Cine-Excess horror festival returns to Birmingham this week

An international festival of horror and cult cinema returns to Birmingham this week, with screenings, workshops and a symposium at venues across the city from 19 to 24 October.

Cine-Excess, hosted by Birmingham City University, is now in its 19th year. This year's theme is "Legends Never Die", looking at the legacies and myths behind cult cinema.

"How cinema changes and inspires its viewers"

Professor Xavier Mendik, the festival director and BCU's professor of cult cinema studies, said: "Every year we aim to unite visiting international filmmakers with critics and scholars in order to critically evaluate global cult film cultures."

"This is not just about 'what goes bump in the night', but rather how cinema changes and inspires its viewers. I am delighted to welcome guests from across the world and give honours to some of the industry's most influential creators and performers."

What is showing

The festival includes theatrical and streaming premieres of new horror films, shorts and documentaries. Its "Legends, Myths and Legacies" season includes the Canadian folk horror film Skeleton Park and Wrath of the Gods, a sequel to The Wicker Man.

Scum of the Earth, a documentary funded by BCU, has its UK cinema premiere on Thursday 22 October, after screening at the Sitges Film Festival in Spain last week. It features filmmakers including John Boorman and Eli Roth discussing the impact of rural American horror cinema.

Awards and masterclasses

American director and writer Rob Schmidt, who made Wrong Turn in 2003 and contributes to Scum of the Earth, will receive a Cine-Excess Innovator of Horror Award and give a masterclass.

"Films like Wrong Turn, or fairy tales like Hansel and Gretel, are significant in that they allow us to safely process our fear of the dark and 'what's outside'," he said. "Stories give us a chance to feel that inborn fear in safety."

"Mentoring filmmakers is a joy to me. I was mentored by many wonderful teachers and I pass on the knowledge they gave, same as it was passed on to me."

Janus Blythe and Michael Berryman, stars of The Hills Have Eyes, will receive Cine-Excess Lifetime Awards during a streamed question and answer session.

Canadian directors Jen and Sylvia Soska will judge their annual Tales of Terror competition for students, on the theme of horror journeys "taken down the wrong road", and mentor the next generation of filmmakers.

A city of film

The festival is one of several film events in Birmingham this autumn, alongside the city's independent cinemas, which include the Mockingbird in Digbeth, longlisted this month for UK Cinema of the Year. BCU's film and media courses are based in the city centre, and the university has been building closer ties with the screen industries, including a new partnership with the BBC.

Details of screenings and tickets are on the festival's website.