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JOHNSON CITY – The third annual Highlands Horrorfest will be held at the Wallace Theatre in downtown Johnson City at 7 p.m. on October 19. The competitive film festival features short works by filmmakers from across the Appalachian Highlands and is sponsored by a grant from the Mary B. Martin School of the Arts. The event is free of charge and seating is limited, but there will be an overflow livestream at 324 E. Main St. (the former Little Animals Brewery).

In addition to the film festival, the Highlands Horrorfest Roadshow will return for its second season of events throughout the month of October. This year’s events include Johnson City Brewing’s re-release party of Sweet Revenge with horror movie trivia, a Horrorfest Rewind screening at Bloody Fork Haunt, a release party for ETSU alumni Dylan Rutherford’s feature film “The Dog from a Graveyard,” and a special screening and Q&A with filmmaker Andrew Bowser for his film “Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Souls.” All events are free to the public and the full schedule is available on the festival website www.highlandshorrorfest.com.

The Highlands Horrorfest film festival has grown incrementally over the past three years from a small showcase of local filmmakers in 2022 to a competitive festival with submissions from all across the Highlands region and beyond. There will be a costume contest and awards presentation at the conclusion of the screenings where the top winner will receive a grand prize of $1,000.

“As a lifelong horror fan, this seemed like the perfect way to strengthen our local film community, promote the horror genre, and provide a platform to showcase and help introduce emerging artists from our region,” said Jake VanHuss, assistant professor at ETSU and event organizer.

The Wallace Theatre is a multifunctional event space in downtown Johnson City. Founded by Chris Maloney in 2020, the theatre hosts both live shows and film screenings. The Wallace Theatre is located at 215 E Main St. VanHuss is an award-winning writer and filmmaker as well as an Assistant Professor in ETSU’s Department of Media and Communication.