The Sitges Festival Internacional de Cinema Fantàstic opens this Thursday. Julia Ducournau’s ‘Alpha’ gets the honour of kicking things off. This year’s theme explores the connection between horror and humour.
Big names are coming to town. Benedict Cumberbatch, Terry Gilliam, Joe Dante, and Carmen Maura will all receive awards. Meanwhile, the festival runs until 19 October with 395 productions across all sections.
Francis Lawrence’s adaptation of Stephen King’s ‘The Long Walk’ closes the festival. That’s going to be quite a finale.
The official section features 34 titles. Park Chan-wook brings ‘No Other Choice’, whilst Radu Jude presents his ‘Dracula’ version. Ben Wheatley’s ‘Bulk’ and Ion de Sosa’s ‘Balearic’ are also screening.
Additionally, there’s Eduardo Casanova’s ‘Silencio’ and Paul Urkijo’s ‘Gaua’. Mike Flanagan’s ‘The Life of Chuck’ features too. It’s a packed competition lineup.
Sitges Collection (out of competition) includes heavyweight projects. Yorgos Lanthimos and Emma Stone reunite for ‘Bugonia’. Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Frankenstein’ will screen, alongside Luc Besson’s ‘Dracula’.
Carmen Maura stars in ‘Vieja Loca’ by Martín Maguregui. Scott Derrickson’s ‘Black Phone 2’ features, as does ‘Sisu: Road to Revenge’. The latter is the sequel to 2022’s big winner.
The Orbita section brings back Sitges legend Takashi Miike with ‘Blazing Fists’ and ‘Sham’. Other selections include Anthony Pun’s ‘Cessium Fallout’ and Simon Rumley’s ‘Crushed’.
Awards will be plentiful. Carmen Maura receives the Gran Premio Honorífico. Joe Dante (creator of Gremlins) gets recognised, whilst Terry Gilliam’s honoured on the 40th anniversary of ‘Brazil’.
Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock Holmes, Doctor Strange) receives a Máquina del Tiempo award. So do William Fichtner, Enzo G. Castellari, and Ben Wheatley.
This year introduces a new format blending Encounters with press conferences. Cumberbatch, Ducournau, Derrickson, and Wheatley will participate.
The festival launches MaestrAs, replacing the Horror Girls sessions. It features meetings with female creators including Ducournau, producer Gale Anne Hurd, and actresses Nancy Loomis and Barbara Crampton.
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