The second Kathmandu Horror Film Festival will show 26 films from 21 countries from October 31 to November 1,2026 at Russian House in Kathmandu.
The Nepal Film & Cultural Academy, which organizes the festival, has announced the lineup. It has eight feature films and 18 short films, and five of them are Nepali productions or co-productions.
The films were picked through an international call for submissions. They cover horror, thriller, supernatural, dark fantasy and folklore based stories.
Feature films
The eight feature are:
- Abandoned by Joby Stephens ( UK)
- Frost by Pavle Vučković (Serbia)
- Kill Me by Peter Warren (US)
- In This Darkness I See You by Nadim Tabet ( Lebanon, France, Qatar and Saudi Arabia)
- The Wrath by Shayne Putzlocher ( Canada)
- The Ones Who Grieve by Quarxx ( France and the United States)
- Poultry Farm by Mohammadreza Ardalan ( Iran)
- Mokshya by Subarna Paudel ( Australia and Nepal)
Mokshya is an Australia- Nepal co-production, which gives the feature program a direct Nepali link.
Short films
Four of the 18 shorts are from Nepal:
- KNAR by Akash Dhimal
- Sinner by Raksha Thapa
- Lakhey by Veemsen Lama
- A.L.I.C.E. by Maxim Chebotarev
The other 14 short films come from around the world:
OBEY! by Jordan Wippell (United States)
Cosmonauts by Leo Černic (Italy and Slovenia)
The Leader Will Come by Michiel Geluykens and Manuel Janssens (Belgium)
Happy by Víctor Basallote (Spain)
Something Scary by Jeff Zorrilla (Argentina)
Merkurio by Sébastien Pesle (France)
Sincopat by Pol Diggler (Spain)
Lifelines by Bruno Richaud (France)
The Old Man and The Grave by Prabhat Gurung (South Korea)
Septeno by Óscar Pérez (Spain)
Egg by Tomoka Tabata (Japan)
Vagabond by Philippe Woodtli (Switzerland)
Favela Amarela by Nicolas Lobato and Thiago Tuchu (Brazil)
D3STRO by Joshua Torresvalle (Mexico)
Festival director Rasik Pathak said horror is among the most creative genres in cinema today. He said it lets filmmakers explore folklore, psychology, society and questions of identity. That suggests the festival sees horror as more than entertainment, and as a way to look at cultural beliefs and personal fears.
The festival gives horror and related genres a dedicated place in Nepal. Audiences in Kathmandu can see films from Europe, Asia, North America, Latin America and the Middle East in one program. Local filmmakers will see their work shown alongside films from other countries, which may help bring Nepali genre cinema to festival audiences and industry professionals.
