2nd Horror and Fantasy Film Festival to be held in the Estonian resort town of Haapsalu from 22 - 25 March.
Haapsalu will be overrun by nearly 20 acclaimed fantasy and horror films from all over the world. Hosted by a community that is itself home to a legendary ghostly apparition – the White Lady – the 2nd Haapsalu Horror and Fantasy Film Festival is organised in cooperation with the town of Haapsalu, Black Nights Film festival and Haapsalu Culture Centre.

"The boundaries between fantasy and horror film, and black humour are often very conceptual and it is hard to say where fantasy ends and comic fear begins," says festival manager Sten Saluveer. "Films in both genres are screened side by side at many major festivals and we decided to go down the same road with HOFF."

HOFF, which carved itself a niche last year as a pilot programme, will offer filmgoers 18 features from 12 countries. Most of these films will be screened in Estonia for the first time - Taiwan’s big budget ghost story, "Silk"; the cult classic "Sheitan" from France, starring Vincent Cassel; "Bad Blood", a critical and commercial hit from Portugal; and the Italian giallo revival "The Last House in the Woods" (presented by its producer Gregory Rossi) to just name a few examples of the varied programme.

What is more, HOFF is bringing to viewers the best of the new wave of British horror films, once known as the state of the art in film. Three singular British films from 2002-2006 confirm the resurgence of the genre.
"Dog Soldiers", one of the first films responsible for breathing new life into British horror will be screened, along with the thriller "Lie Still"
and the surprise of last year’s festival circuit, "Broken", that will be introduced by its producer and leading actress Nadya Brand. Providing an introduction to the focus on Britain will be a public discussion led by British horror and cult film expert Xavier Mendik and film producer Howard Martin on the role of horror films in lending a voice for taboo topics in society.

Another special programme, Anima Fantastica, presents animations which have attained cult status. There's something for filmgoers both big and small.
For example, the Soviet era classic "The Mystery of Third Planet" from 1981, the French surrealist sci-fi animation "Fantastic Planet" - Cannes special prize winner from 1973, and "Heavy Metal", a rock animation produced in Canada in 1981.

Nor does HOFF neglect the contingent with the strongest guts and wits. The smaller hall of the Haapsalu Culture Centre will be given over to late-night showings of films for freaks – the MTV-esque fantasy thriller "Hellevator", and the controversial German film "Nekromantik", which was presented in Estonia already in 1993 (despite a number of demonstrations against it) after it was banned from screening in Helsinki Film Festival.

HOFF will open on 22 March at the Haapsalu Culture Centre with the family film "Pan's Labyrinth", which recently won three Oscars. The festival is rounded out by the Hammer Horror tour de force from half a century ago, Terence Fisher’s "The Curse of Frankenstein" starring Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing at their charismatic best.

Festival programme and more information at www.poff.ee/hoff

Sten Saluveer
HOFF project manager, 51 652 42


PROGRAMME

Opening Film
PAN'S LABYRINTH / EL LABERINTO DEL FAUNO / Guillermo del Toro / Mexico-Spain 2006 / 1.52

Closing Film
THE CURSE OF FRANKENSTEIN / Terence Fisher / Great Britain 1957 / 1.22

Main Programme (new horror films)
SHEITAN / Kim Chapiron / France 2006 / 1.35 THE ENTRANCE / Damon Vignale / Canada 2006 / 1.21 THE LAST HOUSE IN THE WOODS / IL BOSCO FUORI / Gabriele Albanesi / Italy
2006 / 1.25
SILK / GUI SI / Su Chao-pin / Taivan 2006 / 1.52 WICKED FLOWERS / Torico / Japan 2006 / 1.25 BAD BLOOD / COISA RUIM / Tiago Guedes, Frederico Serra / Portugal 2006 / 1.40

Special Programme: New British Horror
LIE STILL / Sean Hogan / Great Britain 2005 / 1.20 BROKEN / Adam Mason, Simon Boyes / Great Britain 2006 / 1.30 DOG SOLDIERS / Neil Marshall / Great Britain 2002 / 1.45

Special Programme: Anima Fantastica
FANTASTIC PLANET / LA PLANÈTE SAUVAGE / René Laloux / France-Czechoslovakia 1973 / 1.12 HEAVY METAL / Gerald Potterton, Jimmy T. Murakami / Canada 1981 / 1.30 MYSTERY OF THE THIRD PLANET / TAINA TRETEI PLANETÕ / Roman Kašanov / Soviet Union 1981 / 0.48

For Freaks
NEKROMANTIK / Jörg Buttgereit / Germany 1987 / 1.15 ZOMBIE, THE SELF DEFENCE FORCE / ZOMBIE JIETAI / Naoyuki Tomomatsu / Japan
2006 / 1.20
THREAT / Matt Pizzolo / USA 2006 / 1.20 HELLEVATOR / GUSYA NO BINZUME / Hiroki Yamaguchi / Japan 2003 / 1.36