The crew at Fantasia International Film Festival recently got in contact with me and asked if I was interested in looking at some of the horror films they’ll be screening. A quick look at their schedule of movies resulted in a very emphatic “Hell Yeah!”
Here are the selections I am excited about - full length Asian features only!
It’s been an awesome 12 months for J-horror. The kind of output we’ve had is reminiscent of the interesting titles we were getting 20 years ago. After the awesomeness of both Exit 8 and The Convenience Store, we’re now getting Anymart.
Where as The Convenience Store was a horror film revolving around a curse passed on from person to person, Anymart focuses solely on the kombini itself! In this movie, we are going to follow the day-to-day life of a worker who is on the edge of his tether, who is then tasked with training a new co-worker with a very bubbly personality.
What happens next? We’re going to have to watch the film to find out.
Check out the teaser below and read more about it on Fantasia’s website.
There’s something special about this one. Making his feature film debut, writer and director Kouichi is kind of a big deal in Japan on YouTube. Think Markiplier kind of big. And the in-thing now is for YouTubers to make great feature films that rival the old guard.
I think we might have something like that here.
A high school girl decides to start making social media content in the hopes to make a bit of money to support her mother, but she finds out her most popular video went viral because of a mysterious ghostly figure she captures in the background.
Watch the trailer here and check out the film page for more information.
You can count on six hands how many Burmese horror movies have ever been released. 30 is the total number, with this movie having the honour of being title number 30! Making its premiere at Fantasia, this is the kind of movie that might force people to pay more attention to the war-stricken Asian country.
The previous Burnese films I’ve seen I have enjoyed. The Dark Cinema was a fun title about students putting on a film festival in a remote cinema, while Tin Strings was super creepy but left a lot of potential on the table.
This title appears to have taken a lot of inspiration from Indonesian and Thai cinema. Set in a remote forest cabin, a ritual is performed to resurrect a dead witch’s son. Presented in POV style (think of Jiro Nagae’s FPS or the short sequence from Kisaragi Station), this one looks like the real deal, and I am super excited to get my hands on this.
Check out the trailer below and find out more about this film here.
Speaking of Indonesia, this one is already out, and I have been very lazy in not watching it yet. I will rectify that mistake soon, I promise!
This is set in a wig factory… what is with factories in Indonesian horror movies lately? From the last Pamali movie to Sugar Mill, it seems creepy factories are the new “remote villages” of Indonesian horror!
Anyway, this one is about two sisters whose mother suddenly dies while working at a wig factory. They get jobs at the factory to find out the truth of how she died, while their brother (who has a very unique ability) seems to have captured the attention of the factory’s ghostly spirit!
Fun fact: Pabrik means Factory!
Check out the awesome trailer and read more about it here.
If Takashi Shimizu isn’t on top of your J-horror director must watch list, then surely he is in the top 3 (pipe down Koji Shiraishi fans!).
No one can accuse Shimizu of resting on his laurels and not trying something new - and if you are one of those people, then you really don’t follow this man’s filmography close enough.
Last year he released my favourite J-horror flick of 2025 with Sana: Let Me Hear (English title) and coincidentally there will be a third Sana movie this year, but this is not it! This is something new and exciting.
There is a cursed tree in the middle of a cemetery, and a group of friends decide they want to scare themselves witless by finding the tree in the middle of the night. But, of course, they find something even worse, something that will haunt them for long after that night.
This is Shimizu. Just inject any of his movies directly into my brain and let me enjoy the ride he will take me on. I hope this is awesome.
Check out the trailer below and read more about it here.
Have a guess what is better than one new Shimizu movie?
Yep - Two new Shimizu movies! This is his third movie for 2026 (the other being the new Sana movie which, unfortunately, is not at Fantasia!) and this sounds more like the type of movie we would expect from him.
This is a traditional folk horror tale movie that combines the detective noir, slashers and J-Horror curses! That sounds pretty cool and I trust that Shimizu has the skill, ability and filmography to pull it off.
I’m not going to lie; the teaser trailer below is weird - and that’s what appeals to me. Check it out below and read more about it here.
Fantasia is about more than just Asian horror films though. Check out their website and marvel over the full list of movies coming your way very, very soon!
And if you’re lucky enough to be in Canada, go check out one of those Shimizu movies and let me know what they’re like.
You never know, perhaps Shockmania’s new movie Hibagon: Japanese Bigfoot will be at Fantasia next year!
No posts
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.