The Eerie Horror Film Festival (EHFF) was conceived, born and raised in Erie County, Pennsylvania and has since grown up to become one of the most popular and respected horror film festivals in the country. Erie County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. ...

Debuting in October of 2004 at the Roadhouse Theater, the EHFF attracted thousands of fans and filmmakers to the Erie area and showcased nearly 40 independent films that had been submitted to us from all around the world.

Special guests for our first year included director Mark Borchardt (from the critically acclaimed documentary American Movie), best selling author Jamian Snow (Shrouded Insanity) and well know talk show regular Sean David Morton. Awards were given for the best films in each category, one of which, “The Last Horror Movie” went on to get a worldwide distribution deal with Fangoria. American Movie is a documentary about the making of an independent film. ...

That same year the EHFF, with the assistance of Lions Gate Films, was able to premiere the horror classic Saw at Mercyhurst College two weeks before it hit the theaters. Saw is a 2004 thriller/horror movie, directed by James Wan and co-written by Wan and Leigh Whannell. ... Mercyhurst College is a Catholic liberal arts college in Erie, Pennsylvania, USA. History It was founded as a womens college by the Sisters of Mercy in 1926. ...

With the generosity of our sponsors and an invaluable grant from the Pennsylvania Film Office, the 2005 EHFF was able to expand from a four day to a five day event and enabled us to secure several special guests for our annual festival. We also added a screenplay competition and were able to better advertise our event as a result of these much-needed funds.

Once again, nearly 40 films were shown at our 2005 festival and more awards were presented to filmmakers for their hard work. The quality of the submissions increased as well and we began to generate nation-wide attention with several articles about us on high profile websites including the Horror-Channel, perhaps the most popular on-line site for fans of the genre.

Our special guests in 2005 included actor Gunnar Hansen (Leatherface in the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre), director and co-founder of Troma Films, Lloyd Kaufman (Toxic Avenger), Academy Award nominated director John Hancock (Let's Scare Jessica to Death), director Ben Meade (Bazaar Bizarre), popular local director Len Kabasinski (Swamp Zombies), actress Debbie Rochon, director Michael Stanley (Attack of the Beast Creatures) and many, many more! The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a low-budget horror film, made in 1974 by director Tobe Hooper and starring Marilyn Burns, Gunnar Hansen, Edwin Neal, Allen Danzinger, Paul A. Partain, and Jim Siedow. ... Troma is a film production and distribution company, started by Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz that, since 1974, has been producing low budget independent movies non-stop. ... Troma co-founder and president; Lloyd Kaufman Lloyd Kaufman is an American film director and producer. ... The Toxic Avenger, first released in late 1984, is the most famous movie made by Troma Entertainment, known for producing low budget B-movies with campy concepts. ... Hancocks signature on the United States Declaration of Independence John Hancock (January 12, 1737 (O.S.) – October 8, 1793 (N.S.)) was President of the Second Continental Congress and of the Congress of the Confederation; first Governor of Massachusetts; and the first person to sign the United States Declaration... Zohra Lampert as Jessica Lets Scare Jessica to Death was a 1971 low-budget horror film, directed by John Hancock, and starring Zohra lampert in the title role. ... The Swamp Zombies is a Californian (Orange, CA) punk band formed in the 80s. ...

The Eerie Horror Fest also worked closely with Alice Cooper's management in promoting his appearance at the Warner Theater on the last day of our 2005 event! (You can see exclusive photos from the show by visiting this website). In March of 2006, the EHFF was honored to have been asked to assist in the promotion of the Nine Inch Nails concert at the Erie Civic Center. We look forward to working with other big name (and local) rock bands throughout 2006 and beyond! Keep an eye on our websites for more info! Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948), is a hard rock singer and musician. ...

The feedback from the last EHFF was tremendous and we are looking forward to our 2006 season with much anticipation and excitement!

Now operating as a completely separate entity (since securing the rights for the EHFF from the Great Lakes Film Association in October of 2005) and wishing to expand beyond our one annual event, the EHFF is hoping to once again find funding to make these ideas into realities.

It is our hope that our events will continue to bring more attention and tourism to the Erie County area as our Festival becomes better known and respected internationally.

We have already gained national and international sponsors for our 2006 event. The Horror Channel will be with us throughout our entire fest this year and providing extensive coverage and daily updates from the theater in October! MySpace.com has partnered with us as well, giving the EHFF a potential audience of over 60 million subscribers! Several film schools, colleges and software companies have also joined us as sponsors this year and several major deals are in the works. The Horror Channel is a UK television channel dedicated to horror films, with production facilities located in Gateshead. ...

In addition, we are pleased to announce that a special horror expo will be held during the weekend of our event at The Avalon Hotel, located directly across the street from The Erie Playhouse! Fans can meet with special celebrity guests, filmmakers, studios and retailers who will be with us to promote their new movies and merchandise. Expect a lot of surprises!

We're also pleased to announce that we have added a special student category to our film festival this year for young filmmakers aged 5 – 17! We will be presenting special awards to the winners in this group as well!

For many young filmmakers horror is often the subject of their first productions, being relatively inexpensive to produce and guaranteed to find a sympathetic audience amongst the usually forgiving fans of the genre.

We hope to encourage these young filmmakers by giving them a rare chance to have their works viewed on the big screen and to give them the opportunity to learn and mingle with others with an interest in film including fellow filmmakers and celebrities.

• www.eeriehorrorfest.com
• www.baronvonkropp.com
• www.myspace.com/eeriehorrorfest
• www.myspace.com/eeriehorrorfilmfestival