NC State Libraries Hosts HorrorFest

Kennysha Woods | Correspondent

This October, NCSU Libraries presents Howloween HorrorFest, a horror-themed series of film screenings and workshops for the public to enjoy. This year, the series will feature films recorded in North Carolina and events centered on learning about the behind-the-scenes aspects of horror filmmaking, such as special effects makeup and music making.

Jesse Lopez, the NCSU Libraries Fellow who proposed the series, said, “The series is a collaboration between students of English 492, the Horror Film; the professor of the course, Adam Hart; and NCSU Libraries.” He worked with Marian Fragola, the director of program planning and outreach to coordinate HorrorFest.

“October is a great time to be watching and thinking about horror movies, after all,” Hart said. “But as somebody who both loves horror movies and takes them very seriously, I hope this gives students an opportunity to think about the genre and how it’s evolved over the last twenty years. To think about what scares us, and how and why that changes.”

All the events are held at DH Hill Library.

“This is 100% a library-sponsored event,” Lopez said. “I​ ​want​ ​students​ ​to​ ​have fun. Horror​ ​movies​ ​are​ ​fun. ​​I​ ​also​ ​want​ ​students​ ​to​ ​know​ ​the​ ​library​ ​has​ ​a​ ​whole​ ​bunch​ ​of​ ​cool​ ​stuff​ ​and spaces​ ​that​ ​they​ ​should​ ​be​ ​taking​ ​advantage​ ​of, ​such​ ​as​ ​our​ ​VR​ ​Room​ ​and​ ​Digital​ ​Media​ ​Lab.”

HorrorFest began on October 11 with a VR Horror Game Night and a screening of “I Know What You Did Last Summer” (1997).

“The screening of tonight’s film was completely full,” Fragola said about the attendance to “I Know What You Did Last Summer.”

Lopez said there was “not one empty seat. It’s a different experience to watch a horror film with one hundred classmates that are super into it and yelling at the screen.”

The screening was preceded with an introduction by a student, who presented its theme: bad decisions. The next two screenings for “Cabin Fever” (2002) and “The Descent” (2005) will also have short introductions explaining their themes.

When asked about the choice of films, Lopez said, “They​ ​are​ ​all​ ​excellent​ ​horror​ ​films​ ​filmed​ ​in​ ​the​ ​state​ ​of North​ ​Carolina.​ ​I​ ​wanted​ ​them​ ​to​ ​get​ ​progressively​ ​creepier.​ ​IKWYDLS​ ​is​ ​a​ ​slasher​ ​flick,​ ​‘Cabin​ ​Fever’​ ​is​ ​pretty gruesome​, ​but​ ​almost​ ​tongue​-​in- ​cheek.​ ‘The​ ​Descent’​ ​is​ ​scary​ ​as​ ​hell.”

Upcoming events include a DIY horror soundtrack workshop in the Digital Media Lab on Wednesday, October 18 at 6 PM. You can catch the screening of “Cabin Fever” in the auditorium at 8 PM.

On Wednesday October 25, the HorrorFest Special Effects Makeup talk with Gregory FX, a professional special effects makeup artist, will be held at 4 PM, followed by a hands-on workshop in the Fishbowl Forum at 6:30 PM.

“[Gregory FX]​ ​tours​ ​often​, ​and​ ​this​ ​class​ ​would​ ​cost​ ​hundreds​ ​of​ ​dollars​ ​for​ ​a​ ​participant,​ ​and​ ​we​ ​are​ ​just offering​ ​it​ ​to​ ​our​ ​Wolfpack​ ​for​ ​free,” Lopez said, “It’s going​ ​to​ ​be​ ​lit.”

The screening for “The Descent” comes after the workshop at 9 PM.

Although HorrorFest hasn’t been confirmed as an annual series yet, Lopez has ideas for future series themes.

“Maybe next year we can do a theme of Girl Power horror,” Lopez said. “Or Korean horror films or whatever.”

For a full schedule and more information about HorrorFest, visit www.lib.ncsu.edu/events/horrorfest.