There's an old Wilco song that says, "every generation thinks it's the end of the world." That is certainly true of our current era. Between climate change, escalating global trade wars, and looney-tunes political leaders with their fingers on the button, the only thing missing is the plague of locusts.
With all that in mind, the organizers of Whistler's HeavyHitting HorrorFest are taking on an apocalyptic theme for this year's cinematic bloodbath.
"Well, it does sort of feel like we are all hurtling towards oblivion, so why not?" explains Feet Banks, festival co-founder alongside the late Chili Thom, in an email. "I love end-of-the-world movies so was hoping some of those would come in with this theme."
While Banks (who is also Pique's long-time film columnist) admits the competing films mostly strayed away from the dystopian feel, there is sure to be plenty of blood, gore and guts at the 16th edition of the DIY event, which this year moves to a new venue, The Hangar in Function Junction.
"The Hangar holds 280, which is more than last year, and those guys down there were really keen to host us," Banks says. "I love seeing people who are doing stuff for the town, trying new things to help drive local culture and arts and fun, so it was a nice fit.
"Plus, for the apocalypse [theme], a warehouse in the industrial park kind of fit the vibe."
With the challenge of finding a space that could accommodate large, hanging screens as well as the scores of costumed filmgoers who make it one of the hottest tickets of the year (last year's event at Maury Young sold out in 30 seconds), the festival has bounced around a fair bit over the years.
"If I found a genie lamp in the mulch at the bottom of Lost Lake and rubbed it, I would probably wish for a 500-seat theatre/venue with high ceilings. That's our sweet spot, I think," adds Banks.
Along with being one of the wildest parties of the year—not to mention a coming-out party for Whistler's impeccably costumed Halloween obsessives—HeavyHitting has also served as a launch pad for filmmakers looking to break into the industry.
"That has definitely always been a focus, right from the early days when Chili and I started it—let's give local filmmakers a chance to go have fun and try new things and get better," says Banks. "Looking back, it's kind of awesome to see that, without really pushing for that, we actually have been an incubator of Canadian talent."
The festival's first overall winner, Lauren Graham, moved into documentary filmmaking and now counts numerous credits under her name. Since directing and starring in her own HorrorFest flick back in 2010, born-and-raised Whistlerite Merritt Patterson has made the leap to Hollywood, known primarily for her roles in the Pretty Little Liars spinoff Ravenswood, and the E! Network series, The Royals. Peter Graham, now a regular on the film fest circuit, has since made his own feature film. That's before even getting to the handful of local filmmakers, such as Sharai Rewels, Stu Mackay-Smith, Conrad Schapansky and Angie Nolan, who continue to produce their own projects through the festival.
"I mean, all these people are incredibly talented and driven; I'm certain they would have found success no matter what, but they're all part of the HorrorFest family and hopefully all got to learn something, or got inspired or found some confidence at our little fest that helped them along the journey," Banks says.
The festival's reach has also spread far beyond Whistler, with entries coming in from the U.S., France, Spain, Belgium, Brazil and Iran, leading to the introduction of an international prize this year.
Although this year's gorefest is sold out, Banks has some handy advice for those who won't have the chance to attend, but still want to face the apocalypse, standing tall.
"If you see a hot naked dude or a chick tied to a pole yelling for help, it's for sure a trap," he says.
HeavyHitting HorrorFest is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 30 at The Hangar. The films get underway at 8 p.m. Learn more at heavyhitting.com.
