By Mo Moshaty

Fantasia Fest released it’s first string earlier this month and we gotta say, this summer’s festival lineup proves one thing: horror is not just alive, it’s undead, possessed, and occasionally gut-wrenching (yay us!). From blood-soaked spells and post-apocalyptic (literal) thirst traps to HOA hellscapes and metaphysical road trips, the films on display push horror’s boundaries with a gleeful disregard for rules.

Mother of Flies (2025) – Written and directed by John and Zelda Adams and Toby Poser (The Adams Family)

When a young woman faces a deadly diagnosis, she seeks dark magic from a witch in the woods – but every cure has costs.

From the terror trifecta behind Hellbender comes a spellbinding tale where necromancy meets morality in a mossy fairytale cloak. Mother of Flies is an arthouse horror at its most personal; crafted with love, grief, and a sprinkle of dirt from gramma’s grave.

The Adams Family (yes, that one) once again conjure a gorgeous fever dream, complete with forest witches, emotional decay and poetic pull so strong, your tear ducks will get a workout.

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Influencers (2025) – Written and Directed by Kurtis David Harder

In Southern France, a young woman’s chilling fascination with murder and identity theft sends her life into a whirlwind of chaos.

Our favorite unhinged wanderlust queen CW is back, and this time, she’s liking and lethal-ing across South of France. If you thought ghosting was rude, wait until you see what she does to her girlfriends. Kurtis David Harder ups the ante with Insta-ready vistas, killer outfits and actual killing.

With Georgina Campbell thrown into the mix, prepare for sun-soaked sociopathy and influencer-on-influencer crime. Like The Talented Mr. Ripley if Ripley had a ring light and a passport.

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Hold the Fort (2025) – Written by William Bagley and Scott Hawkins, Directed by William Bagley

After moving to the suburbs, a young couple finds themselves trapped in an epic battle between their new HOA and an onslaught of monsters from hell.

Suburban hell has a new HOA, and it’s staffed by creatures that look like that crawled of 80s B-movie reels. Writer/Director William Bagley mashes 80s gore, Saturday morning cartoons, and Home Depot DIY vibes into a blood-soaked blast of monster madness. With hilariously doomed residents, practical FX galore, and one-liners sharp enough to slice a zombie head clean off, this is the homeowners’ association from literal hell, and it looks like a damn good time.

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The Well (2025) – Written by Michael Capellupo and Kathleen Hepburn, Directed by Hubert Davis

In a world where environmental collapse has left survivors to fight over the precious remaining resources, a young woman’s loyalties are tested by the arrival of a wounded man who discovers her family has a secret supply of freshwater.

If The Road and Mad Max had a quiet Canadian cousin who drinks filtered rain water and reads Paul Bunyan, this would be it. Hubert Davis swaps docu-realism for post-apocalyptic dread in this slow-burn eco-thriller where water is currency and trust is extinction-level risky. When teen rebellion meets viral isolation, and Sheila McCarthy plays your new scary water cult queen, you know the well runs deep; morally, metaphorically and fatally.

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Hellcat (2025) – Written and Directed by Brock Bodell

A woman wakes in the back of a moving camper trailer with a badly infected wound. A voice from the truck towing it tells her they must reach a doctor within the hour or she’ll suffer a horrific fate.

Brock Bodell’s debut is a pressure cooker on wheels” part body horror, part road horror and part metaphysical mind fuck. With a creepy DJ on the radio and time running out, this trip delivers unexpected detours into cosmic dread. Bring your Dramamine…and some sage…for safety.

These aren’t your standard scream-and-die affairs. They’re crackling with originality. Whether it’s dragging influencer culture through the gore-soaked grass, or finding grace in grief with a cauldron, or finding out your new home comes with a set of dealy rules enforced by monsters, they form a genre mosaic that’s raw and relevant.

We can’t wait to see what’s next!

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