SXSW returns this week, albeit in a remote and socially distanced form. This year’s online festival includes a strong slate of films, including the horror and genre focused Midnighters lineup. In the coming days, the staff of Modern Horrors will be bringing you our thoughts and reviews on a number of these movies. In the meantime, here’s a sneak peek at some of the titles we’re most excited about to help whet your appetites.

Broadcast Signal Intrusion
While logging tapes of decades-old TV broadcasts, video archivist James (Harry Shum Jr.) discovers a surreal and disturbing clip that James believes is the product of a mysterious broadcast signal hacking. His discovery takes a sinister turn when he tracks down similar broadcast intrusions that send him on an obsessive mission. Now James must confront two very real possibilities: that the videos may be clues to a crime beyond all comprehension; and that whoever was behind them may be very aware that James is coming uncomfortably close to the truth. BROADCAST SIGNAL INTRUSION was inspired by actual broadcast interruptions that occurred in Chicago in the late 1980s, and remain unsolved to this day. The film is an unsettling journey into our collective technological nightmares, confronting our deepest, darkest fears of both man and machine.

Director Jacob Gentry (The Signal, Synchronicity) returns with a film said to be inspired by the infamous and creepy television broadcast interruptions that occurred in the Chicago area in 1987. Also working on the film are composer Ben Lovett (I Trapped the Devil, The Wind) and special effects maestro Dan Martin (Possessor, Color Out of Space).

Broadcast Signal Intrusion has its world premiere at SXSW Online 2021 on Tuesday March 16th at 8:00pm.

Gaia
On a surveillance mission in a primordial forest, a park ranger encounters two survivalists following a post-apocalyptic lifestyle. The boy and his philosophical father seem to have their own religion, and a mysterious relationship to nature. There are many suspicious aspects to their existence, but when the cabin is attacked by strange, post-human beings one night, she learns that there is a greater threat in this emergent wilderness. GAIA is an ecological horror fantasy which engages the burning issues of our time.

South African horror film Gaia‘s teaser trailer (included below) immediately grabbed me, with its scenes of hallucinatory eco-horror coupled with glimpses of creature design that seem reminiscent of The Last of Us. I can’t wait to see what secrets Gaia has in store for us.

Gaia has its world premiere at SXSW Online 2021 on Tuesday March 16th at 8:00pm.

Jakob’s Wife
The disappearance of a young woman threatens to change the beige and banal lives of Anne Fedder (Barbara Crampton) and her pastor husband Jakob Fedder (Larry Fessenden) forever.

Jakob’s Wife is the new film from director Travis Stevens (Girl on the Third Floor). Genre faves Barbara Crampton and Larry Fessenden appear together for the first time since We Are Still Here, which was also produced by Stevens. The cast also includes CM Punk, who was the lead in Stevens’s directorial debut. Shudder has picked up the film prior to its debut at SXSW.

Jakob’s Wife has its world premiere at SXSW Online 2021 on Wednesday March 17th at 8:00pm.

Offseason
After receiving a mysterious letter, a woman travels to a desolate island town and soon becomes trapped in a nightmare.

Little is currently known about director Mickey Keating’s newest film, but the synopsis included below and the lone still I’ve seen have me instantly intrigued. And with a cast including Jocelin Donahue (The House of the Devil), Jeremy Gardner (After Midnight), Joe Swanberg (You’re Next), and Richard Brake (Mandy), Offseason jumped to must-watch status.

Offseason has its world premiere at SXSW Online 2021 on Wednesday March 17th at 8:00pm.

The Sound of Violence
A young girl recovers her hearing and gains synesthetic abilities during the brutal murder of her family. Finding solace in the sounds of bodily harm, as an adult, she pursues a career in music composing her masterpiece through gruesome murders.

While film is an inherently visual medium, sound has become an integral part of the experience. This is especially true of horror films, and many of the best examples utilize sound in a novel way. Sound of Violence appears poised to deliver a unique take on this theme, focusing on the crossroads of synesthesia and murder. Check out the killer sounds and visuals in the trailer below.

Sound of Violence has its world premiere at SXSW Online 2021 on Thursday March 18th at 8:00pm

The Spine of Night
In this ultra-violent, fantasy epic, ancient dark magic falls into sinister hands and unleashes ages of suffering onto mankind. A group of heroes from different eras and cultures must band together in order to defeat it at all costs.

The Spine of Night seems to have some serious Heavy Metal vibes, and I am here for it. On top of the gore-dripped animation, Spine features a killer cast including Joe Mangianello (Archenemy), Lucy Lawless (Ash vs. Evil Dead), and Patton freakin’ Oswalt. This looks to be a perfect example of a midnight movie.

The Spine of Night has its world premiere at SXSW Online 2021 on Thursday March 18th at 8:00pm

Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched: A History of Folk Horror
Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched is the first feature-length documentary on the history of folk horror, from the 1960s to today.

Folk horror is a notoriously difficult genre to define, particularly given widely differing folklore, customs, and traditions throughout the world. Director Kier-La Janisse’s feature debut, Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched, traces this movement from its beginnings with the “Unholy Trinity” – three films that kickstarted folk horror – through its myriad expressions to the modern day. I’ve been looking forward to this since it was first announced, and was greatly excited to see it announced as part of this year’s SXSW lineup.

Woodlands Dark and Days Bewitched has its world premiere at SXSW Online 2021 on Tuesday March 16th at 8:00pm.

Witch Hunt
In a modern America where witches are real and witchcraft is illegal, a sheltered teenager must face her own demons and prejudices as she helps two young witches avoid law enforcement and cross the southern border to asylum in Mexico.

Fresh off of her feature debut, Head Count, Elle Callahan is back with Witch Hunt. This horror/fantasy mashup will likely make use of Callahan’s knowledge in the genres of mystery and magic realism–which she studied during her time at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts. Not much else is known, but Head Count showed a ton of promise, and I can’t wait to see the next step in her filmmaking career.

Witch Hunt makes its world premiere at SXSW Online 2021 on Wednesday, March 17, 2021 at 8:00 PM.

Violation
A troubled woman on the edge of divorce returns home to her younger sister after years apart. But when her sister and brother-in-law betray her trust, she embarks on a vicious crusade of revenge.

I heard incredible things about Violation after it made its world premiere at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. Fortunately for those of us that missed that screening, Violation is on its way to brutalize audiences at SXSW later this week.

Violation makes its SXSW premiere on Thursday, March 18, 2021 at 8:00 PM

The Feast
A troubled woman on the edge of divorce returns home to her younger sister after years apart. But when her sister and brother-in-law betray her trust, she embarks on a vicious crusade of revenge.

It’s difficult for me to gauge the type of film that Feast is going to be–but I’m fairly certain that it won’t share much in common with the John Gulager’s 2005 creature feature. Lee Haven Jones’ new film is keeping its cards close to its chest, and that has me all the more intrigued to check out this new Midnighter.

The Feast screens at SXSW Online 2021 on Wednesday, March 17, 2021 at 8:00 PM.

More information on the films and events featured during SXSW Online 2021 can be found at https://www.sxsw.com