The Overlook Film Festival celebrates its tenth year in 2026, and they’re already gearing up for a celebration full of weird and wonderful horror. The festival just released its first wave lineup for this year’s event in New Orleans, with fans invited to attend film screenings, special events, immersive experiences, and more.
The forty-seven film lineup begins on April 9 with the return of Overlook’s horror-themed Second Line Parade, a version of a special New Orleans tradition featuring a demonic brass band, creepy characters, and plenty of surprises, courtesy of Shudder. That leads directly into the festival’s opening night film: Curry Barker’s Obsession, which kicks off a weekend of killer movies, including a centerpiece screening of NEON’s Leviticus, as well as a closing night screening of Hokum, from director Damian McCarthy, whose work last appeared at the festival in 2024, by way of his haunted house film Oddity.
Other films on this year’s Overlook roster include Boorman and the Devil, Chili Finger, Drag, Faces of Death, Saccharine, The Holy Boy, and the highly anticipated Japanese film Exit 8, as well as the world premiere of Goody Goody. Also premiering at this year’s event is genre legend Larry Fessenden’s latest film, Trauma, or Monsters All, accompanied by repertory screenings of Blackout, Depraved, and Habit.
“It somehow seems appropriate that our tenth year features a plethora of nerve rattling tales, many of which touch upon the theme of identity,” said Michael Lerman, Overlook’s co-founder and director of programming. “This program is an equal mix of returning beloved filmmakers and staggeringly talented new voices, showcasing the heart of what we ourselves identify as – an ever-growing community with a shared love of being terrified.”
But it wouldn’t be the Overlook Film Festival without some additional terrifying experiences to accompany its film lineup. This year, the festival’s prestigious Master of Horror award is being presented to Rick Baker, SFX makeup artist extraordinaire, which will be accompanied by a 45th anniversary screening of An American Werewolf in London, the film that won Baker the first-ever Academy Award for Best Makeup.
Other special events include a 100th anniversary screening of A Page of Madness, considered the first Japanese horror film ever made and presented with a live score composed by Jeff Pagano, and three new immersive experiences which will take place over the course of the festival: Eternal, Hag, and The Mother of Nightmares.
“There's no greater thrill than bestowing our dark carnival in the illustrious city of New Orleans to all the spirits who flock to it each year and bring it to terrifying undead life,” said Landon Zakheim, Overlooks’ co-founder and executive director. “At a time when it's become so hard to simply exist in this world, it is truly a gift to be able to gather together in the dark with homespun nightmares and haunted tales with all the people who give this space meaning. We exist because of your dedication, and for that we will repay you in blood, rituals, sacrifices, curses, demons and creatures we dare not name. After all, life's no fun without a good scare.”
This year’s Overlook Film Festival runs from April 9-12 at the Prytania Theaters in New Orleans. For more information on this year’s lineup and how to attend, you can check out the festival’s website.
