Fantasia XXX: TOKYO BURST, GOD SKIN, CAPE FEAR, And More Topline An Exciting Second Wave!

The first wave of titles for the pending thirtieth Fantasia International Film Festival already dropped a handful of titles to load up this summer’s film festivities in Montreal. Keeping in style on Thursday, the festival showed up once more with its second wave to add to the hype, and you can believe I’m scoping a round of Asian titles setting up for their North American debuts.

First among the lot is God Skin, which has a fresh still on display in the press release following its sales activity this past Spring from Thailand’s M Studio. There’s also Eiji Uchida’s Tokyo Burst: Crime City which spins off the famed Korean cop thriller franchise led by bumper Don Lee who also produced the Japanese tangential flick, which also hit screens in Japan last month just as Lee stays the course with a fifth installment of the main saga.

There’s also the latest reimagining of Cape Fear from Apple TV whose series finale will hit Fantasia, as will animated delights like Cherry And Virgin and director Kenichi Kutsuna’s Sekiro: No Defeat, sci-fi flick Our Effed Up World and so much, so much more. The final wave is inbound so take in all that you can from number two and keep a lookout on our front page in the weeks ahead.

THE FANTASIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES A STACKED SECOND WAVE OF TITLES FOR ITS 30th EDITION

Nick Antosca’s CAPE FEAR, Jane Schoenbrun’s TEENAGE SEX AND DEATH AT CAMP MIASMA, Paween Purijitpanya’s GOD SKIN, Corrin Evans’ CORPUS, Eiji Uchida’s TOKYO BURST: CRIME CITY, The Adams Family’s THE GLORIOUS DEAD, Masanao Kawajiri’s CHERRY AND VIRGIN, Mia’Kate Russell’s PENNY LANE IS DEAD, Kentaro Hagiwara’s WINDBREAKER, Wiebke von Carolsfeld’s SOMEONE’S DAUGHTER, Shin Su-won’s THE MUTATION, Hanna Bergholm’s NIGHTBORN, Craig Mitchell’s LOS VAMPIRES, Hideo Jojo’s NAMELESS, Nicky Murphy’s I LOVE PARIS, and Avid Liongoren’s ZSAZSA ZATURNNAH are among the titles announced by the Montreal festival


Thursday June 4, 2026 // Montréal, Quebec — The Fantasia International Film Festival will celebrate its upcoming 30th edition with an electrifying program of screenings, workshops, and launch events running from July 16 through August 2, 2026, returning to the Concordia Hall and J.A. de Sève cinemas, with additional screenings and events at Montréal’s Cinéma du Musée.

The festival’s full lineup will be announced in early July but in the meantime, Fantasia is excited to reveal a select second wave of its 2026 titles.

Photo courtesy of Apple TV
CAPE FEAR IS BACK WITH A VENGEANCE IN CHILLING APPLE TV ADAPTATION

In this reimagining of CAPE FEAR, a storm is coming for happily married attorneys Anna (Amy Adams, ARRIVAL, NIGHTBITCH) and Tom Bowden (Patrick Wilson, THE CONJURING, INSIDIOUS) when Max Cady (Javier Bardem, NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, MOTHER), the notorious killer they are responsible for putting behind bars, is let out of prison – and he will stop at nothing to exact revenge on the family who put him behind bars. Executive producers Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg team up with showrunner Nick Antosca (A FRIEND OF THE FAMILY, CHANNEL ZERO), who deftly crafts a singular reinterpretation of the classic thriller, in a format that deliberately allows madness to take its hold, depicting the unraveling of the Bowden family. Following in the footsteps of Mitchum and De Niro, Bardem truly shines as the charismatic maniac terrifying the Bowden family, delivering an incredible performance in his portrayal of a villain we all love to hate. Intense, unsettling and wildly entertaining, CAPE FEAR debuts on Apple TV on June 5th while Fantasia brings the epic conclusion to the big screen, with Nick Antosca and a special guest in attendance. Series Finale. World Premiere. 

GOD SKINUNLEASHES A SENSATIONAL CYBERPUNK MUAY THAI MELEE

Desperate for money, Bangkok delivery boy Marwin discovers a clandestine arena where the wealthy wager on martial-arts matches with a high-tech twist, in the spectacular Thai action-fantasy GOD SKIN. Panna Stunt Team (veterans of the ONG-BAK films) handle the combat choreography, so top-notch action is assured as Marwin faces off against a succession of outrageous rivals. Leading man Sutthirak Subvijitra, of the MY BOO and 4 KINGS series, proves equally deft at drama, comedy, romance, and high-flying, hard-hitting stunts, but director Paween Purijitpanya (GHOST LAB, 4BIA) takes things further, as this live-action arcade game loaded with rapid-fire laughs and eye-popping visual effects takes a sharp turn into dark, dystopian techno-thriller territory. This is potent proof that Thailand’s action cinema remains among the world’s best, offering ferocious fights and fresh new ideas. World Premiere.

LOS VAMPIRES FEATURES DUELING DRACULAS ON A 1930 FILM SHOOT AWASH IN MYSTICISM AND MURDER

In 1930 Hollywood, a Spanish actor (Henry Ian Cusick, LOST, MACGYVER) is cast in the night shoot of a soon-to-be-legendary vampire film, forced to imitate the English-speaking star (Thomas Kretschmann, THE PIANIST, SPECTRE) who performs the same role by day. The two actors regularly meet at the transitory hours of their shoots, and a rivalry stirs between them. All the while, a string of murders are occurring on and around the soundstage. With names respectfully altered, Craig Mitchell’s LOS VAMPIRES is a fantastical fictionalized account of the making of George Melford’s Spanish DRACULA (1931), the arguably superior version of the Universal Horror classic which had been shot overnight on the same sets Tod Browning’s landmark pictured used during the day. Cusick and Kretschmann captivate as uncanny surrogates for Carlos Villarías and Bela Lugosi, while Daniela Couso (SERIAL BEAUTY), Tony-winner Jefferson Mays (INHERENT VICE), Oscar Nuñez (THE OFFICE), and Jorge Diaz (FOR ALL MANKIND) round out an immaculate cast. LOS VAMPIRES is a meticulously designed, occult-tinged tribute to the dignity of performance… and a darkly imaginative, bittersweet love letter to old Hollywood – and the forgotten struggles that made it what it was. World Premiere.

ACTION GEM TOKYO BURST: CRIME CITY SETS THE STREETS OF SHINJUKU ABLAZE

Rookie detective Aiba (Sota Fukushi, BLEACH), a native of Tokyo’s red-light district (with all the attitude and methods that entails), must team up with Cho (Uhm Ki-joon, MAN OF VENDETTA), a counterpart from Seoul with equally questionable practices, to track down a dangerous criminal spreading terror across Japan, Korea, and the Philippines. While the relationship between the two investigators is frosty at first, they’ll have to learn to work together quickly in the face of such a formidable adversary. The cult franchise THE ROUNDUP makes its way to Japan with this wild “buddy cop” film, featuring a barrage of mind-blowing fight choreography, as well as hilarious sequences worthy of the genre’s greatest classics that are sure to delight die-hard action-movie fans. The chemistry between the actors, whose enthusiasm is contagious, and the dynamic direction of Eiji Uchida (LOWLIFE LOVE) make TOKYO BURST: CRIME CITY one of the most entertaining films of the year. International Premiere.

THE BODY BECOMES A DIFFERENT KIND OF TEMPLE IN CORPUS

A bold and visceral horror vision, CORPUS is the transfixing feature debut from filmmaker Corrin Evans, whose work explores death, eroticism, and the supernatural. Co-written and produced by Lily Cowles, who also stars, CORPUS is a body horror yearn-and-burn. Erotic and surreal, the film lands brilliantly as a meditation on identity, desire, and the lethal cocktail of longing, vulnerability, and control. 

It’s the summer of 1998 in New York City; Sayo (Jeff Wahlberg, EUPHORIA), a soulful nightlife photographer and small-time drug dealer, is invited to a party upstate by his long-time friend and unrequited love, a movie star on the rise: Vince Marlowe (Brodie Townsend, HEARTBREAK HIGH). Together with their rowdy friend Ross (Michael Vlamis, POOLS), they drive to a remote, bucolic manor in hopes of some summer debauchery. But when they arrive, they discover that the promise of a party is actually three mysterious women – Billie (Lily Cowles, ANTEBELLUM), Wren (Nuha Jes Izman, YELLOWJACKETS), and Cata (Ching Valdes-Aran, THE EQUALIZER) – whose disturbing agenda draws the boys into a dark web of seduction and terror. Cheval Noir Competition. World Premiere.

SOMEONE’S DAUGHTER DELIVERS BEYOND REASONABLE DOUBT

When the law fails you, who do you turn to? Over a decade ago, Sam (Pascale Bussières, MA VIE EN CINÉMASCOPE, FRONTIÈRES) successfully defended her client Paul (François Arnaud, HEATED RIVALRY, FUCKTOYS, THE BORGIAS) against rape accusations. Years later, the victim’s father kidnaps both the lawyer and his daughter’s alleged assailant, leaving them stranded in the Canadian wilderness with only each other to turn to. It’s a happy reunion for Paul, but the deeper they wander together, the more Sam finds herself questioning what really happened all those years ago and what’s coming for her today. In SOMEONE’S DAUGHTER, director Wiebke von Carolsfeld (THE SAVER, STAY) carefully ponders the morality of her characters and the role of law versus justice, weaving a tense tale of revenge and survival. Against a breathtaking tableau of northern backcountry, the leads deliver solid performances. Bussières’s grounded stoicism plays exquisitely well in contrast to Arnaud, who is as charming as he is chilling. Les Fantastiques Week-Ends du Cinéma Québécois Section. World Premiere.

ANIME FEATURE CHERRY AND VIRGIN DRAWS A PICTURE OF LOVE’S LATE BLOOMERS

Ami and Ryo have a lot in common. They’re both around 30 years old, both draw, both prone to brutal self-criticism – and neither has ever had sex. The duo is awkward, uncertain, confused. In their own weird way, the pair have great chemistry… but will it lead them to the bedroom – and beyond? Following his short animated mockumentary A JAPANESE BOY WHO DRAWS (Fantasia 2019), Masanao Kawajiri returns with CHERRY AND VIRGIN, an understated romantic dramedy that showcases his unique specialty. Kawajiri tells stories about people who draw, and presents them as they would draw themselves. The filmmaker’s skill at mimicking a multitude of styles is remarkable, and he puts it to use brilliantly in the service of surprising and insightful studies of ordinary lives. A patient and precise storyteller with a visual language as expressive as his dialogue, Kawajiri’s sardonic wit and harsh candor offset and even elevate the strong sense of compassion that permeates CHERRY AND VIRGIN. Animation Plus Section. World Premiere.

THE ADAMS FAMILY RETURNS WITH THE GLORIOUS DEAD, A HELLISH VISION OF SMALL-TOWN ANGER AND DEATH UNDYING

A small-town sheriff (Toby Poser) and her young deputy (Zelda Adams) wake to find the world they believed in no longer exists. Blood drips from faucets, people and pets are missing, and fleshy creatures walk the woods. Soon, the dirt can’t keep the dead down. Anger and fear spread through the community. Co-written and co-directed by John Adams and Toby Poser, the latter of whom also stars, and co-starring Zelda and Lulu Adams, THE GLORIOUS DEAD is a personal genre vision that speaks to the increasing horrors of American life in times of enormous, instigated division while retaining the interpersonal poetry, imagination, and dark humor that its creators are renowned for. This will be the sixth consecutive work from the singularly talented filmmaking family to World Premiere at Fantasia following the festival’s launches of THE DEEPER YOU DIG, HELLBENDER, WHERE THE DEVIL ROAMS, HELL HOLE, and MOTHER OF FLIES, the latter having won our 2025 Cheval Noir Award for Best Feature. In their words: “This film takes dangerous fundamentalism at face value and asks what remains for the rest of us.” World Premiere.

WHO SOWS THE WIND REAPS THE STORM IN THE HIGH-OCTANE ACTION FILM WIND BREAKER

A new arrival in the small town of Makochi, Sakura (Koshi Mizukami, KOWLOON GENERIC ROMANCE) is determined to take control of Furin High School – known for its formidable fighters – by knocking its leader out with a few well-aimed punches to the face. Instead, he discovers a tight-knit group of young people working to protect their community from the Shishitoren gang, which aims to sow chaos in order to gain more power. Will he be able to overcome his reluctance to trust others and rise above his bellicose ambitions? With its charismatic, over-the-top characters, breathtaking fight choreography, breakneck pace, and superb direction by veteran Kentaro Hagiwara (TOKYO GHOUL), WIND BREAKER doesn’t just dazzle the most ardent fans of action cinema. It offers a galvanizing reflection on the need to unite our forces against the intimidation and brutality of those who seek only to dominate and take everything they can. This adaptation of Satoru Nii’s epic manga fits perfectly into the current global context and will soothe your frustrations in the best possible way. International Premiere.

SIMPLE TOWN’S CRINGECORE COMEDY STYLINGS JUMP TO THE SCREEN WITH BIG BREAK

Years after Simple Town split up, three comics reunite with their successful ex-collaborator, leading to a fight for their lives (and careers) as it is revealed that one of them has become a serial killer! Jumping from the stage to the big screen for their feature film debut, New York’s cult comedy darlings Simple Town wield their knack for absurdist situational comedy like an axe to the horror genre. With an all-star team of indie producers including Richie Doyle (THE PEOPLE’S JOKER), Conor Hannon (IF I HAD LEGS I’D KICK YOU), Graham Mason (INSPECTOR IKE – also the editor of TEENAGE SEX AND DEATH AT CAMP MIASMA), Ani Schroeter (BUNNYLOVR), and Sarah Wilson (DAD & STEP-DAD), BIG BREAK navigates the harsh realities and moral dilemmas that come with being a part of the entertainment industry, and greets them with a punch(line), finding humor in the struggle and relatability in its cast of characters. Directed by Ian Faria, BIG BREAK recalls underground American horror-comedy classics while carving out a space entirely its own thanks to Simple Town’s special brand of chaotic cringecore sketch comedy. World Premiere.

IN THESE SOCIALLY TURBULENT TIMES, SHIN SU-WON’S THE MUTATION SHOULD BE MANDATORY VIEWING

Se-oh, a Black man born to two white Korean parents, is tired of feeling like a stranger in his homeland due to reactions to his skin color. He spends everything he has on a luxury suitcase containing his most precious possessions, to offer it to someone who would like to join him on a two-day road trip. Sora, a lesbian who lost her partner to suicide due to a forced marriage, decides to join this journey where landscapes, memories, sorrows, and hopes will intertwine. Embark on this magnificent, introspective voyage helmed by director and screenwriter Shin Su-won (MADONNA), who displays exceptional sensitivity and intelligence in guiding the viewer to a destination that will restore faith in humanity by tackling realistic, often harsh themes. The duo of Han Hyun-min and Lee Zoo-young deliver masterfully nuanced performances as two outsiders with whom we wish we could spend more time once the final credits roll. THE MUTATION brilliantly exposes human beauty and complexity and will make you want to take a walk with a stranger. North American Premiere.

BLOODSUCKERS TAKE FRANCE WITH I LOVE PARIS 

Shot in a mockumentary style, I LOVE PARIS is an explosive and vibrant vampire film that’s equal parts funny, dynamic, and haunting. Avoiding the traditional pitfalls of mockumentary filmmaking , I LOVE PARIS feels real but never forgets to keep its audience entertained. The film stars an explosive and hypnotic Aminata Thiboult as Paris, an aspiring musician who gets vampirized mid-shoot, giving all new meaning to the underground nightlife. Not just a vampire movie, this is a music film where the beats actually hit. I LOVE PARIS captures an improvisational style that blends comedy, music, and horror to draw in the audience. With obvious comparisons to WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS, director Nicky Murphy brings in a dash of Tony Scott’s THE HUNGER – creating a vampire story that’s funny, pulses with youth and ambition, and blends down-under humor with effortless French cool. Underground Section. World Premiere.

PENNY LANE IS DEAD AND AUSTRALIAN GENRE FILMMAKING IS FEROCIOUSLY ALIVE

A fierce and fantastic feature debut from writer / director Mia’Kate Russell, spiked with dark humor and gendered rage, PENNY LANE IS DEAD explodes off the screen with heart-pounding tension and personality to spare. A blood-drenched re-working of Ozsploitation survival / vengeance thrillers that hits hard yet through sheer force of charisma becomes something exhilarating, all while speaking to deeper themes of gendered violence and internalized misogyny. It’s the summer of 1986. Penny Lane (Bailey Spalding, NORTH SHORE) has just landed her university acceptance and is primed for celebration. She and friends Toni (Tahlee Fereday, BLUE CANARIES) and Amy (Alexandra Jensen, TALK TO ME) head out to a distant beach house for a wild “no dick event.” Things take a dark turn when Penny’s toxic cousin Kat (Sophia Wright-Mendelsohn, YEAR OF) crashes the party uninvited, with awful intentions. Soon, her boyfriend (Ben O’Toole, BLOODY HELL) arrives with friends. Circumstances spiral and the girls suddenly find themselves in a savage fight for survival… A breakout smash when it premiered at the Adelaide Film Festival, PENNY LANE IS DEAD is about to tear into domestic theatrical release abroad, and makes its first out-of-country visit at Fantasia. International Premiere.

VIETNAMESE WAR FILM TUNNELS: SUN IN THE DARK TELLS THE OTHER SIDE OF THE STORY

While films such as APOCALYPSE NOW, FULL METAL JACKET, and PLATOON hardly glorified the massive military misadventure in southeast Asia, they offered only the American perspective. Award-winning writer/director Bui Thac Chuyen (ADRIFT, GLORIOUS ASHES) provides a counterpoint with a powerful war film that’s intelligent, empathic, convincing, and intense. TUNNELS: SUN IN THE DARK follows a band of poorly equipped resistance fighters preparing to defend the vast network of crude tunnels underneath Cu Chi district against the hell that their enemies are on the verge of unleashing. Great pride is evident in the ingenuity and camaraderie of the combatants, but Bui demonstrates wise restraint, avoiding the excesses of propaganda productions. Nevertheless, TUNNELS was an unprecedented box-office smash on its home turf, with clever, claustrophobic camerawork (shot largely in the actual Cu Chi tunnels), a subtle and affecting score, and strong performances by its three leads. TUNNELS is an essential, and overdue, alternative reflection on a conflict no less relevant after half a century. North American Premiere.

NIGHTBORN JOLTS WITH SINGULAR CRIES IN THE NIGHT

With dreams of starting a perfect family, Saga (Seidi Haarla, COMPARTMENT NO. 6, ICEBREAKER) and her British husband Jon (Rupert Grint, the HARRY POTTER series, SERVANT) move to the isolated house where she spent much of her childhood, deep in the Finnish forest. As soon as their baby is born, despite the reassurance of all around her, Saga knows there’s something terribly wrong with her son. Their marriage begins to crack and Jon struggles to support his wife, but only Saga suspects the terrible truth about her newborn. The sophomore feature from gifted Finnish filmmaker Hanna Bergholm (HATCHING), NIGHTBORN launched in official competition at this year’s Berlinale and Fantasia is proud to be the site of its North American birthing. A deeply uncomfortable, viscerally gruesome, and darkly humorous look at the emotional rollercoaster of new parenthood through a genre prism, NIGHTBORN is stylishly directed and anchored by an astonishing, one-of-a-kind lead performance from Haarla. Cheval Noir Competition. North American Premiere.

BACKSTAGE MADNESS BRINGS BEHIND-THE-SCENES CREATION TO THE FOREFRONT

Creating a script is already challenging, especially when everyone except the writer wants to control the creation. A 70-year-old screenwriter struggles to protect his artistic ideals as his producer keeps interfering. Desperate to find that balance, the writer comes up with an extreme idea to spark inspiration, sending the creative process spiraling into madness. Drawing from his own experience, Kyrgyz director Amanbek Azhymat’s debut feature BACKSTAGE MADNESS sharply exposes the absurdity, exploitation, and ridiculousness of the film industry, with bold visual inspiration from Quentin Tarantino, while also capturing a creator’s struggle to preserve even a small piece of his dream. Featuring excellent performances from non-professional actor Bolot Tileberdiev and popular music artist Kuralbek Chokoev, BACKSTAGE MADNESS brings up the age-old question: how does one balance personal creative vision with market demands? North American Premiere.

NAMELESS IS A THRILLER THAT CERTAINLY MAKES A NAME FOR ITSELF

Security-camera footage has captured evidence of a vicious murder at a café, but the police are baffled that the suspect can slash people to death without even holding a weapon. Who is this man? How is he able to kill without a blade or a gun? Why is he shrouded in mystery? Based on star Jiro Sato’s own web-manga, NAMELESS is a compelling and gripping psychological thriller directed by Hideo Jojo, and another brilliant feature with the insanely talented Sato in its lead role. Jojo takes the Japanese thriller genre to the next level with superb pacing, visceral suspense, and remarkable character development. NAMELESS will make sure you forever remember its name. North American Premiere.

ZSAZSA ZATURNNAH BRINGS THE FILIPINO HIGH-CAMP CULT COMIC BOOK BACK TO THE BIG SCREEN

A pink meteor transforms shy, gay hairdresser Ada into a stunning superheroine, who must defend her village from giant mutant animals, wretched zombies, and anything else thrown at her by the militant, misandrist Amazonistas from Planet X. Previously adapted as a live-action film in 2006 and (of course) a flamboyant stage musical, ink-slinger Carlo Vergara’s Zsazsa “komiks”, high-camp parodies of iconic Filipina superheroine Darna, have earned prestigious awards and enormous popularity among the Queer community of the Philippines. Zsazsa now returns to the screen, and who better to bring Vergara’s screenplay to life than Avid Liongoren (SAVING SALLY, HAYOP KA!) and his team at Manila’s Rocketsheep Studio. Liongoren is striving to give Pinoy animation, for too long simply a sweatshop for foreign productions, its own authentic voice, and he’s found a perfect vehicle in the hilarious, heartfelt, and high-impact adventure ZSAZSA ZATURNNAH! Animation Plus Section. North American Premiere.

OTHERWORLDLY AND MOVING, MOTHERWITCH SHINES DARKEST LIGHT ON CYPRIOT FOLK HORROR

Eleni (Margarita Zachariou) is a painter isolated from her wider community and consumed by unbearable grief after losing all three of her children in a senseless accident. In desperation, she enters into a Faustian pact with chthonic feminine forces to bring them back. Filmed on location in an abandoned settlement in Cyprus and making sublime use of its mountainous rural terrain, Minos Papas’ MOTHERWITCH weaves fairy tale, dark Gothic ambience, mythology, and stunning practical effects into the fabric of folk horror. The film becomes a profound exploration of motherhood, grief, and the act of creation itself, fueled by compelling performances from leads Zachariou and Sifis Katsoulakis. The historical backdrop of English-occupied Cyprus in the 1880s adds further layers of unease and colonial violence to its richly textured world. Official Selection: Rotterdam International Film Festival 2026. North American Premiere.

FOR ANIME ACTION, SEKIRO: NO DEFEAT CAN’T BE BEAT!

The Divine Heir of the sacred land of Ashina has been kidnapped for malevolent purposes. His sworn protector, the stoic shinobi Sekiro, must rescue the child because the fate of all Ashina depends on it. Adapting SEKIRO: SHADOWS DIE TWICE, the award-winning 2019 video game from FromSoftware, the highly anticipated anime adventure SEKIRO: NO DEFEAT sees the war-torn Japan of the Sengoku period further fractured by conspiracy, betrayal, and bloody boss battles to beggar belief. Exquisitely visualized and breathtaking in its frequent, furious fight scenes, it’s the work of director Kenichi Kutsuna and the innovative anime studio Qzil.la. They reinvigorate the ninja genre with a fresh, sharp look and feel, and elevate an already excellent video game to cinematic glory. Animation Plus Section. North American Premiere.

THERE’S LOVE TO BE FOUND IN THE DYSTOPIAN SEOUL OF NIKO

In dystopian Seoul, with curfew and lockdown in effect, broke screenwriter Niko suddenly disappears. As her boyfriend Jeremy and new bestie Ji-eun try to locate her, they become unexpectedly intertwined in a love triangle. In the meantime, Niko is on a journey of self-discovery, slowly but surely finding her lost hope in humanity and romance. Writer/director Julien Birban Levy’s feature debut demonstrates his passion for both Asian and French cinema. Even if it’s taking place during the end of the world, he manages to depict Seoul as a lively character in and of itself. Tiffany Young of the iconic K-Pop group Girls’ Generation shines in her feature acting debut, bringing lots of emotion and personality to the titular role and offers great chemistry with her co-star Sandor Funtek. With mesmerizing performances from the main cast and Levy’s pulsating cinematic look, NIKO is a love letter to both the romance genre and the city of Seoul. International Premiere.

THE ORIGIN OF ULTRAMAN CELEBRATES THE 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE JAPANESE SUPERHERO

Six decades to the day since the broadcast of the first ULTRAMAN episode, Fantasia salutes this key figure in the festival’s history with a special screening of Tsuburaya Productions’ heartwarming and informative anniversary documentary, overseen by no less than award-winning director Hirokazu Kore-eda. Combining critical insights, fascinating memories from surviving team members, and personal reflections from the likes of Hideaki Anno, Hideo Kojima, Nicolas Winding Refn, and Guillermo Del Toro, THE ORIGIN OFULTRAMAN is an essential tribute to the red-and-silver champion of cosmic order from Nebula M78, whose stature as an icon of Showa era tokusatsu matches that of Godzilla, Astro Boy, and the Tokyo Tower itself. International Premiere.

THINGS GET WILD IN THE ANIMATED ADVENTURE BORN IN THE JUNGLE

During her Venezuelan summer vacation in the 1950s, nine-year-old Elizabeth joins her family deep in the rainforest, where they live with the Pemon tribe near Devil’s Mountain. There, she must do everything she can to find her brother, who has become lost in the wild. Elizabeth’s journey takes a new turn when she realizes she must also save a mythical creature and bring it back to Mount Tepui. Fresh from its world premiere at Annecy, Edmunds Jansons’s animated delight BORN IN THE JUNGLE, based on a screenplay by Lote Eglīte and Līga Gaisa, is a co-production between Latvia, Poland, and the Czech Republic, a family film boasting stunning visuals, vibrant colors, and a plot brimming with adventure. My First Fantasia Section. North American Premiere.

FANTASIA CELEBRATES A NEW GENERATION OF GROUNDBREAKING GENRE AUTEURS WITH JANE SCHOENBRUN, LOUISE WEARD, AND ALICE MAIO MACKAY

Visionary writer-director Jane Schoenbrun (I SAW THE TV GLOW, WE’RE ALL GOING TO THE WORLD’S FAIR – Fantasia 2021) will arrive in Montreal fresh off their Cannes premiere and Palm Queer win with the Canadian premiere of TEENAGE SEX AND DEATH AT CAMP MIASMA, starring Hannah Einbinder and Gillian Anderson. After years of slapdash sequels and waning fandom, the Camp Miasma slasher franchise is handed over to an enthusiastic young director for resurrection. But when she visits the original movie’s star, a now-reclusive actress shrouded in mystery, the two women fall into a blood-soaked world of desire, fear, and delirium. A MUBI Release. Canadian Premiere.

As part of a new vanguard of groundbreaking transgressive filmmakers, frequent Jane Schoenbrun collaborators Louise Weard (who appears in a scene-stealing performance in CAMP MIASMA) and Alice Maio Mackay will also be screening at this year’s festival.

Louise Weard makes her Fantasia debut with CASTRATION MOVIE CHAPTER iii: A FRAGMENTARY PASSAGE, a two-hour festival-exclusive fragment from CASTRATION MOVIE CHAPTER iii: YEAR OF THE HYAENA. The film stars Avalon Fast (HONEYCOMB, CAMP) as she does everything in her power to stop her partner (Henri Gillespi) from transitioning. Underground Section. Quebec Premiere.

Jane Schoenbrun also produces OUR EFFED UP WORLD from frequent Fantasia festival darling, Alice Maio Mackay (THE SERPENT’S SKIN). Inspired by alien invasion films and slacker hangout movies, Mackay’s latest is about a group of friends standing up against an extraterrestrial invasion that threatens to swallow the whole world and stars Jess McLeod (also in CAMP MIASMA), Brandon Flynn (HELLRAISER, 2022), and Annapurna Sriram (FUCKTOYS). Underground Section. Canadian Premiere.

ADDITIONAL SECOND WAVE TITLES


NEVER AFTER DARK (dir. Dave Boyle) 
BLACK ZOMBIE (Canada) – dir. Maya Annik Bedward
Blending horror and Haitian history, BLACK ZOMBIE, Maya Annik Bedward’s 2018 Frontières project, returns to Fantasia as a feature-length documentary. From WHITE ZOMBIE to NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, the zombie has haunted popular culture via capitalism, racism and hive-mind virality. Bedward examines the iconic creature and its connection to the transatlantic slave trade, the brutality of the mass importation of African people, and African religious practices demonized by European colonialism in Haiti. Official Selection: SXSW, Hot Docs, CUFF 2026.Septentrion Shadows Section. Quebec Premiere.

LEVITATING (Indonesia) – dir. Wregas Bhanuteja
Indonesia’s folk tradition of animal-spirit possession at communal trance gatherings, a startling form of soul-cleansing rite practiced to this day, serves as the basis for something both warmly familiar and wonderfully strange. Within framework of a coming-of-age sports drama (with requisite comedy, romance, and family friction), LEVITATING toys with the surreal, even supernatural, as it follows spirit channeller Bayu’s struggle to be regional champ, achieving moments of rare transcendence while homing in on a very grounded pathway to inner peace. Official Selection: Sundance 2026.Canadian Premiere.

MUM, I’M ALIEN PREGNANT (New Zealand) – dir. Thunderlips
A millennial underachiever with a tentacle fetish (Hannah Lynch, THE RULE OF JENNY PEN) accidentally gets alien-pregnant by a shy neighbor with tentacles for testicles (Arlo Green, M3GAN) in the brilliantly hilarious, riotously gnarly body horror comedy that took Sundance by storm. MUM, I’M ALIEN PREGNANT is a sincere successor to the groundbreaking early work of Peter Jackson, both in terms of outrageous splatter and distinctively side-splitting New Zealand humor… but most significantly, for the genuine sweetness it’s imbued with. Canadian Premiere.

NEVER AFTER DARK (Japan) – dir. Dave Boyle
A solitary medium, accompanied by her sister’s ghost, confronts an evil specter with a terrifying past. Moeka Hoshi (SHOGUN) shines in this innovative and terrifying film, the feature debut of writer/director Dave Boyle, showrunner and lead director of HOUSE OF NINJAS. Winner of the Midnighter Audience Award at SXSW 2026, the grand jury prize for feature film at the 2026 Overlook Film Festival, and the Golden Raven at the 2026 Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival. Canadian Premiere.

A SAFE DISTANCE (Canada) – dir. Gloria Mercer
Gloria Mercer channels the mystery of Patricia Highsmith to bring a smoldering crime thriller to the Pacific Northwest for her first feature film. With three charismatic leads, Bethany Brown (MURDER IN A SMALL TOWN, F*** MARRY KILL), Tandia Mercedes (ALLEGIANCE), Cody Kearsley (VIRGIN RIVER, RIVERDALE), and producer Nic Altobelli of the 2025 hit FOREIGNER, this journey into dangerous self-discovery is the perfect steamy summer thriller! Official Selection: SXSW 2026.Septentrion Shadows Section. Canadian Premiere.

SPACETIME CHRONICLES (Italy) – dir. Stefano Bertelli
Indecisive Fred wants to connect with Hana again, but the universe – the very fabric of reality – seems dead set on preventing just that. An ontological rom-com in a distinctive, personal style of colorful paper craft in stop-motion, SPACETIME CHRONICLES is highly recommended for fans of Charlie Kauffman, Kurt Vonnegut, and especially Michel Gondry. Animation Plus section. Canadian Premiere.

THE SPECIALS (Japan) – dir. Eiji Uchida
Five yakuza assassins form a dance troupe to infiltrate a competition in this quirky combo of flashy dance numbers, kindhearted comedy, and sudden bursts of precision violence from Fantasia alumnus Eiji Uchida (THE NAKED DIRECTOR, MIDNIGHT SWAN, LOWLIFE LOVE). The core casting pairs bona fide Asian pop superstars Daisuke Sakuma and Yuta Nakamoto (of idol outfit Snow Man and K-pop sub unit NCT 127, respectively) with surly yakuza-genre veterans like Takashi Miike regulars Hitoshi Ozawa and Renji Ishibashi. Official Selection: Fantasporto 2026. Canadian Premiere.

TRAUMA OR, MONSTERS ALL (USA) – dir. Larry Fessenden
Indie horror legend Larry Fessenden (WENDIGO, THE LAST WINTER) unveils the highly anticipated culmination of his “monsterverse” saga, which brings together the creatures from HABIT, DEPRAVED, and BLACKOUT through themes of dysfunction, social strife, and the filmmaker’s unmistakable flair for human drama. Starring THE PITT’s Laëtitia Hollard, Aitana Doyle, Alex Hurt, Addison Timlin, James Le Gros, genre legend Barbara Crampton, and Fessenden himself. Official Selection: Overlook Film Festival.International Premiere.