Leith folk horror festival to screen controversial banned film
Fiends In The Furrows also announced classics from Poland, Japan, Canada and the USA as it finalises its line-up
The second wave of announcements for Fiends In The Furrows, a folk horror film festival taking place in Leith this month, has dropped, featuring a selection of international choices that have rarely been screened in the UK.
Taking place from Thursday 23–Sunday 26 April in venues across the Leith area, new additions to the line-up include The Devil (pictured above), a 1972 cause célèbre from Polish director Andrzej Żuławski which was deemed so controversial it was banned for more than a decade and forced its maker into exile. Also from a Polish filmmaker is Clearcut, Ryszard Bugajski's Canadian anti-colonial revenge story drawing on First Nations folklore.
Found footage will get a look-in with Noroi: The Curse, which follows a paranormal investigator looking into a series of unexplained deaths. Meanwhile, Viy is a Soviet classic from 1967 teeming with demons, while Eve’s Bayou and Ganja & Hess both dip into the sinister world of American gothic.
Fraser Elliott of Leith Kino said: ‘I think the full programme expands our idea of folk horror – which is usually associated with British films of the 1960s and 1970s – looking at how similar themes are reflected in films from around the world.’
Also revealed for the long weekend, which has been curated as part of a collaboration between Leith Kino and Cinteopia, are a variety of panel discussions, markets and meet-ups.
Leith Kino co-founder Morvern Cunningham said: ‘I’m delighted we are able to run events in Custom Lane. We will be holding a Folk Market there on Saturday and Sunday with local artists and traders and a folk-themed bookshop run by Argonaut Books.
‘We’ll also be selling Fiends In The Furrows t-shirts and posters, which have been hand crafted by local artist Theo Cleary. The motif is a two-headed goat, which I like to think is a symbol of the collaboration between Leith Kino and Cinetopia.’
This second comes after an initial line-up which includes The Wicker Man, Watership Down and Mark Jenkin’s new film Rose Of Nevada. Find more details of the event here or on the Fiends In The Furrows website.
Fiends In The Furrows, various venues, Edinburgh, Thursday 23 – Sunday 26 April.