- Evening of screenings sees awards distributed for the sixth annual Indy Film Library Halloween Horror Showcase
- Alles is OK scoops Best Film, as lead Bram van der Snel also picks up Best Actor
- Crèche & Burn’s Frank O’Neil named Best Director, while HUNGER’s Natalie Spencer wins Best Screenplay
On Saturday 25th October 2025, Indy Film Library (IFL) showcased its annual selection of horror movies to a live audience for the first time. Taking place at the Supermercator social space, in partnership with the Cinemercator events label, a full house was treated to nine short chillers from the Benelux and beyond.
Speaking at the start of the event, IFL Chief Editor Jack Benjamin commented, “Not all of tonight’s films are identifiable as horror, in the sense that they centre on cheap jump-scares, or the familiar creatures the Hollywood folklore. But they are exemplary of the things I love most about the genre, and offer something I think is just as uncomfortable. A glimpse of the dark and decaying ideologies, lurking in our peripheries, poisoning our lives. The inescapable contradictions and divisions created by our exploitative economic and political norms. The truths we are gaslit into ignoring for the sake of a system which has become hostile to life itself.
As we approach an election, where many of us are left without access to housing, healthcare, education – a dignified life – thanks to decades of selling off our social security net, we are still being implored to believe that actually Alles is OK. Or at least, there are no problems that a little simple racism, sexism and homophobia can’t fix. Ahead of October 29th, then, I feel it is especially important to champion artistic work like this. To paraphrase The Clash, they say it would be wine and roses if Nederland were for Nederlanders again. But the memories, thoughts and feelings that these films dredge up, are on letters forwarded from hell. It is up to us to heed those warnings.”
The following selection played to a full house in the social venue in Amsterdam. The showcase included three classic horrors from the IFL vaults, alongside six fresh nightmares that formed the ‘in-competition’ portion of the programme. Those six movies will now be screened via a private section of the IFL website, to allow international viewers to enjoy them too – remaining there until Saturday 1st November 23:00 CET.
While viewers can still vote for the Audience Choice Award there, however, at the physical event, IFL has announced the jury-selected winners from the Halloween Horror Showcase shortlist.
The list of accolades distributed sees Best Film handed to Felipe Baréa Prado’s unnerving examination of social alienation Alles is OK. The film’s lead, Bram van der Snel, was awarded Best Actor for his performance as a man desperately seeking help, as the contradictions of daily life conjure dark figures in his subconscious.
The award for Best Director was given to Frank O’Neil, for his Herculean effort overseeing his endless team of animators and designers for zombie short Crèche & Burn. The comedic animation follows a young boy, as his business-driven father ignores all the warning signs of a coming apocalypse.
Best Screenplay was presented to Natalie Spencer, for her script for nature-based horror HUNGER. The script turns the idea of a human-led world on its head, gradually suggesting that as powerful as people might believe they are, they are still ultimately beholden to their environments. Best Score was also picked up by the film’s composer Lucas Lescano, whose score supplies a relentless, ominous heartbeat to proceedings.
Best Editing was picked up by I Must Go On‘s Steven Suresh. The film uses its cuts to convey to the audience the uniquely uncomfortable experience of obsessive compulsive disorder – in a way that leaves viewers reflecting on their own specific ticks.
Best Cinematography was picked up by Maëlle Corbelet Paradis for the nightmarish visuals of Geoffroy C. Dedenis’ Abaddon. Best Sound Design was attributed to Max Laffitte for the same film.
Speaking in praise of the winners, Benjamin added, “I love this genre, and it remains the lifeblood of independent cinema. Our latest annual anthology shows exactly why that is – demonstrating the kind of nightmarish world-building and self-examination that are possible in this space, even with a tiny budget. As well as congratulating the winners, I have to thank every single artist involved in the films for helping make that dream a nightmarish reality. Importantly, I need to say special thanks to the amazing teams at Cinemercator, and Supermercator. It has been a joy to finally champion this kind of work to a live audience. And of course, I hope everyone who attended tonight has a Happy Halloween.”
Full list of winners:
Best Sound Design
Max Laffitte (Abaddon)
Best Score
Lucas Lescano (Hunger)
Best Cinematography
Maëlle Corbelet Paradis (Abaddon)
Best Editing
Steven Suresh (I Must Go On)
Best Actor
Bram van der Snel (Alles is OK)
Best Screenplay
Natalie Spencer (HUNGER)
Best Director
Frank O’Neil (Crèche & Burn)
Best Film
Alles is OK
-ENDS-
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