Buffalo Dreams Fantastic Film Festival 2023 Schedule
10th Year Anniversary

Dipsons Amherst Theatre, 3500 Main Street, Buffalo
81 Films (30 produced in WNY) – 16 Features, 66 Shorts
Single Screening - $13 Day Pass - $20 Al Festival Pass - $70
Passes will be available at the theater box office



Friday, August 18th

BLOCK 1
2:00 Farador (Comedy, French Canada, subtitled, 1 hr 47 mins) A “D&D” style role-playing game three friends have played for years is disrupted when a woman joins the group.

BLOCK 2
4:15 US Shorts (1 hr 32 mins) Six short films produced in the USA.
A New Day (Brought to You by Horizon Research Systems) (US, 4 mins), Silver Gleaming Death Machine (US, 11 mins), Floater (US, 14 mins), The Blue Drum (US, 15 mins), Love’s a Wash (CNY, 17 mins), The Locket (US, 30 mins)

BLOCK 3
7:00 What Lurks Beneath (Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror, Canada, 1 hr 42 mins) WORLD PREMIERE: The crew of a US submarine is on the brink of nuclear war when a naked woman appears in a torpedo tube. Captain Banks fears she’s Russian, but she’s something far more dangerous. A top-notch thriller! Short: Die Dame (WNY, 8 mins) Buffalo Premiere.

BLOCK 4
9:45 WNY Shorts (66 mins) Five local shorts, one starring the late, great Bill Brown. Filmmaker Q&As. Alone (1:31 mins), Charlie the Cancelled Skeleton (9 mins), Billy Must Live (10 mins), Bartleby starring Bill Brown (12 mins), Merch (33 mins)

Saturday, August 19th

BLOCK 5
1:45 Animated Shorts (70 mins) Eight animated shorts from around the world. Trapped (US, 1 min), Serpentine Petrol Product Reel (WNY, 3 mins), It Was Up There (US, 6 mins)
Sucks to be the Moon (US, 11 mins), Middle Watch (UK, 12 mins), Innermost (China, 15 mins), smush (US, 7 mins), The Smile (Netherlands, 15 mins)

BLOCK 6
3:30 The Fantasy Worlds of Brett Piper (92 mins)
Four family-friendly films directed by stop motion animation wizard Brett Piper! Three shorts and one feature. Redneck Mutants (US, 67 mins), WORLD PREMIERE: When a spaceship crashes in moonshine country, only redneck mutants can save the day from giant creatures! First Men in the Moon (US, 7 mins), Journey to the Center of the Earth (US, 9 mins), 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (US, 9 mins)

BLOCK 7
6:30 Saturday Night Shorts (88 mins) Eight outstanding shorts from around the country with Q&As. Trail of Terror (WNY, 1 min), The House (US, Performance/doc, 8 mins) , Fortune Teller (US, 10 mins), LifeQuest (CNY, Sci Fi, 25 mins), Follower (NYS, 14 mins), Inhuman Resources (WNY, Horror-Comedy, 30 mins)

BLOCK 8
9:20 Wintertide (Horror, Canada, 97mins) MUST SEE: When a plague turns people into zombie-like automatons, one woman accesses an alternate dimension though her dreams. Smart, sophisticated horror with an amazing lead performance; nudity and sexual situations. Short: Miss Understood Monster (Horror Comedy, 15mins)

Sunday, August 20th

BLOCK 9 Comedy/Cult Double Feature:
1:00 The Once and Future Smash (Comedy, US, 85 mins)
Mockumentary about two cult horror actors competing for the same role in a reboot of the horror film they both appeared in. Q&A with co-director Sophia Cacciola.
2:35 End Zone 2 (US, 62 mins)
The unearthed, “long lost” 70s slasher film being remade in The Once and Future Smash.
Short: Dibs on Mars (US, 6 mins)

5:00 Dreamer Awards (US, 60 mins)

BLOCK 10
7:00 WNY Shorts 2 (67 mins) Five WNY shorts, plus Q&As. Katie’s Ghost (6 mins), Tough Love (16 mins), Moving Curtains (9 mins), Box Cutter (16 mins), Infatuation (20 mins)

BLOCK 11
8:50 WTF Bizarro Block! Do you dare? Zaman Dark (Horror, France/Lebanon, 93 mins, subtitled). Christophe Karabache’s disturbing political horror film. Lebanon is on the abyss, and two laid off chemists attempt to survive by eating human flesh.
Short: Wolf Juice (24 mins)

Monday, August 21st

BLOCK 12
3:30 The Chase (Horror/Thiller, Russian Federation, subtitled, 100 mins). A young woman endangers her life when she joins a secret club that videotapes people in compromising positions – including a serial killer. Violence, suspense, nudity, sexual situations.

BLOCK 13
6:30 In the Weeds (NYS, 82 mins) An offbeat dramatic comedy about people in the boroughs of New York City coping during the pandemic. Co-directors Clayton P. Allis and Doug E. Doug (who stars) will do a Q&A. Short: Standout (WNY, 15 mins)

BLOCK 14
8:45 Two Lives in Pittsburgh (US, 80 mins) Effective drama about a blue collar worker coping with life changes: the impending death of his mother, and the gender identity issues of his grandson. Strong performances, uplifting.

Tuesday, August 22nd

BLOCK 15
2:00 International Shorts #1 (76 mins). Six amazing international short films. Playtime of the Dead (UK, 5 mins) Girl in the Dark (Ukraine, 5 mins), Lethe (China, 22 mins), Giti Jan (Iran, 10 mins), Terminally On (China, 34 mins).

BLOCK 16
3:45 International Shorts #2 (85 mins) Our second block of some of the best international short films. Emily’s Mountain (Israel, 22 mins), The Black Box (Taiwan, 30 mins),The Ankou, the Child, and the Bandits (France, 33 mins).

BLOCK 17
6:30 WNY Shorts 3 (70 mins) Seven short films by local artists who will do Q&As. Rusalka (4 mins) Our Last Ride (2 mins), Cruzando (6 mins), Launchpad (6 mins), To Know a Veil (10 mins), WORLD PREMIERE: The Sicks (20 mins), US Premiere: Haunted (22 mins).

BLOCK 18
8:45 Break Glass (Comedy-Drama, NYS, 1 hr 51 mins) Offbeat comedy-drama about two brothers and one woman who take a road trip across New York State to repair mistakes of the past.

Wednesday, August 23rd

BLOCK 19
3:30 US & Canadian Shorts (89 mins) Five incredible shorts from the US and the Great White North. All the Young Dudes (US, 9 mins) Greed & Gore (Canada, 15 mins), The 44th Chamber of Shaolin (NYC, 15 mins), Vegas is Calling (US, 22 mins), Some Visitors (US, 28 mins)

BLOCK 20
6:30 WNY Shorts 4 (56 mins) Six short films produced in WNY, with Q&As. Give the Gate (7 mins), Simulacrum (8 mins), The Conduit (9 mins), Time Stood Still (8 mins), Nothing Personal (P.O.C.) (11 mins), Love’s a Drug (12 mins).

BLOCK 21
8:30 Demon Behind the Glass (Horror, WNY, 84 mins) A corpse discovered by a journalist in his rental home is reanimated by demons. Short: Demons in the Closet (1 min)


Thursday, August 24th

BLOCK 22
3:30 The Haunting of the Lady-Jane (Horror, UK, 98 mins) A man’s obsession with ghosts upends a boat tour of the British canals taken by two women. Suspense served with a terrifying conclusion!

BLOCK 23
6:30

WNY Short Features: Willowvale Harbor (WNY, Horror, 55 mins) A conspiracy theorist discovers an abandoned town believed to exist only in urban legends. The Rise of Marco Alfonsi (WNY, Crime Drama, 46 mins) A young man’s climb to power. Short: The Beautiful Mess (WNY, 5 mins)

BLOCK 24
9:20 Fang (Horror, US, 98 min) The legendary Lynn Lowry co-stars in this story of a troubled young man who undergoes terrifying changes after being bitten by a rat.

In memory of William S. Brown, one of us, 1943 - 2022