Thank you
Since the first NEVERMORE Film Festival in 2000, more than 10,000 people have seen 82 films, many of which were North Carolina premieres. This year's festival continues the tradition of seeking out the best new horror and genre films available with films from the US, Canada, Ireland, France, Italy and Australia included in this year's selections.
Announcements
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The Nevermore 10-pass is on sale now for $50 and the individual film tickets go on sale Wednesday, February 6. |
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Ormon Grimsby will host the Saturday screening of SACKCLOTH AND ASHES. |
Welcome to Nevermore 2008
This was the hardest year ever for our programming committee to select the movies for the Nevermore Film Festival. Why, you ask? Because there were simply too many good movies in submission. To quote Vickie Lawrence in Mama’s Family, picking this year’s schedule left us…“grinning from ear to ear, like Jaws on his way back from the beach.” We received 130 submissions this year (compared with 60 in 2006.) And that’s great news for you, our loyal fan, because we believe every terrifying, sensational, astounding, stupefying aspect of the horror genre will be represented in this 9th edition of Nevermore. Even Bigfoot is making his festival debut.
With ten (10) features and fourteen (14) shorts, this is the biggest Nevermore ever held. We’re hosting two (2) United States festival premieres (13 Hours in a Warehouse and Breathing Room), the Southeastern US premiere of Frayed, and numerous North Carolina premieres. For the first time, we’ve scheduled two shorts programs: one for those who prefer to laugh during their bloodbaths (They’re Coming to Get You, Barbra!) and the other for those who watch The Texas Chainsaw Massacre to ease their anxiety (666). There’s also Sackcloth and Ashes, our first-ever anthology program, featuring our four highest-scored, longer-running shorts. (Nevermore is a juried festival, meaning that several people—Carolina Theatre staff and volunteers—vote on what gets selected.) It’s amazing to consider that, until three years ago, Nevermore didn’t even accept shorts. These days, some of the most vibrant, frightening work is happening in the short-film format.
We’re especially proud to present an ultra-rare opportunity to see Dario Argento’s 1982 giallo masterpiece, Tenebre. This Italian classic was originally (and briefly) released in a butchered form in the U.S. as Unsane. Nevermore is exhibiting a 35mm print on loan from the Danish Film Institute. Our screenings are of historic significance because they mark only the second time that Tenebre has been exhibited in 35mm in the United States. By merely attending these screenings, you’ll be one of a tiny group of people in the U.S. who can claim to have ever experienced Tenebre in a motion picture theatre.
It was 22 years ago that we first heard the immortal line, “There can be only one.” How apt that bit of dialogue has nowadays become. There is just a single 35mm print of Highlander available for theatrical exhibition in the United States. All other prints have been destroyed, lost or stolen since 1986. And before something horrific happens to this last surviving print, we felt Nevermore 2008 was the perfect time and place to screen one of the most famous films of the ‘80s. (If we wait until the film’s 25th anniversary in 2011, it might be too late.) Although it was a huge smash in other countries, Highlander flopped in America, opening at #7 on its first week. #1 that same week was…Pretty in Pink. Although you’ve probably seen Highlander numerous times on cable or DVD, please consider that these screenings may be your last chance to behold this epic masterpiece in a theatre for many years.
It actually hurt to reject some of this year’s crop of submissions (for proof that rejection is painful, check out Richard Gale’s short film, Criticized. Would you send this man a rejection letter?) And after three months of reviewing movies, we feel that the effort was worth every bloody moment. We hope that you agree with us, and will take a moment to congratulate the many filmmakers and artists who will be attending the festival. 2008 promises to be another great year for fans of genre films. As always, we would like to thank our countless fans, volunteers, programming committee, and supporters whose dedication and enthusiasm have transformed Nevermore into the one of the best horror film festivals in the country.
All my best,
Jim Carl
Senior Director
Carolina Theatre of Durham
