It’s November. It’s cold, dark and wet but it’s also time for Canadian horror festival Blood in the Snow, which runs from the 20th to the 25th of November. Over the years we’ve been covering it, it’s given us great films like Come True, For the Sake of Vicious and The Devil Comes at Night, so what does 2023 have in store?
We’re going to take a peek at the extensive collection of short films that the festival offers this year, as well as look at three full-length films. So strap in, maybe grab yourself a maple syrup flavoured latte or some poutine, and let’s see what delights the festival has to show us. We’ll kick things off with a look at a baker’s half-dozen of short films.
Blink
Directed by Julie Bruns & Steven Kammerer. Runtime 4:30
A woman in an abusive marriage snaps when her husband tries to beat her once again. She’s certain he’s dead, but why won’t his corpse stop blinking at her?
A fun little short that manages to cram a surprising amount of story and character into it’s tiny runtime.
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The Dam
Directed by Rémi Fréchette. Runtime 19:00
Another eco-horror themed effort here, presented in Canadian French with subtitles.
Workers on a dam discover a creepy skull buried in the earth which unleashes a deadly curse on those who would attempt to destroy the forest! Repairmen Raymond and Fleurian are sent to investigate what they think is a simple communications outage but, as games and movies have taught us, it’s NEVER something as simple as a problem with the line.
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The Devil’s Note
Directed by Riley Campbell. Runtime 7:20
I mean really the takeaway from this is that it’s a terrible idea to try and play something that’s literally called “the devil’s note”. But then if they didn’t try playing it, this short would be even shorter than it already is.
Filmed in black and white and featuring a cast of only three characters (supernatural manifestations not included), it’s a well-told and entertaining little tale of bad decisions and death by guitar.
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The Heart of Ravenscrag
Directed by Dale Hildebrand. Runtime 2:00
A short and sweet little fantasy proof of concept about a fortress under siege which can be summed up in one line: “Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal.”
I Can’t Go On
Directed by Brenna Goodwin-McCabe. Runtime 12:13
A woman discovers there’s a dead body in her apartment elevator.
There’s a nice little moment where you’re not sure if she’s hallucinating and nobody else sees the corpse in the lift, but then it turns out that no, everyone DOES see it. They simply don’t care because hey, it’s nobody they know.
I’ve always wondered if this is what it’s like to live in New York City.
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The Monster Inside My Head
Directed by Maude Michaud. Runtime 7:48
A short and sweet story about a woman haunted by a monster that first annoys her and then takes control of her body.
It’s a simple little one-room story, well-executed, and with some lovely practical effects on display.
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Water Moccasin
Directed by Shelby Adams. Runtime 5:10
This short is how you speed-run a horror movie plot.
Adult – “Hey kids! Don’t go to the island, it’s haunted by evil ghosts!”
Kids – *Go to island* Wooo! See? There’s no ghosts here!
Ghosts – “Hey kids. You didn’t listen. Time to die.”
Kids – “Oh no! How could we possibly have foreseen this?” *Most of the kids are killed by ghosts*
Adult – “Bloody kids. They never listen.”
Credits roll. Perfect.
Blood in the Snow runs from 20th to 25th November.