The 2024 Overlook Film Festival will take place April 4th-7th. The full lineup of special events, live shows and immersive offerings is below. The full schedule can be found here.
The Academy of Magical Arts will present two mysterious world premieres. Behind those meetings are secret encounters for those who know where to look. Rituals will guide you toward the person who holds the keys to this world and the next.
Our 2024 film lineup can be found here. Passes can be purchased here. Single tickets now available below.
All Panels & Live Shows Are Presented by The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
16MM CAMERA WORKSHOP
Workshop
Presented by Kodak
Horror filmmakers, fans and enthusiasts have long embraced the medium of celluloid as a choice to ramp up tension, serve up scares, and capture a feeling that’s all too important to the tone of genre filmmaking. Thanks to our friends at Kodak, 15 lucky registrants will be able to participate in this special 16mm demo and workshop to learn to capture the stories of moving images of tomorrow on film today!
Saturday, April 6th, 11:00 AM, International House – PASS HOLDER AND RUSH LINE ONLY
CLOSING NIGHT HALLOWEEN PARTY
Party
Hosted by Generations Hall
With Boyfriend ft. members of The Revivalists
Embrace the spirit of All Hallow’s Eve at The Overlook Film Festival’s 3rd Annual Halloween bash! Don your most terrifying costume and become part of this macabre celebration with surprises around every corner. Haunting performances from The Unnaturals and NOLA’s own Boyfriend, songwriter (Charli XCX, Slayyyter), producer (Rebecca Black, Jon Batiste), and performer (featured with Pussy Riot, Big Freedia, Lil Wayne) will inject the night with her signature blend of rap and cabaret and a spine-tingling twist of spooky flair. COSTUME CONTEST!
Visit official costume partner, Nikki’s French Quarter Halloween Store, where passholders get 10% off all spooky delights!
THE DARK SÉANCE
Immersive Performance
Presented by The Academy of Magical Arts
Requires Separate Ticket
Creator: Zabrecky
Stray into the darkness with notorious séance medium Zabrecky: he will attempt to part the veil and manifest the dead, whose messages may bring solace, silence, or terrifying signals from unknown reaches. Success is not guaranteed, but there is one simple rule to the séance: if you believe, you will receive.
Runtime: Approx. 45 minutes. Participants: up to 8 per slot. Cost: $40
FASTERPIECE THEATER
Screening
Presented By Museum of Home Video
Creator/Host: Bret Berg
What if you could binge-watch a weekend’s worth of wild vintage horror movies all at the same time? You’ll know the feeling once you step into Fasterpiece Theater: a service of found footage livestream channel Museum of Home Video, airing every Tuesday. Made with modern attention spans in mind, as well as the cult movie canon’s sheer depth, this tightly-edited blast of horrors past serves up ten feature films you’ve never heard of, sautéed and shattered ’til only the spicy parts remain, all guided by Museum of Home Video VJ Bret Berg.
THE GRAND HALL
Immersive Performance
Sneak Preview
Presented by Escape My Room
Requires Separate Ticket
Creators: Cyrus Cooper, Rachel Dunphy, Sam Moodey, Andrew Preble, Kali Russell
After decades of misfortune, the Delaporte Family has finally regained possession of their ancestral home and the family archivists have wasted no time digging up the darkest, deepest mysteries from the family’s storied past. To celebrate this victory, the mansion’s Grand Hall will be previewed to guests for the first time in over a century. We invite you to join us for a self-directed journey of your choosing. Explore the halls, uncover secrets, and help the family find truths once lost to time.
Runtime: Approx. 30 minutes. Participants: up to 4 per slot. Cost: $14
HORROR TRIVIA
FREE EVENT
Presented by Daily Dead
Hosted by B Mac’s
Test your fright – if you dare. Join local film scholar and trivia host extraordinaire Mike Miley for our annual horror trivia night. Prizes, drinks and four ghoulish rounds of only mildly obscure nuggets you’ll definitely know, and all of those sequel subtitles you’ll definitely wish you didn’t. Scare yourself with how much you actually know about horror.
IN ANOTHER ROOM
Immersive Performance
World Premiere
Presented by The Murder Mystery Company & Wildkat Sports
Requires Separate Ticket
E3W Productions returns to Overlook for their 4th year of intimate immersive horror with an all new never-before-seen chapter! It’s the turn of the century and Madame Eleanor, one of New Orleans’ most popular (and fraudulent) mediums, has just set up shop in a notoriously haunted building in the French Quarter. She invites you to help her in conducting a private reading for an unsuspecting guest. But not all is as it seems in Madame Eleanor’s parlor, and tonight the spirits she purports to invoke may actually answer her call…
Runtime: Approx. 25 minutes. Participants: up to 5 per slot. Cost: $20
LOOKING OVER THE GARDEN WALL: A 10TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION
Live Show
Panelists: Patrick McHale, Nick Cross
Ten years ago this fall, the world was introduced to two travelers who became lost in the unknown on Halloween night, and embarked on a series of adventures both wonderful and strange. Join Patrick McHale (co-writer of Guillermo Del Toro’s Pinocchio), the creator of gateway horror-tinged animated miniseries Over The Garden Wall, along with art director Nick Cross, for a look back on the creation of this modern cult classic that will include screenings of behind-the-scenes rarities and some of their own shorts that inspired this stunning accomplishment. That’s a rock fact!
Saturday, April 6th, 12:30 PM, Canal Place 1 – PASS HOLDER AND RUSH LINE ONLY
ME
Screening
Festival Premiere
Filmmaker in attendance
Director: Don Hertzfeldt USA, 2024
A mysterious new musical from two-time Academy Award nominee Don Hertzfeldt (It’s Such a Beautiful Day, Rejected, and the World of Tomorrow series).
THE MOST DANGEROUS MAN IN AMERICA
Immersive Performance
World Premiere
Presented by The Academy of Magical Arts
Requires Separate Ticket
Creator: Mark Calabrese
An unforgettable meeting with the greatest card cheat in America. You’ll find a questionable character who will simultaneously expose some of his secret scams and cons, while taking from you what you never wanted to give up.
Please Note: This performance makes use of sharp objects. Runtime: Approx. 20 minutes. Participants: up to 3 per slot. Cost: $27.77
NIGHT OF THE LIVING ART MARKET: A SPOOKY SWAP MEET
FREE EVENT
Presented by The Dark Art Market and Cottage Magick
Hosted by Rahm Haus Ice Cream and Courtyard Brewery
Overlook’s bizarre bazaar is back with even more ghoulish delights, vintage VHS, intoxicating elixirs, paperback horror novels, handmade art, and other creepy collectibles. Relax with a pint from Courtyard Brewery and sample the sweets of cult-favorite confectioners Rahm Haus Ice Cream. You never know what you might find. Or what might find you.
Participating Vendors include: Cottage Magick, Tubby & Coo’s Traveling Book Shop, Future Shock Video, Planchette, Gothlight Collective, PaperSnapDragon, JLH Illustration, and more!
OPENING NIGHT VAMPIRE PARTY
Party
Presented by Boutique Du Vampyre
Hosted by Generations Hall
A vampire-themed party that will haunt your dreams honoring the 30th anniversary of the film Interview With The Vampire! Dance with the undead, sip on blood-red cocktails, and embrace the seductive allure of the endless night. Mainstage performance by monster dubstep fixture Figure.
REEL RESET: OVERLOOK EDITION™
FREE EVENT
Presented by NOVAC
Hosted by NOVAC
Sunday Scaries need not apply! Wind down from Overlook ‘24 with a bewitching edition of REEL Reset, an after-hours haunt, hosted by our film family at NOVAC. Come in for a spell and enjoy haunting beats by DJ 2Ready, immersive installations, and a chance to reach out to the other side at this chill house party in the heart of the New Orleans community.
REEL Reset is produced by NOVAC with support from Film New Orleans.
REGRETS FROM THE DEAD
Immersive Performance
World Premiere
Presented by The Academy of Magical Arts
Requires Separate Ticket
Creator: Jared Kopf
A necessary encounter for the dead. We carry around ghosts: our past, our regrets, and all our forgotten selves. The Oracle, an ambiguously friendly guide — and a person you have unsuspectingly met many, many times over — will assist you in coming to terms with the final step of the experience in a decision that will change the course of your life or death.
Runtime: Approx. 25 minutes. Participants: 1 per slot. Cost: Those who first both meet the most dangerous man and enter the dark séance will be offered a chance to regret.
SCREAM DREAMS: THE NIGHTMARES THAT SHAPED US
Live Show
Presented By AMP
Hosts: Catherine Corcoran, Barbara Crampton
Creators: Catherine Corcoran, James A Janisse, Barbara Crampton
Guest: David Dastmalchian
Venture into the shadows with Catherine Corcoran and Barbara Crampton as they dive into the real nightmares of the best minds in genre entertainment in this special live episode recording of the Scream Dreams podcast where the subconscious of a festival guest David Dastmalchian will be revealed. You have been warned!
THE SWAN ARCHIVES
Live Show
Presented By FANGORIA
Host: Ari Kahan
Join Ari Kahan, Principal Archivist at the Swan Archives, as he takes you on a wild and fascinating journey through the tumultuous history behind the making and release of Brian De Palma’s iconic collaboration with Paul Williams that resulted in the creation of one of horror’s most exalted works. This presentation will precede a 50th anniversary screening of Phantom Of The Paradise.
Sunday, April 7th, 1:00 PM, Prytania Uptown – PASS HOLDER and RUSH LINE ONLY
TALES BY CANDLELIGHT: THE SCENT OF FEAR
Immersive Performance
Presented By Time Will Tell
Requires Separate Ticket
Creator: Spencer Milone Williams Performers: Steve N Bradford, Katelyn Schiller
From Walk The Night productions, discover a tale you didn’t know you’ve always known. A portal within you holds an unexpected truth, waiting to be found. Combining scented oils, effects and mentalism to tell bespoke stories tailored to each session attendee, this is a collaborative experience anyone can participate in through their own sense of smell. Bring an open mind willing to explore beyond the expected; leave with a fragrance card that holds the key to your story.
Runtime: Approx. 30 minutes. Participants: 1-2 per slot. Ticket bearer may bring a guest. Cost: $35