Dark background with red, blood-drip styled text reading 'First Blood'.

2026

2026 OFFICIAL SELECTIONS

FEATURE FILMS

A poster for the film "The Driftless" featuring multiple red-tinted images of characters, including a woman smoking, a man aiming a gun, and others with serious expressions, set against a background of a town. The tagline reads "There are those who seek to escape."

BEST OF THE FEST

BEST DIRECTOR

BEST WRITER

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

BEST EDITOR

BEST SCORE

Dark image of a man in a prison cell with metal bars, illuminated by a dim greenish light. Text at the top shows three names: James Bessey, Karsen Schovajsa, Erin Collins. Large text at the bottom reads "The Killing Cell" with smaller text underneath saying "No one sees this place and lives."
A poster for a horror-themed attraction called "Traction Park Massacre" with a dark red background and a mechanical, propeller-like object in the center resembling a self-destructive machine. The poster includes the tagline "If you're reading this you're already dead" at the top and lists the cast, crew, and production team at the bottom.

AUDIENCE CHOICE

The poster for the movie "The Demonatrix" featuring a woman with legs apart, wearing shiny black thigh-high boots and holding a whip, with a demon figure with horns and glowing eyes between her legs in the background.

MOST ON THEME

Movie poster for 'God Country' featuring a mask of Jesus Christ with a crown of thorns, draped in black, set against a dark red background, with the tagline 'Not one soul out of place' and red text reading 'God Country'.

BEST CREATURE DESIGN

SCREAM QUEEN

BEST ACTOR

SHORT FILMS

Dark poster with green boxes stacked on both sides. Red text at the top, white text in the middle, and red credits at the bottom. The title "THE PARCEL" is prominently displayed.
Digital illustration of a woman with eyes glowing and being held in the palms of hands that emit a bright light, with ominous scenes of a haunted house, graveyard, and candles in the background; text reads "Sin Eater."

BEST SOUND DESIGN

A metallic takeout container with bloodstains, topped with a ticket that says 'Guest Check 456739 Inside Chopped.' The background is dark, and there is a movie or book cover titled 'Inside Chopped,' directed by Kevin Wayne.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

BEST SPECIAL FX / MAKEUP

A Halloween-themed board game named "Low Stakes" featuring a yellow skull design, two red dice showing four and three, a spider web, and a orange monkey figurine on a dark surface.
Book cover for 'Carousel' by Samuel Dunning, featuring a man with black hair and glasses, with a dark skull inside a mirrored visor, against a red background.
Black and white promotional poster for a movie titled 'Fantasma.' The poster features a ghostly figure draped in a flowing, semi-transparent fabric. The title is in large, stylized font at the top, with the tagline 'She's only trying to help' underneath.
Colorful letter beads spell out "THESE THOSE COLOR SOUND" arranged in a circle on a wooden surface, with text credits for a production written below.
Part of a poster with the bold text 'A1' on it. The poster features a woman with reddish-brown hair, with only part of her face visible.
Black poster with white text for the film 'Visiting,' directed by Piero Cannata, released in 2023, featuring names Maria Luce Bondi and Daniele Marotta.
Black and white movie poster for 'Shady Lakes' featuring a large ominous hand reaching over three women on the water, with one woman slumped on the dock in the foreground.
A vibrant, neon-colored digital illustration of a group of seven characters and a large black panther, with a background of a cityscape at night. The title 'Mr Miteas' is prominently displayed at the bottom in bold, stylized font.
The poster for the film 'Spiegelkind' shows a young girl with long blonde hair wearing a pink dress with floral patterns, holding a teddy bear, standing barefoot in front of a large, ornate mirror. The mirror reflects a dark, shadowy figure with a hooded appearance, holding a paper or object in one hand. The background is dark, creating a mysterious and eerie atmosphere.
A cartoon character with a popcorn bucket for a head is riding a large roast turkey leg in midair, with blood splattered on it. The movie poster features the title 'Intermission'.
Movie poster for 'Zombies Are Real' featuring a man with a beard and brown hoodie pointing a gun at a group of people, with a chaotic background and a tagline about zombies.
A promotional poster for a film titled 'Gettin' Nasty' featuring photographs of a woman and a man, both dressed casually, with a brick wall background. The poster includes pink text saying 'You never forget your first time...' and details about the cast and crew, with logos at the bottom.
Silhouette of a person standing in a dark forest at night with a blue moon behind them. Text at the bottom in red reads "CLOSER Coming Soon."
Graffiti mural featuring the words 'Music' and 'Style' with a portrait of a young man in front, surrounded by colorful urban street art elements, spray paint cans, and a boombox.
A young woman in vintage white blouse and black hat holding a feather, against a dark background. Red text reads "Hell's Half Acre" and "Nicholas Nicastro."
A vintage analog thermometer with a red base and a black and yellow face showing temperature measurements, resembling a lava lamp. Surrounding the thermometer are various film festival awards and laurels. The phrase "EACH TICK PULLS YOU DEEPER" is at the top. The title "MANIFEST" is in large red letters at the bottom.
Group of five people in post-apocalyptic costumes standing next to a rusty, modified vehicle under a bridge.
A firepit with flames behind a sign that reads 'Street Dance' in gothic font, supported by ropes and stakes.
A dark sinister figure wearing a black hat and coat, with a face resembling a masked skull, holding a chainsaw with both hands. The background features a red jigsaw puzzle pattern. The text reads 'Mr. SA Into Pieces'.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

These films didn’t make the cut. The knife was sharp. The standards were cruel. And yet… here we are talking about them anyway.

Book cover titled 'Never Woke Up' set in a field with a bed and a person lying on it at night
A movie poster for a film titled "Evil for Dinner" showing a woman with Halloween makeup, dark hair, and dark lipstick, sipping a drink with a straw, with neon pink text for the title. The poster indicates the film is by Travis Youngquist, has an award mention from Jacksonville Horror Film Festival 2026, features actors Kerry O'Quinn, Larissa Dali, Nellie Rose Spangler, Nathan Gershon, and Lloyd Kaufman, and is coming soon.
A person with blonde hair and a backpack is looking up at a large tree in a forest. The image includes text for a movie or documentary titled "KNOCK, KNOCK" starring Bryce Taylor and Claire Louise Huder.
Poster for the film "The Legend of Yella Yorge" featuring a dark room with a wooden chair illuminated by a small beam of light, with the names Tyler DaSilva, Mitchell Cole, Matthew Strickland, and Willie Ray Ash at the top.
Movie poster for 'Dead Land' featuring a young woman with long brown hair and a distressed expression in the foreground, a large sinister face with one red eye in the background, and a silhouette of a person near a window. The title 'DEAD LAND' is prominently displayed in bold red letters.
Movie poster for "Creature Fear" featuring a black background with a distorted face, appearing skeletal with red eyes, and the tagline "He's Starving."