The good news about coronavirus is that it has forced some film festivals like Etheria to go online where they can be available to a much wider audience. The festival is streaming on Shudder, which is also premiering the documentary "Scream Queen! My Nightmare on Elm Street" as part of its Queer Horror Collection for Pride.
Etheria used to take place at a single theater in Hollywood, the Egyptian, and could only accommodate the hundreds of attendees that could fit in its cinema. But because of this pandemic, Etheria will be streaming on Shudder starting June 19 and will be available through July 20. That gives far more people an opportunity to enjoy the films in the showcase.
Founded in 2014, Etheria Film Night has been a showcase of horror, science fiction, fantasy, action, thriller, and dark comedy directed by women and for an audience that includes producers, managers, showrunners, distributors, and genre fans. Etheria says its goal is to put the women directors who want to make genre films and TV in front of the people who want to hire them. Etheria has been hosted by American Cinematheque, which runs the Egyptian Theater.
But this year Etheria has programmed two hours of short films that anyone with the horror streaming service Shudder can enjoy and that's exciting. It means even if you live on the opposite side of the continent you can still see these films.
Also this month, Shudder is showcasing a collection of queer horror for Pride that includes the new documentary "Scream Queen! My Nightmare on Elm Street" as well as other shorts and features. The documentary looks to "Nightmare on Elm Street 2," which has been called the "gayest horror film ever made" and the impact that had on its star Mark Patton back in 1985.
This episode of Cinema Junkie will highlight the best shorts at Etheria and include my full interviews with actor Mark Patton as well as the directors of "Scream Queen!" Tyler Jensen and Roman Chimienti. A shorter version ran earlier on KPBS Midday Edition.
