Fantastic Fest

History

The festival takes place in September at the Alamo Drafthouse South Lamar, filling eight screens for eight days and hosting many writers, directors, and actors, either well-established or emergin. The festival has become known as a launch-pad for genre films, where critical acclaim at the fest can lead to big box office returns.

A notable feature of this festival is the inclusion of "secret screenings". For these screenings, the audience often does not know what the film will be until seated, moments before it begins. It also features many themed parties, outings, film-themed "feasts", and other events that are hallmarks of the original Alamo Drafthouse Cinema. [[File:Wachowskis, Fantastic Fest, Cloud Atlas.jpg|thumb|250x250px|[[The Wachowskis]], Fantastic Fest 2012]]In 2007, Variety publisher Charles Koones included Fantastic Fest as one of "Ten Festivals We Love". In 2008, MovieMaker named it one of "The 25 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee". In 2017, MovieMaker included the festival on its list of "The 25 Coolest Film Festivals in the World."

In 2022, an online-exclusive section of programming was created called "Burnt Ends", which was said to showcase "the weirdest, wildest, most fringe films out there."

Festivals by year

Main article: List of Fantastic Fest editions

References

References

1. Weinstein, Max. (2022-03-23). "The Best Horror Festivals in the World 2022".
2. Weinstein, Max. (2020-12-23). "The Best Horror Festivals in the World 2021".
3. (2020-10-27). "World's 50 Best Genre Film Festivals 2021 — MovieMaker".
4. (2015-01-28). "Top 100 Fantastic & Horror Film Festivals in 2025 + Submission Tips".
5. [https://www.screendaily.com/news/lisa-dreyer-named-festival-director-at-fantastic-fest/5168054.article "Lisa Dreyer named festival director at Fantastic Fest"] {{Webarchive. link. (May 19, 2022; in: Screen Daily, 24 February 2022)
6. (2022-10-10). "How Fantastic Fest Has Become a Kingmaker for 'Smile' and Other Genre Films".
7. Wolfe, April. (2017-09-27). "Torches at Fantastic Fest: Sorting Through the Ashes of a Film Festival".
8. Brown, Todd. (2007-12-05). "Variety Publisher Names Fantastic Fest One of Top Ten". Twitch.
9. ''MovieMaker'', Spring 2008.
10. (2017-07-24). "The 25 Coolest Film Festivals in the World, 2017 – MovieMaker Magazine". MovieMaker Magazine.
11. Burnt Ends @ Fantastic Fest 2022 https://2022.fantasticfest.com/burnt-ends {{Webarchive. link. (October 5, 2022)