Adrian Țofei, January 2015

Latest update:  December 2016

While researching film festivals to submit my movie Be My Cat: A  Film for Anne, I decided to make a public list to be useful to fellow filmmakers as well. It’s now reaching over 4,000 facebook shares and 1,000 monthly visitors. I did it with the help of other lists like Raindance’s Essential Horror & Fantasy Film Festivals (2016) [RHorFan] and Essential 100 Film Festivals (2016) [R100], Indiewire’s 100 Leading Film Festivals (2015) [IW100], MovieMaker’s 8 Major International Horror & Fantasy Film Festivals [MMHorFan8],  13 Horror Film Festivals to Die For (2011) [MMHor13], 5 Coolest Horror/Sci-Fi Film Festivals (2013) [MMHorSF5], 5 Coolest Underground Film Festivals (2013) [MMUnd5], 50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee (2017, 2016, 2015) [MM50] and 25 Coolest Film Festivals (2017, 2016, 2015, 2014) [MM25], European Fantastic Film Festivals Federation’s Member Festivals (2017) [EFFFF] and FIAPF’s Accredited Festivals (2016) [FIAPF]. I also took into consideration the opportunities the festivals offer to indie filmmakers, the quality and number of films selected in the previous years, the number of years running, their location, the quality of the information on their websites and social media, the entry fee and submission process, the number of facebook likes and twitter followers and other recommendations by people in the film industry. I listed only genre film festivals. For all the festivals, regardless of type, check out my new Top 100 International Film Festivals.

Top 10 International Horror & Fantasy Film Festivals

1. Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival – Sitges, Spain, 49 years – RHorFanTop7, AffiliatedEFFFF, R100, FIAPF, MMHorFan8, MM25
2. Fantasia International Film Festival – Montreal, Canada, 20 years – RHorFanTop20, SupportingEFFFF, R100, IW100, MMHorFan8, MM50, MM25, nomMMHorSF5
3. Fantastic Fest – Austin, Texas, US, 12 years – RHorFanTop20, SupportingEFFFF, R100, IW100, MMHorFan8, MMHorSF5, MM25
4. Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival / BIFFF – Brussels, Belgium, 34 years – RHorFanTop7, AffiliatedEFFFF, FIAPF, MMHorFan8
5. Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival / BiFan (previously Puchon / PiFan) – Bucheon, South Korea, 20 years – RHorFanTop7, SupportingEFFFF, R100, MMHorFan8
6. Screamfest Horror Film Festival – Los Angeles, California, US, 16 years – RHorFanTop7, SupportingEFFFF, MMHor13
7. FrightFest – London, UK, 17 years – RHorFanTop7, exEFFFF, MMHorFan8
8. Fantasporto International Film Festival – Porto, Portugal, 36 years – RHorFanTop7, exEFFFF
9. Toronto After Dark Film Festival – Toronto, Canada, 11 years – RHorFanTop7, MMHor13
10. A Night of Horror International Film Festival – Sydney, Australia, 10 years – RHorFanTop20

Top 25 International Horror & Fantasy Film Festivals

(from 11 to 25, in alphabetical order)

• Fantaspoa – Porto Alegre, Brazil, 12 years – RHorFanTop20, SupportingEFFFF, MMHorFan8
• Imagine Film Festival – Amsterdam, Netherlands, 32 years – RHorFanTop20, AffiliatedEFFFF
• Leeds International Film Festival: Fenomenon – Leeds, UK, 30 years – RHorFanTop40, exEFFFF
• Lund International Fantastic Film Festival – Lund, Sweden, 22 years – RHorFanTop20, AffiliatedEFFFF
• Mile High Horror Film Festival – Denver, Colorado, US, 6 years – MMHor13, MMHorSF5
• Monster Fest – Melbourne, Australia, 6 years
• MOTELx – Lisbon International Horror Film Festival – Lisbon, Portugal, 10 years – AffiliatedEFFFF, RHorFanTop40
• Neuchatel International Fantastic Film Festival – Neuchatel, Switzerland, 16 years – RHorFanTop20, AffiliatedEFFFF, MMHorFan8
• New York City Horror Film Festival – New York City, New York, US, 14 years – RHorFanTop40
• Other Worlds / Under Worlds Austin Film Festival, Austin, Texas, 3 years
• Shriekfest – The Los Angeles Horror/Sci-Fi Film Festival – Los Angeles, California, US, 16 years – MMHor13, MMHorSF5, RHorFanTop40
• SpectreFest – Los Angeles, California, US, 4 years
• Strasbourg European Fantastic Film Festival – Strasbourg, France, 9 years – AffiliatedEFFFF
• Telluride Horror Show – Telluride, Colorado, US, 7 years – RHorFanTop20, MMHor13, nomMMHorSF5
• Trieste Science+Fiction – Trieste, Italy, 17 years – AffiliatedEFFFF

Top 50 International Horror & Fantasy Film Festivals

(from 26 to 50, in alphabetical order)

• Abertoir – The International Horror Festival of Wales – Aberystwyth, UK, 11 years – AdherentEFFFF, RHorFanTop40
• Beyond Fest – Los Angeles, California, US, 4 years
• Boston Underground Film Festival – Boston, Massachusetts, US, 17 years – MMUnd5
• Buenos Aires Rojo Sangre – Buenos Aires, Argentina, 16 years – RHorFanTop20
• Dead by Dawn – Scotland’s International Horror Film Festival – Edinburgh, UK, 24 years – exEFFFF, RHorFanTop40
• Eerie Horror Film Festival – Erie, Pennsylvania, US, 13 years – MMHor13, RHorFanTop40, nomMMHorSF5
• FANT – Bilbao Fantasy Film Festival – Bilbao, Spain, 22 years – RHorFanTop40
• Fantafestival – Rome, Italy, 36 years – exEFFFF
• Fantastic Planet International Film Festival – Sydney, Australia, 7 years
• Fantasy FilmFest – Berlin / Nuremberg / Munich / Frankfurt / Cologne / Stuttgart / Hamburg, Germany, 30 years
• FilmQuest – Provo, Utah, US, 3 years – MM50
• Freak Show Horror Film Festival – Orlando, Florida, US, 11 years – MMHor13, RHorFanTop40, nomMMHorSF5
• Gerardmer International Fantastic Film Festival – Gerardmer, France, 23 years
• Grossmann Fantastic Film & Wine Festival – Ljutomer, Slovenia, 12 years – AdherentEFFFF, MMHorSF5
• Melbourne Underground Film Festival – Melbourne, Australia, 16 years – R100, nomMMUnd5
• Molins de Rei Horror Film Festival – Molins de Rei, Spain, 35 years – AdherentEFFFF
• Morbido Fest – Puebla, Mexico, 9 years – SupportingEFFFF
• Nocturna – Madrid International Fantastic Film Festival – Madrid, Spain, 4 years
• The Overlook Film Festival – Mount Hood, Oregon, US (announced)
• Paris International Fantastic Film Festival – Paris, France, 6 years
• Razor Reel Flanders Film Festival – Bruges, Belgium, 9 years – AdherentEFFFF
• Ravenna Nightmare Film Festival – Ravenna, Italy, 13 years – RHorFanTop20, exEFFFF
• Sacramento Horror Film Festival – Sacramento, California, US, 9 years – MMHorSF5, RHorFanTop40
• San Sebastian Horror & Fantasy Film Festival – San Sebastian, Spain, 27 years – RHorFanTop20, AdherentEFFFF
• Sydney Underground Film Festival – Sydney, Australia, 10 years – MMUnd5

Top 100 International Horror & Fantasy Film Festivals

(from 51 to 100, in alphabetical order)

• L’Absurde Seance Festival – Nantes, France, 8 years
• Another Hole in the Head International Genre Film Festival – San Francisco, California, US, 13 years
• Arizona Underground Film Festival – Tucson, Arizona, US, 8 years – nomMMUnd5
• Atlanta Horror Film Festival – Atlanta, Georgia, US, 9 years – RHorFanTop40
• Boston Sci-Film Festival – Boston, Massachusetts, US, 41 years – nomMMHorSF5
• Bram Stoker International Film Festival – Whitby, UK, 7 years – RHorFanTop40
• Bruce Campbell’s Horror Film Festival – Chicago, Illinois, US, 3 years
• Buried Alive Film Fest – Atlanta, Georgia, US, 9 years – RHorFanTop40
• BUT Film Festival – Breda, Netherlands, 10 years
• Calgary Underground Film Festival – Calgary, Canada, 12 years – nomMMUnd5
• Celluloid Screams – Sheffield Horror Film Festival – Sheffield, UK, 7 years
• Comic-Con International Independent Film Festival – San Diego, California, US, 11 years – R100
• Court Metrange Festival – Rennes, France, 13 years – AdherentEFFFF
• DEDfest International Genre Film Festival – Edmonton, Canada, 9 years
• Dracula Film Festival – Brasov, Transylvania, Romania, 3 years
• Dragon Con Independent Film Festival –  Atlanta, Georgia, US, 28 years – RHorFanTop40
• L’Etrange Festival – Paris, France, 21 years
• Fancine Malaga Fantastic Film Festival – Malaga, Spain, 25 years – AdherentEFFFF
• Fantastic Zagreb Film Festival – Zagreb, Croatia, 5 years
• Fear Fete – Biloxi, Mississippi, US, 5 years – MMHor13
• Gen Con Film Contest – Seattle, Washington state, US, 12 years – nomMMHorSF5
• Grimm Up North’s GrimmFest – Manchester, UK, 7 years – RHorFanTop40
• H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival – Portland, Oregon, US, 20 years – nomMMHorSF5
• Haapsalu Horror & Fantasy Film Festival – Haapsalu, Estonia, 9 years – AdherentEFFFF
• Hallucinations Collectives – Lyon, France, 8 years
• Horrible Imaginings Film Festival – San Diego, California, US, 6 years – RHorFanTop40
• Horrorthon – Dublin, Ireland, 19 years – exEFFFF
• The International Horror & Sci-Fi Film Festival – Phoenix, Arizona, US, 11 years – nomMMHorSF5
• Ithaca Fantastik – Ithaca, New York State, US, 4 years
• Knoxville Horror Film Fest – Knoxville, Tennessee, US, 7 years – nomMMHorSF5
• Lost Episode Festival Toronto – Toronto, Canada, 3 years
• Macabro International Horror Film Festival – Mexico City, Mexico, 14 years
• Monsters of Film – Stockholm, Sweden, 4 years
• Nevermore Film Festival – Durham, North Carolina, US, 16 years
• Night Visions – Helsinki, Finland, 19 years
• NOLA Horror Film Fest – New Orleans, Louisiana, US, 5 years – MMHor13
• Popcorn Frights Film Festival – Miami, Florida, US, 2 years
• Puerto Rico Horror Film Fest – San Juan, Puerto Rico, US, 9 years – MMHor13
• Requiem Fear Fest (ex Montreal HorrorFest) – Montreal, Canada, 4 years
• Saskatoon Fantastic Film Festival – Saskatoon, Canada, 6 years
• Sci-Fi-London Film Festival – London, UK, 15 years – nomMMHorSF5
• /slash Fantastic Film Festival – Vienna, Austria, 6 years
• South African HorrorFest – Cape Town, South Africa, 11 years
• Spooky Movie International Horror Film Festival – Washington, D.C., US, 10 years
• Stranger With My Face International Film Festival – Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, 5 years
• Taipei Golden Horse Fantastic Film Festival – Taipei, Taiwan, 7 years
• TromaDance Film Festival – New York City, New York, 17 years
• Tucson Terrorfest – Tucson, Arizona, US, 5 years – nomMMHorSF5
• Utopiales Nantes – Nantes, France, 17 years – exEFFFF
• Vortex Sci-Fi, Fantasy & Horror Film Festival (previously Rhode Island International Horror Film Festival) – Providence, Rhode Island, US, 16 years – MMHor13
• Yubari International Fantastic Film Festival – Yubari, Japan, 24 years – RHorFanTop40