Vancouver Horror Show Films | Vancouver's Best Places

The Vancouver Horror Show (VHS) is a film festival that showcases horror movies. It normally happens in October in time for Halloween.

In 2023, films showed in theatres on select days between October 13th and 22nd.

For tickets and the festival’s official website, visit vancouverhorrorshow.com.

The Vancouver Horror Show

The Vancouver Horror Show Film Festival celebrated its sixth year in 2023. It’s a registered Canadian charity. It has grown from running just a dozen films in its first year to nearly 50 films in 2023.

The festival mostly screens short films but also displays a small number of feature films too. Although VHS focuses a lot on Canadian films, it showcases works from other countries too. This makes VHS an inclusive event that helps promote filmmakers from around the world.

The 2023 Film Festival

In 2023 there were ticketed in-person screenings from October 13th to 15th at the Scotiabank Theatre in Vancouver. There were also screenings at Metrotown‘s Cineplex theatre in Burnaby from October 20th to 22nd. Unlike in 2022, this past year’s films could only be watched in theatres. They weren’t available online during the festival.

There were more than 45 films at the 2023 festival. Six of them were feature films while the remaining majority were short films. The movies screened were from different countries so there was some unique and scary foreign cinema to enjoy!

2023 Festival Prices

Tickets to the various screenings in 2023 started at about $20 each. For the most part, feature films were shown separately whereas short films were combined into groups.

This past year’s festival also included a VHS Talks Panel in Burnaby. Tickets for the October 21st event were pay-what-you-could with a $1 minimum.

Special passes were also available in 2023. The Vancouver Weekend Pass included access to all in-person screenings from October 13th to 15th. It cost $80. The Burnaby Weekend Pass cost the same and included access to all screenings between October 20th and 22nd. The Full Festival Pass included access to all of this past year’s events and cost $150 per person.

While exact details about the festival in 2024 aren’t available yet, we expect ticket prices to be comparable.

For full details see the official Vancouver Horror Show website.

2023 Festival Schedule

Below was the schedule of in-person screenings and events at the 2023 Vancouver Horror Show Film Festival.

The events on the first weekend were all held at the Scotiabank Theatre in Vancouver at 900 Burrard Street. Events on the second weekend took place at Cineplex Cinemas Metropolis at 4700 Kingsway in Burnaby.

Friday, October 13th, 2023 (Vancouver)

The opening night of the festival featured a screening of Faceless After Dark. The movie follows Bowie at the mercy of an unhinged fan trying to recreate another film’s fatal plot. Doors opened at 6:00 pm and the movie began at 8:00 pm. There was also a red carpet soirée. This event was licensed and was for ages 19 and above.

For details about this film, click Faceless After Dark.

Saturday, October 14th, 2023 (Vancouver)

There were two different events at the Scotiabank Theatre this day. A group of short films including Eyecatcher, Get Away and Sleep Tight showed at 6:30 pm. Then the VHS After Dark Mixtape showed at 9:30 pm. That event included screenings of AI Artist, Rezar, Gnaw and more. There was a licensed lounge on-site making both events for adults only.

For details of this day’s shows, click Shorts Program 1 or VHS After Dark Mixtape.

Sunday, October 15th, 2023 (Vancouver)

The second group of short films including Boxed, Ride Baby Ride and Leech showed in Vancouver at 4:00 pm. The evening featured Anacoreta on the big screen at 7:00 pm. The movie is about an actress who goes on a trip to the mountains with her boyfriend and his friends. Of course, much more is planned than she expects. Both events were for ages 19 and up and included one hour of drinking and mingling before the screenings began.

For details about these films, click Shorts Program 2 or Anacoreta.

For full details see the official Vancouver Horror Show website.

Friday, October 20th, 2023 (Burnaby)

The Burnaby portion of the festival kicked off with a screening of She Came from the Woods. The film is set in 1987 and follows a group of counselors who mistakenly unleash evil near the end of summer camp. This screening started at 7:00 pm.

For details about this film, click She Came from the Woods.

HALLOWEEN MOVIES & MOVIE SCENES

If you like horror movies and haunted houses, then also be sure to check out Brinkworth Dungeon. The Langley-based haunted attraction has wax museum-style scenes from a whole bunch of classic horror movies. And most of what you’ll see there has been handmade by a professional artist!

Also if you like Halloween and movies, but kid-friendly films, then check out HowlOver Canada at FlyOver Canada. It’s a great family-friendly Halloween-themed multi-dimensional show.

Saturday, October 21st, 2023 (Burnaby)

There were three events at Cineplex Cinemas Metropolis this day. The first was a VHS Talks Panel discussion about females on screen that started at 5:00 pm. Speakers included Enid-Raye Adams, Dr. Kelly Doyle and Karen Lam. Next, a group of short films such as The Knowing, Stop Dead and In Too Deep showed at 6:30 pm. The night concluded with the feature film Everyone Will Burn at 9:30 pm. This Spanish movie is about a depressed woman who receives a visit from a small girl and proceeds to face a corrupt community full of secrets and lies.

Tickets to the panel discussion were “pay-what-you-could” (but a minimum of $1).

For details about this day’s events, click VHS Talks Panel, Shorts Program 3, or Everyone Will Burn.

Sunday, October 22nd, 2023 (Burnaby)

The closing night of the festival in the Lower Mainland featured a group of short films at 1:00 pm. Screenings of White Noise, Demon Box, The Island and more were included. The day finished with a screening of V/H/S/85 at 4:00 pm. It’s a Vancouver premiere of a chilling documentary about the 1980s.

For details about this day’s shows, click Shorts Program 4 or V/H/S/85.