The Desmond District Demons film festival will be hosted at Sperry’s Moviehouse and Loft 912 on Oct. 27 and 28.
Amid the haunted houses, corn mazes and pumpkin patches is another Halloween classic that has returned for a second year in Port Huron.
The Desmond District Demons film festival will be hosted at Sperry’s Moviehouse and Loft 912 on Oct. 27 and 28.
The horror film festival screens independent films that may not necessarily have another opportunity to be screened at a big screen venue such as Sperry’s.
The two days are packed with international films. The local organizers, Andrew Brown and Tyler Moldovan, received submissions from over 23 countries.
Both long-form feature films and short films will be screened and competing for awards.
“Aside from the films, we have a lot of great Halloween events also taking place,” Brown said. “We have the amazing Sandra who will be reading tarot cards again at Loft 912, we have ghost stories told by local actor Frank Bublitz, (question-and-answer) with filmmakers, and an awards ceremony to close out the event.”
While last year was more focused on debuting Brown’s and Moldovan’s own horror film, this year the focus of the festival is about giving the spotlight to other local horror films.
“We do have a really cool horror film that will be coming out in the next few months called ‘Backscatter,’ but we are not screening any of our work in the Desmond District Demons this year, being that we are the judges for the festival,” Brown said. “We have five locally made films this year, and we have an award exclusive for the Best Michigan Made Film.”
Brown said Port Huron is the perfect place for a horror film festival.
“The downtown provides excellent walking between locations and bustling businesses at every turn,” he said. “It’s our hope next year to even add another venue to create even more foot traffic. A common theme we heard last year from out-of-towners who visited the festival was the fact that they had only ever really passed through Port Huron to get to the Blue Water Bridge or go up north.”
The duo hopes the festival exposes new visitors to the niche that Port Huron is.
“Its character too, the turn of the century buildings and architecture really lend to the festival as a historic and haunted backdrop,” Brown said. “Port Huron is the perfect place for a film festival.”
Some of the movies to be screened include “Charismata” and “Tonight She Comes.”
“Charismata” is about a rookie detective trying to fit into a police department who is the target of interest for a murder suspect the department is pursuing. It’s a police thriller melded with a psychological horror story.
“Tonight She Comes” follows the story of a girl gone missing and the events that unfold as her friends are drawn to the cabin where she disappeared.
Also to be screened are blocks of short horror films as well.
For tickets and more information, visit www.desmonddistrictdemons.com .
