Guests

We’ll be adding guests for the 2026 festival soon!

George Mihalka
George Mihalka is a Hungarian-born Canadian filmmaker best known for directing the cult horror classic My Bloody Valentine. A defining entry in the early slasher canon, the film has built a lasting international fan base and remains one of Canada’s most iconic genre exports. Mihalka continues to be celebrated as a key figure in genre cinema, with My Bloody Valentine enduring as a landmark film that helped shape the modern slasher tradition. Known for the ease with which he moves between drama, action, and comedy across theatrical features and television in both English and French, his work has earned over 50 nominations and awards internationally. He is the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award and the Distinguished Service Award from the Directors Guild of Canada, and the Canadian Trailblazer Award at the Fantasia International Film Festival (2025). A master storyteller, Mihalka has expanded his directing career into roles as a showrunner, executive producer, and production executive. He recently directed and showran Ominous for Bell Media, and most recently served as co-creator and executive producer on Hunyadi: The Rise of the Raven, a 10-hour medieval drama shot in Hungary.
Andrea Subissati, Bloody Judge 2026

Andrea Subissati is an award-winning writer, podcaster and content creator. Just don’t say her name five times in a mirror.

In 2010, her masters thesis on the social impact of zombie cinema was published under the title When There’s No More Room In Hell: The Sociology of the Living Dead. Since then, she has been published in The Undead and Theology (2012), The Canadian Horror Film: Terror of the Soul (2015) Yuletide Terror: Christmas Horror on Film and Television (2017) and Scared Sacred: Idolatry, Religion and Worship in the Horror Film (2020).

Andrea joined the staff of Rue Morgue magazine in 2014 and became Executive Editor in 2017.

In addition to writing, she is co-host and producer of the award-winning Faculty of Horror Podcast with Alexandra West. She hosts Rue Morgue TV and has appeared in the horror documentary Why Horror? (2014), CTV’s Pop Life, Banger TV‘s Locked Horns and Hollywood Suite’s A Year In Film.

Andrea is co-founder of the Toronto-based horror lecture series The Black Museum with Paul Corupe, and also spearheaded Rue Morgue’s annual Spooky Flea Market.

Andrea stalks the streets of Toronto, Ontario, with her undead Pomeranian Dante. Follow her on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Alex Montilla

Writer, Director, Producer – FRIDAY THE 69TH

Alex Montilla is an award-winning filmmaker from Parkland, Florida who developed his one-man band approach while making movies in high school. After moving to LA, he gained experience in the editing rooms of studio films like Hot Tub Time Machine and The Muppets and producing for ESPN. Friday the 69th is his debut feature film.
Anthony Cousins

Writer, Director – FROGMAN RETURNS

Anthony Cousins is an American horror filmmaker and best known for creating the cult cryptid feature Frogman and its sequel Frogman Returns. With a background spanning grip, gaffer, camera operator, and director of photography roles, Cousins brings a hands-on, practical-effects-driven sensibility to his work — blending scrappy indie energy with meticulous technical craft. Cousins built a reputation behind the camera on genre projects including Scare Package, Revealer, and numerous independent shorts and features. A lifelong horror fan with an emphasis on practical-effects classics, Cousins work reflects a filmmaker who understands genre from the ground up — technically, creatively, and communally.
Aurelio Voltaire

Writer, Director, Actor – THE DEMONATRIX

Aurelio Voltaire started his career as a stop-motion animator and director in the eighties, at a handful of New York City animation houses, making commercials for Budweiser, Ikea, RC cola, Hess, Parker Brothers, Kellogg’s, Arm and Hammer, Marvel and many others. He made his mark as a director shortly thereafter creating award winning station IDs for MTV including the now classic “MTV Bosch”, establishing Voltaire’s unique style of whimsically dark animation and surreal storytelling. Voltaire went on to direct horror, sci-fi, and Halloween oriented station IDs for SyFy Channel, USA Networks, Discovery, The Learning Channel, Fangoria and others .

After a ten year hiatus (making music, books, comics, toys, etc.), Aurelio Voltaire returned to making films for the love of it. He is presently working on a series of shorts call the “Chimerascope series”. Voltaire’s first feature length screenplay, “Call of the Jersey Devil”, is a live action, horror/comedy feature film Voltaire hopes to direct. The script won “Best Screenplay” at The NYC Horror Film Festival as well as at the Rocky Mountain Horror Film Festival in 2010.

Along with Jeff Ferrell, he co-wrote, co-directed, and acted in The Demonatrix.
Brea Grant

Co-writer, Co-director, Co-producer – GRIND

Brea Grant is an award-winning filmmaker who co-wrote GRIND and directed two of the four segments. Her other feature credits include: Torn Hearts (director), Lucky (writer/actor, SXSW 2020), 12 Hour Shift (writer/director, Tribeca 2020). She has also written and directed episodic television for the CW and Netflix, written four comic book series, and acted in a number of films (After Midnight, Halloween 2, Dead Night) and television shows including Friday Night Nights, Dexter, and Heroes.
Chelsea Stardust

Co-director, Co-producer – GRIND

Chelsea Stardust has been a horror film fan since the age of 10 when her father showed her George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead and Tod Browning’s Dracula. Upon graduating Ohio University’s Honors Tutorial College School of Film program, Chelsea moved to sunny Los Angeles to pursue her filmmaking dreams.

Chelsea’s first feature film, the science fiction thriller All That We Destroy, is part of the Blumhouse series Into The Dark and is currently available on Hulu. Her second feature film, the 2019 horror comedy Satanic Panic, was written by novelist Grady Hendrix. It was featured in over 20 film festivals all over the world. It is currently available on VOD, blu-ray and VHS.

Chelsea produced the horror satire anthology film Grind, created by Brea Grant and Ed Dougherty, which had its world premiere at SXSW in March of 2026. She also directed the wraparound segment of Grind. She also directed the music video Bloodbather for the indie rock band Cursive, which was featured on the cult streaming service Night Flight. Chelsea is also published writer and her work has been featured in several books and online publications.

Most recently Chelsea produced Graham Skipper’s third feature, Organonym, which wrapped production in late April 2026.
Chris Schwab

Writer, Director – DRACULA THE NIGHT AROUND US

Chris grew up in a small town in North Carolina near the ocean. He eventually moved out to Southern California to have the opportunity to work in the film industry and currently works as a VFX artist. He stays busy writing, directing and editing short narratives and feature films.
Ed Dougherty

Co-writer, Co-director, Co-producer – GRIND

Ed Dougherty is a graduate of UC Berkeley and the USC Graduate School of Cinematic Arts. He’s a writer/producer/director whose work includes the dramas PAINT IT BLACK (Alia Shawkat, Alfred Molina, and Janet McTeer) and SCRAPPER (Michael Beach and Aidan Gillen). He produced the segment “D for Dogfight” from THE ABCS OF DEATH and was a fellow in the Sundance Film Two Lab in 2019. He most recently sold a limited series to Peacock. He’s directed/produced/edited many music videos and music content for artists including Voxtrot, A Giant Dog, Sweet Spirit, Aimee Mann, Frankie Cosmos, All Time Low, Tracyanne and Danny, etc. He co-wrote/directed/produced GRIND which premiered at SXSW.
Jeff Ferrell

Writer, Director, Actor – THE DEMONATRIX

Jeff Ferrell is a filmmaker, actor and musician. He has made four feature films as writer/director: Ghostlight, Dead West (which was picked up by RLJ Entertainment and Netflix) and Holiday Hell, a horror anthology starring Re-Animator’s Jeffrey Combs. His fourth feature, The Demonatrix, was co-directed with Aurelio Voltaire, and has been 10 years in the making.
Krsy Fox

Actor, Editor, Producer – BIG BABY

Krsy Fox is a Canadian born actress and filmmaker known for Terrifier 3, Underworld Evolution, Little Bites, Bury The Bride, Allegoria, and In The Land Of Women. Krsy began acting as a child and has gone on to write/direct/produce her own films Frank, I Live Alone, and award winning shorts “What The Spell?” and “Hims.” She also co-wrote/produced and starred in 2023’s Bury The Bride. In 2024 Krsy Fox produced and starred in the film Little Bites distributed by RLJE/Shudder. The feature had its World Premiere at Fantastic Fest, and was executive produced by the one and only Cher. Based in Los Angeles CA, she and her partner Spider One started production company OneFox Productions (Little Bites, Big Baby, Bury The Bride, Allegoria, FRANK, I Live Alone). Up next Krsy stars opposite Brandon Scott in the meta slasher Big Baby directed by Spider One. Krsy is also known for songwriting radio hits with bands like Theory Of A Deadman, Halestorm, Pop Evil, and New Years Day. She has toured extensively fronting her own alt insanity band Knee High Fox, and was one of the co-creators of ‘Bleeders Diegest’ podcast on Bloody Disgusting.
Levi Buchanan

Writer, Director – SITRA ACHRA

Levi Buchanan is a writer, director, and videogame industry veteran living in Portland, OR. SITRA ACHRA is his debut feature-length movie. Through his film and stage show production company, Infernal Machine, Levi produces and directs short films like the award-winning “We Said Forever” as well as horror-themed theatre. MAZE, his musical parody of the cult classic Labyrinth, sold out its entire premiere run and will be back for a 2027 encore. He’s also the Dave in the Depeche Mode celebration band Constant Debauchery.
Remington Smith

Writer, Director – LANDLORD

Remington Smith is a working filmmaker whose documentary & narrative films have been distributed by The Atlantic, PBS, Cineverse and the horror platform Alter. His most recent film, LandLord, was featured at the Cannes Film Market. His documentary short “The Derby” earned a Vimeo Staff Pick after being picked up by Short of the Week and was distributed by PBS, while his pandemic short film “In These Times”, shot on 16mm and digital, was co-distributed by PBS Reel South.

Fueled by an early love of horror films and a childhood of nomadic poverty, Remington’s work focuses on themes of survival, from arthouse horrors (The Woods) to stories of communities fighting environmental hazards (Rubbertown). His work has screened around the world, including at the Oscar-qualifying RiverRun film festival. Remington earned a Master’s in Film Studies at the University of Edinburgh before earning his MFA in Film Production at the University of Iowa. When he’s not creating new work or assisting other filmmakers, you can find him teaching film production courses, reading books on anything from history to horror, and going on caffeinated bike rides.
Spider One

Writer, Director, Producer – BIG BABY

Dropped out of the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts. Started the band POWERMAN 5000. Released eleven albums (and counting), enjoyed platinum success and toured the world. Directed several music videos. Served as an on air personality for the horror network FEARNET. Created and co produced the horror/comedy TV series Death Valley for MTV. Started OneFox Productions with partner Krsy Fox. Released directorial feature debut film Allegoria in 2022 with RLJE/Shudder. In 2023 Spider One released his second feature Bury The Bride, co-written by Krsy Fox. Wrote & Directed Little Bites starring Krsy Fox, Barbara Crampton, Heather Langenkamp, Jon Sklaroff released in 2024 theatrically with RLJE/Shudder, and currently streaming on Shudder and Hulu. Little Bites and Spider One’s latest feature Big Baby has music legend and academy award winner Cher is on board as Executive Producer.
Brady Cates

Writer, Director – “Cat and Mouse”

Brady Cates is a Minneapolis-based writer/director focused on raw, character-driven storytelling. He brings a diverse perspective to his projects and hopes to create more work for Black artists.
Caitlin Crowley

Director of Photography – “Tooth-Hurty!”

Caitlin is a queer filmmaker, editor, and mixed media artist. With a gritty, emotionally resonant approach to storytelling, Caitlin brings a sharp eye and an empathetic lens to stories often overlooked. She has served as the Director of Photography on narrative short films and music videos, with the majority of her work living in the documentary realm.
Casey De Fremery

Writer, Director – “My Severed Arm”

Casey de Fremery is an award-winning writer/director residing in LA. He was raised on a mix of action films from James Cameron, quirkier fare from the Coen Bros, and cites Jurassic Park as the perfect movie. Casey started his directing career with music videos, commercials, and short films in the Bay Area for a variety of genres. His short films “Chorus Notes” “The Needle” and “My Severed Arm” have racked up many awards on the film festival circuit and debuted his first micro-budget feature film, “War Path” in 2021 (Best Feature Film at the Golden State Film Festival).
Giovanni Fleming

Writer, Director – “Mystic Stylez”

Giovanni D. Fleming is a Los Angeles born filmmaker of African American and Italian heritage whose work explores identity, culture, ambition, and self-expression through visually driven storytelling. Drawing from real experiences and the environments he grew up around, he creates films for the people he grew up with, blending grounded emotion with stylized atmosphere, music, and character-driven narratives.
Joey Koenig

Writer, Director – “Night Spider”

Joey has been passionate about filmmaking since childhood, releasing short films on YouTube alongside his twin brother Teddy, and Westin with the help of friends and family. Their channel quickly went viral, amassing nearly 6 million views. What began as creative fun evolved into a serious pursuit. After attending CSUN, He gained more experience on set in commercial production and is now pursuing writing, directing, and producing full time with their company KP Productions based in Los Angeles.
Jude Madonna

Director – “Tooth-Hurty!”

Jude Madonna is an actor, writer, and director from Portland, OR. She graduated from the Los Angeles Film School and has studied with Joan Scheckel and Lindy Davies. Jude likes cream sodas, card games, and rainy weather.
Leticia Buchanan

Writer, Director – “Paralysis”

Leticia “Letty” Buchanan is a seasoned, award-winning producer, director, writer, and production designer with over 20 years of industry experience. Her credits include CNBC, Court TV, HBO’s Emmy-winning Taxicab Confessions, CBS, The Food Network, and PBS. She co-founded Love Your Face Films with Eddie Lebron, focusing on horror, narrative works, music videos, and documentaries. “Paralysis,” a horror film inspired by her struggles with sleep paralysis, and “The Closet,” co-written with her teenage son, are both currently on the festival circuit. She is currently developing, writing, and directing a documentary on the trans celebrated community called Worship: An All Trans Affair.
Luke Oleen Junk

Cinematographer – “Cat and Mouse”

Luke Oleen Junk is a filmmaker from the American Midwest. His work is informed by a DIY ethic and commitment to creative independence developed over years spent wandering the country working as a furniture mover, bartender, teacher, and artist. He lives and works in Minneapolis MN.
Malcolm DeSoto & Ray DeSoto

Writer, Director, Producer – “Behold & Hear”

Malcolm Desoto began working as a commercial and documentary filmmaker but always had an appreciation for narrative filmmaking and the horror genre. Growing up in the densely-wooded Pacific Northwest provided the perfect mysterious backdrop to envision a wealth of macabre stories. After working on several shorts and narrative films as a Cinematographer and Editor, he began writing his debut short film in 2025 with his brother and co-director Ray DeSoto.
Matthew Rush

Writer, Director – “The Man Milker”

Matthew Rush is a Seattle-based director. He’s been working in the film industry for the last eleven years as a crew member and started focusing on writing and directing his own films in 2021. He’s made one micro budget feature — The Customer Comes First — along with many shorts, including “The Invasion,” “Embrace,” and his award-winning short, “Chickenboy.”
Nick Snyder

Writer, Director – “Nurture”

Nick Snyder is a Portland-based director and animator. He holds an MFA in Directing from Chapman University and spent over a decade in the LA freelance trenches. He is the founder and creative lead at Snaggletooth Creative, a studio built on precision and a slightly feral sense of fun.
Patrick Hogan

Writer, Director – “Blindsided”

Born and raised on the island of Guam, Patrick Hogan is an award-winning filmmaker and sound editor. His films are festival favorites, having appeared at well over 125 festivals around the world and racking up more than 50 best film awards. Patrick is also a highly accomplished supervising sound editor with more than 100 television shows and movies to his credit and 10 Emmy Nominations for his work on such shows as “Reservation Dogs”, “Cobra Kai” and “Umbrella Academy”.
PJ Germain

Writer, Director – “Worst Thing You’ve Ever Done”

PJ Germain is a first-generation Indian-Haitian American filmmaker based in Los Angeles. An AFI Directing alumnus, he uses a bold genre lens to explore identity, legacy, and transformation. Beyond directing festival-acclaimed shorts like “Ghost Light,” “Bend in the Road” and “The Lake Passage,” PJ is a two-time Webby winner and has extensive post-production credits as a member of the Motion Picture Editor’s Guild. He firmly believes in taking his audiences on a ride, blending cinematic spectacle with deep emotional truth.
Rachel Houska

Actor – “Behold and Hear”

Rachel Houska plays the role of Jordan in the short film “Behold and Hear.”
Simeon Gregory

“The Box” – bumper contest

Simeon is a PNW filmmaker who loves filmmaking and his kids. The end.
Stephen Bishop

“Dread” – bumper contest

Steven loves making movies, his or yours.
Steven Jackley

Writer, Director – “The Void”

Over the last ten-plus years, Steven K Jackley has written, directed, and produced up to 25 short films. Born in a small town in the Midwest, his love of filmmaking didn’t take off until he moved to Portland, Oregon, and met his second family of like-minded filmmakers. Steven is a genre filmmaker through and through. Creating character-driven horror films that delve deep into the root of what truly scares us.
Tommy Harden

Colorist, Actor – “Tooth-Hurty!”

Tommy Harden is a multiple Cannes Lion, AICP, and Emmy Award winning editor. He is also the founder of post-production company Arts Academy based out of Portland, OR.
Trevor Graciano

Writer, Director – “Scullion”

Trevor is an Oregon–based filmmaker who has directed several short films, including Emmy winner, “Money Tree,” along with a range of award-winning micro-films. His work draws inspiration from the scrappy, inventive spirit of genre cinema and cult classics. While he has continued to expand his creative portfolio over the years, Scullion marks his first produced film in fifteen years.
Zoe Kerr

Writer, Director – “Prey For Us”

Zoe Kerr is a director and writer based in Los Angeles. Her writing and direction has been recognized by the Sundance Institute, Slamdance Screenplay Competition, the Austin Film Festival, Launch Pad, the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation Arts Residency, and the Dramatists Guild, among others.
Tim Blough

“Leftovers” – bumper contest

Tim is a local actor, director and writer. The horror genre is one of his favorite, particularly anything with monsters. A big fan of the Universal Monsters growing up cemented his love for anything that goes bump in the night. He has written and directed several shorts, as well as bumpers.