Welcome & Opening Remarks & Sponsors

Kick off an unforgettable weekend as we celebrate the filmmakers, fans, and wonderfully weird community that makes horror so special.

Alumni Short Film Showcase

An opening night film block made up of your favorite Reel Horrors Festival alumni as they return with their newest short film nightmares.

Alumni Panel: So You Want to Get Into a Film Festival?

Our guest alumni filmmakers pull back the curtain on the world of getting your first film into the Horror Film Festival circuit! Designed for student and first time filmmakers.

The 2026 Student Film Festival & Competition

Our guest alumni filmmakers pull back the curtain on the world of getting your first film into the Horror Film Festival circuit! Designed for student and first time filmmakers.

COFOH EXCLUSIVE WORLD PREMIRE: The Reel Weird Horror Awards!

Join us as we honor the past year's very best in horror cinema with our gloriously over-the-top (and VERY LOW BUDGET) award show featuring some of Horrors best and upcoming Horror celebrities!

The Trailer Park

An annual tradition as we kick off the Festival with a late-night screening of the best- and worst- of upcoming Horror trailers, roundly heckled and commented on MSTK3 style by Bryan Bonner and Jack Hanley, guests Bob Lewis and Rocco, and audence alike.

Short Film Block 1

Filmmaker Panel 1

Short Film Block 2

Short Film Block 3

Filmmaker Panel 2

Short Film Block 4

Short Film Block 5

SHIVER Vertical and the future of Vertical Distribution

Join us for our LEGENDARY special guest filmmaker panels featuring visiting artists from this year’s festival lineup as they discuss the craft, chaos, and occasional psychological trauma of independent horror filmmaking in a live conversation.

Short Film Block 6

Awards Ceremony & Filmmaker Mixer!

Our signature event! Celebrate the year's best films and filmmakers as we hand out awards in several categories, meet the filmmakers behind them, and mingle with fellow horror fans and industry professionals as we toast another unforgettable year of independent horror cinema.

Do You Like Scary Movies? Live Podcast

Join the hosts of the Do You Like Scary Movies Podcast Byran Bonner and Bob Lewis as they wrap up the main competition with live interviews of our winning filmmakers, festival programmers, and festivalgoers alike!

Irreverent PowerPoint!

One projector. Unlimited bad ideas. Because every horror fan has at least one hill they're willing to die on. Special festival guests take the stage with five-minute PowerPoint presentations defending horror's most outrageous, controversial, and surprisingly persuasive opinions.

Horror 101: The History of Folk Horror

Our annual Sunday morning tradition returns! Grab some hair of the dog and join your Professors Jack Hanley and Bryan Bonner (along with returning guest lecturers Rocco and Bob Lewis) for a lively, interactive deep dive into one of horror's most fascinating subgenres.

Trauma Cotoure: The Rise of Elevated Horror

Was the age of "elevated horror" a revolution, a marketing gimmick, or simply horror finally getting the respect it always deserved? Join our panel for one of the weekend's liveliest- and controvertial- debates.

Best of the Fest Film Showcase!

Missed a block? Here's your second chance to experience the audience favorites and festival standouts via a special block of shorts made up from ALL your Festival Award Winning films!

Devil in the Trunk Special Event

Go behind the scenes with the filmmakers and cast for stories, surprises, sneak peeks, and audience Q&A. Sponsored by 6 Feet Under.

The Great Horror Film Debate!

Several teams. A few controversial topics. Countless opinions. Join the liveliest argument of the weekend as our guests battle it out over topics (and bad takes) submitted by our COFOH attendees!

The Year in Horror: 2026 Wrap-Up

Our beloved closing tradition returns! Join the Reel Horrors programmers, critics, and special guests as they hand out irreverent superlatives, celebrate the year's greatest horror, roast its biggest disappointments (and each other), and send you home with the ultimate horror watchlist.