Screamfest LA is kicking off this week in the heart of Hollywood! Screamfest is the largest and longest running horror film festival in the US. Dubbed the “Sundance of Horror,” the festival was founded in 2001 by film producers Rachel Belofsky and Ross Martin. In past years, iconic horror films have passed through Screamfest like Paranormal Activity and Trick R Treat, and a plethora of filmmakers got their start by entering their shorts to the festival.
To celebrate the commencement of the 24th Annual Screamfest Horror Film Festival, we sat down with Festival Director and Founder Rachel Belofsky to talk about the horror community, her experience as a woman in the film industry, and the inspirations behind Screamfest.
Before Screamfest, you started Candy Hearts Productions, so I just wanted to start off by getting to know you a little bit and talking about your journey getting into the film industry, for people who don't know who you are.
I first started in the film industry by making a documentary on women in auto racing. We traveled around the country interviewing everyone from IRL to NASCAR and talking to people like Lynn St. James and great things like that. Then we sold it to the WE Network, which is Women's Entertainment, part of AMC. We did some festivals before airing, and that journey made me want to do a film festival that is really about helping filmmakers make connections and navigate because the first time out, it's overwhelming.
When you finish a film—or, in this case, a documentary—you think you're done, but no, you're not done yet. You have another year to market it and get it out there. So that's how I came to the idea of doing a festival. There were so many festivals in LA, but there certainly were no horror ones, and I wondered, ‘Why is that?' I love horror but I felt like, especially in 2001, horror was treated like the bastard child of the industry. You would say you make horror films, and you might as well have said you are doing porn films. There was a disdain.
But this industry makes Hollywood billions of dollars. So much talent like Sam Raimi, Peter Jackson, and Wes Craven have cut their teeth on horror and went on to do things inside and outside the genre. That was the inspiration for how Screamfest came to be. I thought it would be on the side of producing, but it's a whole life of its own!
Was there a specific obstacle that really made you passionate about creating your own festival?
Yeah, there were definitely a couple of things. Going to festivals, I would meet some really nice filmmakers. Some of them had done independent feature films and they had no idea what to do with it. And you think, ‘oh my god, you're going to lose Daddy's $200,000, aren't you?' You would go into festivals, and a buyer would come into your screening, and they would take a business card, but then you wonder if they'll do anything with it. It was that feeling of not knowing.
Maybe some filmmakers are shy and introverted, and they are not aggressive enough to try to get crowds interested. So, I think it was really that obstacle of simply not knowing what to do. A good example would be someone like Oren Peli when we discovered Paranormal Activity. He wanted to go down to 3rd Street Promenade and pass out postcards to get people to come to his screening. I was like ‘That's never going to happen, you have to give me some DVDs so I can give them to my friends at places like CAA and Dread Central.'
He was so tight with it because he didn't know. He was scared of being ripped off, but these are the things you have to do. You have to get press. You have to let these people see it. Of course, it worked out well for him, which is beyond our control outside of making those first few connections. So that is a perfect example of why I started the festival. It's about helping.
You mentioned that when you created Screamfest, there were no other big horror film festivals. What draws you to the horror genre?
There are so many different subgenres like slashers, supernatural, horror comedies, and so on. I find it to be a release, like a roller coaster. The suspension. Everything gets tight, and then it happens! It is really awesome when you're in a theater with people all sharing the same passion. We may laugh at the oddest times, like when someone gets their head cut off. It seems weird from the outside, but you have to have an understanding of where we're all coming from. It is really that release that I love about horror films. The artistry that goes into it as well, from the special effects and makeup to the writing and directing, all of it.
There's always a debate going on, especially online, whether there is a horror community. What are your thoughts on that?
We try to build a community with our festival. Year after year, we certainly see the same faces coming back and new faces as well. We try to be very welcoming, programming things people want to see and creating a warm environment because it is like seeing your family and friends that you haven't seen for a year. At the end of the festival, after the end of ten days, it's kind of like summer camp. You think about how we all just spent these ten awesome days together and now it's over. I feel like we try to maintain a sense of community.
Do you see a big difference in that vibe between Screamfest LA and NOLA?
It's a totally different vibe. Screamfest LA is right in the middle of Hollywood, where the industry is. Everyone here is trying to get their movies made, right? Screamfest NOLA is definitely about fun. When you're coming to New Orleans, it's party time. It's right before Halloween weekend, and they do a big parade, Krewe of BOO! So, people are there enjoying horror films and also enjoying the city.
There has been a big sentiment that we need to see more badass women in the horror space, but you have been doing this for 24 years now, and Screamfest has had a huge role in launching films like Paranormal Activity and Trick R Treat, which are iconic. Do you feel that a lot of the work women do in these kinds of roles is misunderstood or forgotten?
Sure! The “bro pack” is alive and well. Even on the programming side, this guy is buddies with this guy, and so on… But as far as women directors and writers are concerned, I don't subscribe to putting women into a category. In our competition, obviously, all directors compete in the same category. We never want to send the message that we can't compete with them. We don't need a special category.
Speaking on Screamfest, we have had women like The Soska Sisters, Issa López who came to us with Tigers Are Not Afraid and now she's working with Guillermo del Toro. Chloe Okuno competed and won in our Shorts category, and now she's done Watcher. Last year, Masha Ko won Best Short for The Looming and now it is being remade with A24. Just give women a seat at the table, and their work will succeed because they are just as talented as any of the men. We don't need to be put off in a ‘girl category.'
What advice would you give to young people, especially young women, who are going into the industry—especially programming, producing, and some of these behind-the-scenes spaces?
My advice to women behind the scenes, whether they are making a movie or getting into programming, is do not let someone tell you that you can't do it. Follow your dreams. Follow your passion. Just know that you are going to hit some roadblocks, and you are going to encounter those “bro packs.” But just punch your way through. Don't let anyone hold you down.
Screamfest LA has officially started. Do you have any films or events you want to highlight to our readers?
One of the films that we are particularly excited about is Else. It's a French/Belgian film by Thibault Emin. It is special to us because his short film Else was at our festival in 2009, so it feels full circle having him come back. A couple of other films in that festival came through as shorts, and those filmmakers are back with features–like Rob Belushi's Body Language, which came to us as a short in 2018 titled Dylan. It is cool to see alumni returning with their films after their shorts were screened in previous years. Something else really special this year is that we are honoring legendary cinematographer Dean Cundey, and we have more special announcements coming soon.
Screamfest is happening now until October 17th at the TCL Chinese Theater. Featuring over 29 narrative features and 111 short films, including a 40th-anniversary screening of Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter, and repertory screenings of Halloween, The Thing, Escape from New York, and The Fog, there is plenty for horror enthusiasts to feast upon. If you are in the Los Angeles area, make sure you take advantage of Screamfest's 5 different badge options and individual screening tickets on sale now!
