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BLOODIES AWARDS 2018



Most Promising Debut: Frostbite
Best Poster: Altered Skin (Small Dog Design)
Best Screenplay: Level 16 - Danishka Esterhazyv
Best Cinematography: SuperGrid - Michael Jari Davidson
Best FX/Makeup: Alive
Best Musical Score: Spencer Creaghan - Altered Skin
Best Editing: Matt Welie and Jesse Thomas Cook - The Hoard
Best Ensemble: Montreal Dead End (Directors)
Best Actress: Katie Douglas - Level 16
Best Actor: Josh Collins - Hammer of the Gods
Rising Star: Danishka Esterhazy - Level 16
Best Director: Danishka Esterhazy - Level 16
Best Web Series: Necessary Evil
Best Short: Lay Them Straight
Best Picture: Montreal Dead End
Vanguard Award: Jesse Thomas Cook

2018 LINEUP



THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 22nd
All Film Screenings will be held at The Royal Cinema.
Panels and Cocktail will be held at The Monarch Tavern

3:00 pm - Deadly Exposure VIP EXCLUSIVE: POWER NETWORKING ROUNDTABLE - Pass Holders Only
6:00 pm - Deadly Exposure VIP EXCLUSIVE: OPENING NIGHT INDUSTRY COCKTAIL - Pass Holders Only



9:30 pm - OPENING FILM: SUPERGRID (Dir. Lowell Dean) TORONTO PREMIERE (80 mins)
Set in a near future where mining conglomerates have turned Canada into a wasteland. Two brothers must travel the same road that claimed their sister's life in their quest to deliver mysterious cargo. En route they must contend with road pirates, rebel gangs, and each other.

with the short film THE DEVIL'S DUE (Dir. Ryan LaPlante) TORONTO PREMIERE (3:46 mins)
The Devil made this film. He made it just for you. Don't you want to hear what he has to say?


FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 23rd
All Film Screenings will be held at The Royal Cinema.
Panels and Cocktail will be held at The Monarch Tavern

12:00 pm - Industry Panel 1: DIVERSITY IN GENRE FILM (moderated by Carolyn Mauricette)
With the rise of films like Girl's Trip, Black Panther, and Get Out both within the fan base and the box office, it is hard to deny that main characters of colour are wanted and needed by fans and filmgoers everywhere, especially in genre film. While it seems fresh, representation of diversity has been a part of genre film in some form or another from Blaxploitation films to traditional Japanese ghost stories. Why, then, is it so difficult to get these films with protagonists of colour made without stereotypes or tokenism, especially in North America? Calling on professionals of colour in the film and television industry, this panel will take a look at what barriers creators and actors of colour and the LGTBQ community encounter and what steps can be taken to start the process of making lack of representation in the film industry a thing of the past.

Olunike Adeliyi / Actress (Flashpoint / A Christmas Horror Story / Saw 3D / Darken)
Mariam Bastani / Writer and Filmmaker
Larica Perera / Director, writer and producer (Allie & Lara Make a Horror Movie / Tik Tik)
Rodney V. Smith / Director, writer and producer (Out of Time)

1:30 pm - Industry Panel 2: NAVIGATING CANADIAN TAX CREDITS (moderated by Kelly Payne, Ontario Creates)
Canada has some of the best film tax credits in the world, but navigating the system can be confusing for indie filmmakers. The experts on this panel are here to answer all of your tax-related questions to help you get the biggest bang for your buck in funding your indie film in Canada.

Ontario Creates / Anna Newallo, Tax Credit Business Officer
Vortex Words + Pictures / Owen Kelly - Head of Sales
775 Media Corp / Michael Peterson Producer & Director


3:00 pm - Industry Panel 3: MEET THE DISTRIBUTORS (moderated by Kirk Haviland)
We chat with some of Canada's leading genre film distributors. They're here to talk about what's new, trends in the industry, and answer all of our sales and distribution-related questions.

Breakthrough Entertainment / Craig McGillivary, Vice President, Distribution
Double Dutch International / Keshia Saldanha, Acquisitions & Festivals Coordinator
Raven Banner / Andrew Hunt, Managing Partner
Avi Federgreen / IndieCan Entertainment

4:30 pm- Deadly Exposure VIP EXCLUSIVE: INDUSTRY COCKTAIL RECEPTION - Pass Holders Only




7:00 pm - ALTERED SKIN (Dir. Adnan Ahmed) WORLD PREMIERE (80 mins)
An American expat living in Karachi, Pakistan. Craig Evans is married to Insiya Zia, a Pakistani doctor. During a routine hospital round, contracts a virus called the MN-2. A devastating pathogen, the virus causes uncontrollable outbursts of violent rage. Then when the dead body of an investigative reporter turns up in a sewer, it sets off a domino of events that leads Craigs to the mystery behind the virus...and to the last chance at saving his wife.

with the short film GOD'S MADMEN (Dir. Michael Alexander Uccello ) CANADIAN PREMIERE (9:05 mins)
Two detectives patrol around the neighbourhood in hopes of consoling the residents after a recent string of kidnappings. The young gun, Det. Morris, eager to prove himself, confronts the owner of the suspicious house. He is kindly greeted by a charming host, but an uncanny feeling remains that provokes Det. Morris to investigate further. However, what he discovers is more sinister than he could possibly imagine and there isn't much time.



9:30 pm - ALIVE (Dir. Rob Grant) TORONTO PREMIERE (89 mins)
A severely injured man and woman awake in an abandoned sanitarium only to discover that a sadistic caretaker holds the keys to their freedom and the horrific answers as to their true identity.

with the short film TO CATCH A MOUSE (Dir. Alex Coleman) CANADIAN PREMIERE (14:38 mins)
To Catch A Mouse is a horror thriller that puts an intelligent spin on marriage and excess. A cautionary tale with an ending that is sure to thrill Japanese and American horror fans alike.


SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 24th
All Film Screenings will be held at The Royal Cinema.
Graveside Chats will be held at The Super Wonder Gallery

12:00 pm - Industry Panel 4: GRAVESITE CHATS (moderated by Kirk Haviland)
Join us for an in-depth discussion with one of Canada's leading filmmakers to discuss their journey, lessons learned along the way, and get an exclusive sneak peek at upcoming projects.

Director Vincenzo Natali and Producer Steven Hoban give us an exclusive chat about the highly anticipated feature IN THE TALL GRASS based on the novella written by Stephen King and his son Joe Hill.

Vincenzo Natali is one of Canada's most prominent directors working in the realm of science fiction and horror. His first breakout feature and cult-classic, Cube, became a worldwide success breaking international box office records for a Canadian Film. He then went on to direct the spy-fi thriller, Cypher, and the existential comedy, Nothing. His next major feature, Splice, was the highest grossing English-language Canadian film of 2010. Vincenzo then began directing television, lending his talents to critically-acclaimed series Hannibal, Orphan Black, American Gods, and Westworld. After completing a pilot for the reboot of Tremors (2018) with Kevin Bacon, Vincenzo returned to his feature film roots with In the Tall Grass (2019), based on the Joe Hill and Stephen King novella. All of Natali's film and television work is marked by his interest in using genre to explore the essential dilemmas of the human condition.

Steven Hoban is the founder of Toronto-based production company Copperheart Entertainment. He has produced the Academy Award-winning animated short, Ryan, the world's first IMAX 3D-animated film, Cyberworld, and numerous feature films including the cult feature film trilogy Ginger Snaps, and the Vincenzo Natali-directed Splice. Hoban also co-directed A Christmas Horror Story. Hoban most recently produced Vincenzo Natali's adaptation of Stephen King and Joe Hill's In the Tall Grass for Netflix and is currently in development on a number of film and television projects with various partners including Warner Bros, Amazon Studios, Skydance Television, Gaumont Television and A+E Studios.



4:30 pm - HAMMER OF THE GODS (Dir. Nick Szostakiwskyj) CANADIAN PREMIERE (89 mins)
Hammer of the Gods is the story of falling-from-grace rock group half a decade after the release of their hit single, as they travel deep into the Canadian wilderness on a spirit journey with a guitar and a bag of psychedelic drugs. The hopeful canoe trip hits its first bump when the band members start hearing noises around their nightly stops. As the drug works its way through their bodies, the isolated musicians realize the strange sounds are not hallucinations, but something very real. Further down the mountain river, they begin to see what has been prowling their camps at night: a race of tall humanoid creatures.

with the short film THE DEVIL YOU KNOW (Dir. Nelson Dunk) TORONTO PREMIERE (11:47 mins)
When Rachel realizes the depth of her sister's addiction, she has to decide just how much she will cover and how far is too far. This short explores the relationship between two women that has been stretched to the breaking point. It is at this point that the unsaid erupts and family ties may be broken forever. After all, how long can cover for your sister being a murderer?



7:00 pm - BLOODY BITS SHORTS SHOWCASE Part 1 (97 min)
A special feature length program of premieres of the hottest new Canadian short genre films.

FROSTBITE (Dirs. Megan , Tanisha, Phoenix, Faith, Maalea, Laiza, Deon, Shania and Stephanie ) TORONTO PREMIERE
Students learn the hard way why they need to wear all of their warm clothes outside as they feel the frost BITE! This film is the creation of a group of Yellowknives Dene students at Kaw Tay Whee school in Dettah, Northwest Territories.

#SELFIE (Dir. Robin Young) TORONTO PREMIERE
Alone in your house trying to take some cute pics? You never know who might be photobombing you.

HE LIKES IT ROUGH (Dirs. Kat Threlkeld & Lance Fernandes) CANADIAN PREMIERE
A traumatized woman takes her power back through unconventional means.

QUIET ROOM BEARS (Dir. Lee Howard) FESTIVAL PREMIERE
What was to be a simple home renovation project quickly turns into a horrific nightmare when Simon begins to a downward spiral to insanity and at the center of it all, a mysterious bear whose origins are more sinister than they seem.

GREATER GOOD (Dir. Andrea Ashton) TORONTO PREMIERE
When a pregnant woman receives an unexpected visit from two strangers she is faced with making an unthinkable decision.

THE SUBURBANIGHT (Dir. Eva Colmers) TORONTO PREMIERE
Aria Lefler just wants to feed her hungry kid and have a quiet night at home. When her bothersome neighbour continually interrupts their family time, Aria finds the perfect solution to both problems.

HUNTING SEASON (Dir. Shannon Kohli) TORONTO PREMIERE
A recovering alcoholic, Callie is struggling to move on from her past in the blue-collar community. When a violent creature escapes from a group of local hunters, it happens upon her at the station. Callie comes face to face with the beast and an unlikely bond forms between creature and girl which will change Callie's life forever. It forces her to face and conquer the demons of her past.

SANTA'S HELPER (Dir. Alex Hatz) WORLD PREMIERE
A down on his luck Elf must deliver a lump of coal on Christmas Eve to earn his way back into Santa's good books, but when an 8-year old girl, who's definitely on the naughty list, catches him in the act the Elf must find a way to escape by any means necessary.

THAT'S NOT ME (Dir. Charlie Hamilton) WORLD PREMIERE
During a stormy night at home alone, a young woman is confronted by someone who may or may not be her best friend.

SUPINE (Dir. Nicole Goode) TORONTO PREMIERE
Sylvie is a taxidermist content with being isolated from people in her large house in the mountains of France- her only company is her work. That is until Oz, an American hitchhiker stumbles upon her path. The two become close and Sylvie begins to question what it means to live.



9:30 pm - MONTREAL DEAD END (Anthology) TORONTO PREMIERE (89 mins)
A supernatural mist is seeping through the cracks of the city, causing various evil enchantments related to the neighbourhood from which it escapes, waking up a dark spirit here, a vengeful ghost there, releasing a plethora of terrifying creatures, possessing numerous citizens and even turning some of them into zombies, or entities from the beyond. The key to this paranormal chaos lies within a First Nations legend, a shamanic amulet and a guardian (Marco Collin) in search of a book of prophecies and premonitions which only he can decipher. Several pro-apocalyptic groups, master swindlers and voodoo priests are also looking to get their hands on this book hidden somewhere in the metropolis. The quest takes us from one part of the city to another, crossing paths with unexpected events and multiple creatures along the way.

with the short film THE HOLY TANK (Dir. Thomas Rodrigue) TORONTO PREMIERE (6 mins)
Jonathan and Rosalie, a young couple looking for their friend Felix, and find themselves involved in a baby-foot game inside an odd bar to win the Holy tank. But, one detail changes the stake, the loser will have his head chop off.


OFFERINGS will be held at The Super Wonder Gallery
Tickets are $5 or free with any BITS ticket or pass.
Live score begins at 11:30pm



9:00 pm - 1:00 am - OFFERINGS: A Seance in Three Acts (Dir. Torin Langen) VIDEO INSTALLATION
Join us for a very special event at Blood in the Snow 2018. "OFFERINGS: A Seance in Three Acts" is brand new video installation that will be part of our screening after party at the Super Wonder Gallery on Saturday November 24. Taking place throughout the evening between 9pm and 1am.

An exercise in ambient horror, Offerings is an expanded cinema project chronicling the rituals of a mysterious cult and the spaces they inhabit. Non-narrative and highly textured, the film functions as a distillation of folk horror imagery and expressionist filmmaking techniques. Largely inspired by underground album artwork and xeroxed gig posters, the costumed creatures found in Offerings function largely as black metal album illustration brought to hulking, lumbering life. A visual and aural assault, Offerings seeks to hypnotize and indoctrinate its audience into its fever dream nightmarescape.


SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 25th

All Film Screenings will be held at The Royal Cinema.
Panel will be held at The Super Wonder Gallery

2:00 pm - Industry Panel 5: WEB SERIES - CANADA'S NEW CINEMATIC FRONTIER (moderated by RX Zammit) *Presented by IPF

No longer tied to traditional broadcasters, the internet is increasingly the place to find the hottest and most innovative creative content. We chat with industry leaders at the forefront of this transition to chat about the platforms, business models, and finding your audience on the world wide web.

Independent Producers Fund (IPF) / Carly McGowan, Manager
Independent Association of Digital Creators (IWCC) / Lauren Evans, President
Shaftesbury Films / Jay Bennett, SVP, Creative & Innovation (Carmilla / Darken)




2:00 pm - A SERIES OF WEB BITES: 2018 Web Series Showcase (86 mins)

POPPY SEED PLACE (Dir. Greg Kovacs)
Anna and her puppet friends discuss the topic of the day (Happy, X and Chair!).

ALLIE AND LARA MAKE A HORROR MOVIE (Dirs. Larissa Thomas, Alicia Faucher, Larica Perera) Episode 1 and 3
This is a web series about two horror fans leaping into directing their first creature feature with their fame-hungry roommate. It's all downhill from there.

NECESSARY EVIL (Dir. Christopher Donaldson) Episode 4: Soul Purpose
Necessary Evil is a story about one demon's trials and tribulations working for the largest, most dysfunctional corporation in the underworld - Hell LLP.

DAMAGED (Dir. Richard Rotter) Episode: 12
Damaged is a psychological thriller about a young student, Michael Craven, who suffers a head injury in an attack by The Braithwaite Brothers, a gang of local thugs. Looking for revenge, he follows Jonny Braithwaite to a darkened warehouse where he witnesses a vicious attack on a total stranger, Naomi Carter. Suffering from dissociative episodes and short-term memory loss, Michael is unable to account for his movements and falls under the suspicion of Detective Laura Shane. Disgraced years ago in a botched investigation of The Wolf, a serial killer that was never found, Shane's interest in the case is sparked by the fact that both attacks occurred at the sites of two of The Wolf's murders.

OUT OF TIME (Dir. Rodney V. Smith) Episode: 1.1
When his girlfriend Sara is killed in front of him, Chris accidentally travels backward in time and realizes he may have the key to saving Sara's life.

THE SHELTER (Dirs. J. Robert Bellamy and Jason Mac) Episode 3
Can the new person in the Shelter really be who she says she is?

HAUNTERS THE MUSICAL (Dirs. J. Adam Brown and Blain Watters)
Winner of BEST ENSEMBLE at TO Webfest 2018, HAUNTERS is an LGBTQ+ horror-comedy about a newly dead girl who wants to get back home to figure out who she really is, but at every step is stymied by her silver-tongued mentor who has mysterious designs of his own, and the bungling menagerie of fellow dead people. The afterlife of Haunters is a magical, musical and manic place. Ghosts from across history (a bi-curious flapper, an aristocrat, a caveman), each truly messed up for one reason or another, spend their days haunting Earth's minor jerks. Don't clean up after your dog? They're coming after you. Troll people online? They're on their way. And they'll haunt you, and try to MURDER you, all with a lovely, nasty song to sing.

NARCOLEAP (Dir. Kate Green) Episode 02 - Range to Target
When college student Kelsey Atkins unexpectedly begins to leap into the bodies of other people during her bouts of narcolepsy, she becomes a target in the deadly world of military espionage.

THE VAULT (Dir. Sara Martins) Episode 2 - Extraction
The Vault is a post-apocalyptic sci-fi webseries that follows a ragtag group of survivors living in an underground military bunker known as Vault 175 or the Vault. The group is led by Evelyn Pierce, a no-nonsense General in the Canadian Armed Forces. Buried five miles beneath the Earth, this state-of-the-art facility is humanity's only remaining home. Outside there is only nuclear winter, a wasteland in which it is believed nothing and no one can survive...until one day when a surveying mission discovers an unconscious pilot by the name of Nathaniel Hale.

P2 - GTA (Dir. Ant Horasanli) Episode 6 - Drift Life
The second season of the award winning hit web series Petrol. In Petrol 2, a young car thief from Toronto must infiltrate one of the most notorious car theft rings in the country and help police bring down an international smuggling operation. Starring Vivica A. Fox, Francesco Filice, Hannah Gordon, Sean Rey, and Alex Loubert.




4:30 pm - DEADSIGHT (Dir. Jesse Thomas Cook) WORLD PREMIERE (89 nmin)
A man with partial blindness and a young pregnant policewoman must work together to escape from a deadly virus that has spread across Grey County.

with the short film NEPENTHES (Dir. Ariel Hansen) TORONTO PREMIERE (5:18 mins)
Max is desperate to make a meaningful connection, but when she decides to meet an online dating match at home she gets herself into a painfully sticky situation.




7:00 pm - THE HOARD (Dirs. Jesse Thomas Cook & Matt Wiele) WORLD PREMIERE (89 mins)
A comedy/horror mockumentary that chronicles the unravelling of a production team who are attempting to produce the ultimate reality TV show pilot "Extremely Haunted Hoarders". The team consists of a Professional Organizer, a Psychologist, two ghost hunters, and a crew of junk removers. They arrive in Rockford, Ohio, the hoarder capital of America. There they meet Murph Evans, a legendary hoarder with three crammed and condemned mansions. In their efforts to de-clutter the properties and reform Murph's habit, the intervention unearths a literal house of horrors.

with the short film A FISTFUL OF MOLARS (Dir. Ryan Couldrey) CANADIAN PREMIERE (4:37 mins)
Six-year-old Sarah is an entrepreneur in a lucrative industry - she pulls teeth for The Tooth Fairy.



9:30 pm - BLOODY BITS SHORTS SHOWCASE Part 2 (88 min)
A special feature length program of premieres of the hottest new Canadian short genre films.

THE GIRL IN THE BLACK DRESS (Dir. Helen Kriemadis) TORONTO PREMIERE
While a women gets ready to go out, things are not what they seem.

BINGE (Dirs. David J. Fernandes) WORLD PREMIERE
A mysterious envelope arrives at Jen's door, sending her on an increasingly dangerous hunt to discover its intent.

HOT ANGER (Dirs. Gwen Trutnau) TORONTO PREMIERE
Her anger is like a fever.

IN DEATH, UNPARTED (Dir. Tim Lopers) TORONTO PREMIERE
After joining the realm of the undead, the young, charming, yet isolated vampire battles with evading the grasp of his lovesick/stalker classmate or giving in to his need for companionship.

STANDBY (Dir. Daumoun Khakpour) TORONTO PREMIERE
A desperate man resorts to smuggling his wife inside of a piece of luggage in hopes of finding a better life in a new country. His hopes are put on hold when his plane arrives-but the bag containing his wife does not.

HOUSE AMONG THE TREES (Dir. Brian Wilcox) TORONTO PREMIERE
While checking in on a neighbours cottage, a man finds there's an unexpected visitor already living there who is claiming to be a distant relative. The man believes her, only to find out things are much worse than they seem.

THE CHICKEN MAN (Dir. Joslyn Rogers) TORONTO PREMIERE
A suicidal writer is miraculously saved by a chicken. His story is re-written.

LAY THEM STRAIGHT (Dir. Robert DeLeski) TORONTO PREMIERE
A teenage girl battling obsessive compulsive disorder has to run the gamut of school bullies every day, until a traumatic event convinces her that her disorder may be an indication of supernatural powers.

THE WHISTLER (Dir. Jennifer Nicole Stang) TORONTO PREMIERE
Lindsey is forced to babysit her sister, Becky, one night, when, after innocently falling asleep, wakes up to find her sister gone. Someone may have taken Becky and could be after her as well.

TIME HEALS NO WOUNDS (Dir. Jordan Barnes-Crouse) TORONTO PREMIERE
Toiling away in a makeshift lab, Dr. Barry Slater has finally made a breakthrough: THE CHRONOSPHERIC RE-OSCILLATOR, a device able to transmit artifacts across time. But when he materializes a recording from his future self, he decides to become his next test subject, despite the cautioning of his young wife Georgina. When the experiment goes awry, Georgina suddenly finds herself transported to another time, and the man resembling her husband may no longer be who, or what, he seems.


MONDAY, NOVEMBER 26th

All Film Screenings will be held at The Royal Cinema.




7:00 pm - FUGUE (Dir. Tomas Street) TORONTO PREMIERE (85 mins)
Amnesic Malcolm struggles to put the pieces of his life back together and begins questioning those closest to him in this puzzle of memory and identity. The script won the IndieCan 20k competition in 2017 and was made for just $20,000 under the guidance and mentorship of Warren P. Sonoda and Avi Federgreen.

with the short film IDEE FIXE (Dir. Miguel Quintero) TORONTO PREMIERE (9:06 mins)
After a mysterious incident, Sam goes desperately in the search of Laura, following the lead of the person who took her away from him. In the process, Sam would find himself in the line between hero and villain in a place where nothing is what it looks like and perspective is the only thing that separates salvation from obsession.




9:30 pm - ISABELLE (Dir. Rob Heydon) TORONTO PREMIERE (80 mins)
A young couple's dream of starting a family shatters as they descend into the depths of paranoia and must struggle to survive an evil presence that wants nothing more than their very own lives.

with the short film PENNY WHISTLE (Dir. Robert Cuffley) TORONTO PREMIERE (9:00 mins)
A young girl is followed home by a creature, after blowing into a penny whistle she finds buried in the dirt.


TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 27th

All Film Screenings will be held at The Royal Cinema.



7:00 pm - LEVEL 16 (Dir. Danishka Esterhazy) TORONTO PREMIERE (103 mins)
Trapped in a prison-like school, 16-year-old Vivien keeps to herself and sticks her neck out for no one. Until she is reunited with Sophia: the former friend who betrayed her. Together, the girls embark on a dangerous search to uncover the horrifying truth behind their imprisonment. Soon running for their lives, the girls must save themselves or die trying.

with the short film FIREWEED (Dir. Mason Mantla) (9:06 mins)
Chamae is a young warrior trying to survive in the post apocalyptic future. Haunted by her past and hunted by raiders, will she succumb to the nuclear winter?

9:00 pm - THE BLOODIES AWARDS SHOW (Following the screening)