It’s grim up north, as the saying goes. But now every Halloween in Manchester – it’s GRIMM UP NORTH!
Tales of mystery, terror and the supernatural have always been with us, since the first cavemen crowded around the campfire. Forming the basis of our legends and fairytales, they are how we deal with our fears and make sense of our world. At Grimm Up North, we want you to celebrate those fears and challenge those perceptions, by offering a boundary-pushing, perception-challenging experience of the unknown and the fantastic.
Launched in 2009, Grimm Up North started as it means to go on. The inaugural festival screened 25 features, including 15 premieres, many featuring Q&As and seminars with directors, cast and crew. Last year we screened movies from Japan, Finland, Germany, Romania, Canada and Australia. Many of the award-winning international movies were UK premieres and for some will have been their only UK outing on a big screen – indeed some may never get a UK release at all.
We screened films as diverse as the Tarkovsky-influenced SAUNA from Finland and Romanian art house vampire movie STRIGOI. Supporting our homegrown talent, we covered the new wave of UK horror from the micro-budgeted COLIN, to gritty social-realist psycho drama TONY. But we never lost sight of our hardcore genre audience, with sold-out screenings of genre classics DAWN OF THE DEAD and HALLOWEEN, as well as a gala première of THE DESCENT 2 that also featured a Q&A with the cave chiller sequel’s director and cast. Other guests included HELLRAISER’s very own Cenobites and author of The Prestige Ramsey Campbell. We also had an exhibition of work by SFX legend Bob Keen; props, storyboards and production stills from locally-produced shocker SPLINTERED; and a special game room set up by CAPCOM where punters could try out the new RESIDENT EVIL: DARKSIDE CHRONICLES game before its release.
All in all, even if we do say so ourselves, Grimm Up North 2009 was a Hell of a festival. It created impact at a national and international level, and in its very first year was being reviewed favourably. We intend to build on this – to truly put Manchester on the festival map with film distributors and movie fans alike.
And we’re not limiting ourselves to cinema, either. We want to spread a little GRIMMness across all of the arts and sciences. This year we are partnering with other festivals and organisations such as the Manchester Science Festival and The Manchester Literary Festival to bring more diverse, interactive events. These will include films with live musical accompaniment, a look at book to screen adaptations, and explorations of the scientific truths behind horror, fantasy and SF. There will be seminars, workshops and more. We’ll even be doing a couple of scary movies matinees in association with the Family Friendly Film Festival – we want to hook in your kids while they’re young and impressionable!
Grimm Up North: A festival of horror and fantasy, taking place on the last week of October in Manchester UK.
https://www.grimmfest.com/
