Vampire Film Festival Rises in New Orleans

Richard Webster - New Orleans CityBusiness

Halloween is arguably New Orleans' second favorite holiday behind Mardi Gras. And now it has a festival to go with it.

After two years in Los Angeles, the Vampire Film Festival has permanently moved to New Orleans starting this year. From Oct. 23-26 more than 50 films from more than 11 countries will be screened at the Zeitgeist Multi-Disciplinary Arts Center.

But the Vampire Film Festival has more to offer than bloodsucking movies. It will also include a Vampire Ballet at Club Ampersand, a traditional jazz funeral for a vampire in Dutch Alley, a French Quarter scavenger hunt and several parties at various venues including the Dungeon and the Saint.

"With our reputation for being one of America's most haunted cities and our rich history, we feel our city will be the perfect backdrop for the festival this year and for many years to come, adding another exciting and unique festival to the lineup of great events in New Orleans," said Mary Beth Romig, spokeswoman for the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The festival will also feature a panel in conjunction with the New Orleans Film Commission about filming in Louisiana and the various tax credits available.

"We have over 50 films and more than half of those filmmakers will be attending," said festival director Asif Ahmed. "Our goal is to not only bring these filmmakers to Louisiana but to have them shoot their next film here."

The ultimate goal is to expand the festival into a seven- to 10-day event leading up to Halloween that will celebrate not only films but also the culture surrounding vampires, Gothic and mythic genres and werewolves, ghosts and zombies, Ahmed said.

The Vampire Film Festival first started in Los Angeles as a two-day event. It ran from 2003-04 with the plan of moving to New Orleans in 2005, but Hurricane Katrina derailed the timeline until this year.

Ahmed hopes several thousand will attend the event this year and that those numbers will expand significantly in the coming years.

"Our goal was always to build a fun unique festival that could attract a niche," he said. "I know there are horror fests and scream fests, but the vampire genre has been around internationally for centuries. We want to make this the Sundance Film Festival of New Orleans, a whole vampire, Gothic arts event."

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