing a film is the best way to see a film, but they also want to put on a festival that can include everybody, Shteyrenberg says. Hence the online programming.
“Popcorn Frights is deeply committed to promoting diversity and inclusivity, and our hybrid festival model is also an important testament to this core mission,” he says. “By offering multiple ways to engage with the festival, we’re able to bring together a diverse community of fans from different backgrounds and circumstances. Just as importantly, this inclusivity helps enrich the festival experience and creates a space where all voices can be heard and celebrated.”
When Shteyrenberg and Ferman began Popcorn Frights a decade ago, they were frustrated by what they saw as other festivals’ lack of interest in genre films. To find good genre film festivals, according to Shteyrenberg, South Florida film fans had to travel to places like New York, Los Angeles or Austin. They wanted to create a festival that was unabashedly about horror. They also wanted to create a festival that was rooted in community. As the festival has grown, Ferman and Shteyrenberg have worked to make it about more than 10 days of programming.
In addition to serving as one of the festival locations, the Classic Gateway now serves as the home of the festival’s year-round programming. In July, it hosted a Popcorn Frights screening of a remastered version of “The Shining.” Over the years, the festival has also raised money for people affected by Hurricane Irma and the Surfside building collapse, as well as Wynwood businesses when the 2016 Miami Zika virus outbreak zeroed in on the district, The festival also “stood against (Florida’s) ‘‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill that affected many of our friends and fans,” says Shteyrenberg.
Through all that, they’ve kept it defiantly indie.
“Popcorn Frights stands as one of the few truly independent festivals in the state, beholden to not a single foundation, organization, sponsor or financial entity,” says Shteyrenberg. “This freedom and autonomy have allowed us to push the boundaries and elevate the creativity of our programming each year, resulting in unique, truly one-of-a-kind events and experiences that have attracted thousands of fans. In an era where festival programming is often driven by corporate and business interests, what you find at Popcorn Frights is a purity and natural excitement that are rare in today’s festival landscape.”
The festival receives thousands of submissions from all over the world, according to the producers.
“What we aspire to find is the most twisted, hilarious, intelligent, horrifying and no-holds-barred badass cinema on this planet,” says Shteyrenberg.
For “Nightmare on Elm Street” fans, Popcorn Frights” has its “Up All Night With Freddy Marathon,” which features seven of the franchise films.
There should be no shortage of jump scares, but Shteyrenberg says that during a frightening, polarizing time, “a good, healthy scream inside the safety and comfort of a theater” might be something people need. “After all, horror films don’t create fear. They release it.”
Here are some highlights – frightful options from classics to foreign films and more.
The Classic
“Candyman”
7:45 p.m., Friday, Aug. 16, at Savor Cinema, 503 SE 6th St., Fort Lauderdale
Tony Todd, who played the title role in the 1992 film, will be on hand to receive the Popcorn Frights Golden Skull and give a special introduction to the film. The film, with its Philip Glass soundtrack and setting in Chicago’s Cabrini-Green Homes public housing project, the film offers social commentary alongside jump scares and, as film critic and Chicagoan Roger Ebert put it in his review, “was scaring me with ideas and gore, instead of simply with gore.”
*This is a paid admission event; tickets are $12.
Subtitled Screams
“The Funeral”
10 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 13, Paradigm Cinemas: Gateway Fort Lauderdale, 1820 E. Sunrise Blvd., Fort Lauderdale
Turkish writer/director Orcun Behram takes a pair of genres, the love story and the zombie film, and lets them play in interesting ways. A man is driving the body of a young murder victim across remote lands to her family in eastern Turkey. Is she really dead? Of course not. Do zombies need human flesh to survive? You bet they do. Does this stop a man from falling in love? Not always.
Local Heroes
“Homegrown: 100% Pure Fresh Squeezed Florida Horror.” Savor Cinema, SE 6th St., Fort Lauderdale, 1:30 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 11
Ten short films from emerging Florida filmmakers include two world premieres. In director Gabriel Lopez’ “Best Kept Shut,” a woman finds a hidden and locked door in the house where her father went missing. Directed by Christopher Pinto, “Dear Diary 1944” features a woman whose husband has gone to war, a secluded house and a paranormal experience.
Jokes and Scares
“Mysterious Ways,” Digital screening, Tuesday, Aug. 13
If you are sibling youth pastors, one thing you should always try not to do is accidentally possess one of your youth group with a demonic spirit. If you do manage to do this, the least you can do is stop the demonic spirit before its Halloween rampage helps usher in the End of Days.
IF YOU GO
WHAT: ““Popcorn Frights Film Festival”
WHERE: Savor Cinema, SE 6th St., Fort Lauderdale and Paradigm Cinemas: Gateway Fort Lauderdale, 1820 E. Sunrise Blvd., Fort Lauderdale. Also online at /watch.eventive.org/popcornfrights
WHEN: 7 p.m., Saturday, July 20
COST: RSVP with pay-what-you-want pricing model. Some films have a fee, including “Candyman: Special Presentation” for $12. A $66.60 full-festival pass guarantees admission and reserved seating to all screenings, plus access to additional events.
INFORMATION: (305) 573-7304 or broward.edu/vpa/#events For full schedule, popcornfrights.eventive.org/schedule.
