Horror fans attending the San Diego International Film Festival this October will have several titles to put on their watch lists. Celebrating its 25th anniversary, the festival has announced a 2026 lineup of 90 films, including narrative features, documentaries, shorts and animation from filmmakers around the world. The festival runs October 13–18 in San Diego.

Among the selections in the Gala and Narrative Competition are several films that should be of particular interest to genre audiences. Dead Deer High, directed by Jo Rochelle, arrives as a Southern California premiere, while Bruno Bini’s Five Kinds of Fear is also part of the competition lineup. Arabella Oz’s Mallory’s Ghost will receive its California premiere, adding another title with a supernatural-sounding premise to the festival’s program.

Another intriguing selection for genre fans is Irkalla: Gilgamesh’s Dream, directed by Mohamed Al Daradji. The film is an international production from Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, France, the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia, and is among the 21 films competing in the festival’s Gala and Narrative Competition.

The festival’s broader lineup also includes several high-profile premieres. Martin McDonagh’s Wild Horse Nine, which receives its San Diego premiere, features John Malkovich, Sam Rockwell, Steve Buscemi, Mariana Di Girolamo, Ailín Salas, Tom Waits and Parker Posey. Other Gala selections include Anton Corbijn’s A Talent for Murder, starring Helen Mirren, Edward Ridgeway and Olivia Cooke, as well as Mike Leigh’s Tender Loving Care and Peter Farrelly’s I Play Rocky.

The festival’s 2026 program was selected from a record 3,500 submissions and features films from 22 countries. In addition to eight world premieres, the festival will present 61 shorts across categories including animation, drama, dramedy, student filmmaking and other short-form programs.

There are also a few titles within the short-film lineup that could catch the attention of horror and genre viewers. Post Mortem, directed by Luca Rivetti, will have its world premiere as part of the Student Showcase, while Meeting Your Maker, directed by Gregory JM Kasunich, will screen in the Heart Strings track. Outgrowth, from Sasha Das, and Supper, directed by Savannah Braswell, are among the selections in the Stranger in a Strange Land category.

The festival opens with its Night of the Stars Tribute at The Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center in La Jolla on Tuesday, October 13, followed by the Opening Night film premiere and party at THE LOT La Jolla on Wednesday, October 14. Culinary Cinema will close out the festival on Sunday, October 18, combining a film screening with a culinary experience hosted by Shawn Styles from CBS8’s Cooking with Styles.

For horror fans, the 25th annual San Diego International Film Festival offers an opportunity to look beyond the festival’s major premieres and explore its genre-leaning selections. With Dead Deer High, Five Kinds of Fear, Mallory’s Ghost, Irkalla: Gilgamesh’s Dream and a number of potentially intriguing shorts included in the 2026 program, there should be several films worth investigating when the festival arrives October 13–18.

2026 SAN DIEGO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL LINE-UP

Gala and Narrative Competition (21)

Feature:

• A Talent For Murder, Dir. Anton Corbijn, USA, San Diego Premiere

• American Muscle, Dir. Joel Veach, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Catane, Dir. Ioana Mischie, Romania, San Diego Premiere

• Dead Deer High, Dir. Jo Rochelle, USA, Southern California Premiere

• Elephants in the Fog, Dir. Abinash Bikram Shah, Nepal & Germany & Brazil & France & Norway, West Coast Premiere

• Five Kinds of Fear, Dir. Bruno Bini, Brazil, Southern California Premiere

• Gringo Champion, Dir. Jonás Cuaron, Mexico, San Diego Premiere

• I Play Rocky, Dir. Peter Farrelly, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Irkalla: Gilgamesh’s Dream, Dir. Mohamed Al Daradji, Iraq & United Arab Emirates & Qatar & France & United Kingdom & Saudi Arabia, San Diego Premiere

• Mallory’s Ghost, Dir. Arabella Oz, USA, California Premiere

• Mouse, Dir. Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Red Mountain, Dir. Brent Florence, USA, California Premiere

• Same Same But Different, Dir. Lauren Noll, USA, West Coast Premiere

• See You When I See You, Dir. Jay Duplass, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Take Me Home, Dir. Liz Sargent, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Tender Loving Care, Dir. Mike Leigh, USA, Southern California Premiere

• The Cost of Heaven, Dir. Mathieu Denis, Canada, San Diego Premiere

• THE LEADER, Dir. Michael Gallagher, USA, Canada, San Diego Premiere

• Trial of Hein, Dir. Kai Stänicke, Germany & Switzerland, San Diego Premiere

• Wild Horse Nine, Dir. Martin McDonagh, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Yesterday the Eye Didn’t Sleep, Dir. Rakan Mayasi, Belgium & Lebanon & Palestine & Qatar & Saudi Arabia, San Diego Premiere

Documentary Competition (8)

• Alone on the Mound, Dir. John Condit & Tom Friend, USA, United States Premiere

• Birds of War, Dir. Janay Boulos & Abd Alkader Habak, UK & Syria & Lebanon, California Premiere

• Drift, Dir. Deon Taylor, USA, San Diego Premiere

• High Ground, Dir. Daniel Sharp, United Kingdom, World Premiere

• People of The West, Dir. Christopher Nataani Cegielski, Phillip Montgomery, & Josh Baker, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Sum Function, Dir. Noah Currier & Nick Cavalier, USA, San Diego Premiere

• The Six Billion Dollar Man, Dir. Eugene Jarecki, USA & Germany, San Diego Premiere

• Undeliverable – Prime Profits. Poor People., Dir. Frank Licari, USA, California Premiere

Shorts Tracks Competition  (61)

Animation Filmmaking:

Between Worlds:

• Creators, Dir. Nik Sysuev, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Double Exposure, Dir. Jiacheng Ye, China, North American Premiere

• Green or Yellow, Dir. Wang Hee Song, South Korea, North American Premiere

• Homebodies, Dir. Rachel Olson, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Method Cowboy, Dir. Carlos Valdivia, USA, San Diego Premiere

• SAM, Dir. Joshua Morin & Blaze Nowara, USA, World Premiere

Dramedy:

• A Night In, Dir. Eduardo Olmos, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Fender Bender, Dir. Brian Herrera Gladstone, USA, West Coast Premiere

• LAY LEFTY DOWN, Dir. Traven Rice, USA, Southern California Premiere

• LUCKY LIAM, Dir. Thomas Hefferon & TJ Hundtofte, Ireland, United States Premiere

• Mort, Dir. Larry & Terry Ziegelman, USA, San Diego Premiere

• The Cranberry Effect, Dir. Mathery, Italy, North American Premiere

• The Method, Dir. Luke Howe, USA, West Coast Premiere

Dramatic Lens:

• Alivios, Dir. Juan Manuel González, Mexico, West Coast Premiere

• Backstage, Dir. Émile V. Schlesser, Luxembourg, West Coast Premiere

• My Brother Lyosha and I, Dir. Lena Tronina, Kazakhstan, San Diego Premiere

• The Birthday Gift, Dir. Arianna Ortiz, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Watch Out For Bullets, Dir. Nicholas Berger & Emmanuel Dayan, USA, France, World Premiere

Heart Strings:

• Arlene, Dir. Elizabeth Dement, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Going Home, Dir. Emily Murnane & Alyssa Limperis, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Grace, Dir. Anna Rodgers, Ireland, Southern California Premiere

• Meeting Your Maker, Dir. Gregory JM Kasunich, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Obit, Dir. Ben Tedesco, USA, San Diego Premiere

San Diego Scene:

• Adelaide, Dir. Simonne Villamichel & Borel Hammond, USA, World Premiere

• Between The Variables, Dir. Yalian Li, USA, West Coast Premiere

• God Dammit, Dir. Chance Saller, USA, West Coast Premiere

• Midnight Snack, Dir. Gerry Saucedo, USA, World Premiere

• The Beautiful Life, Dir. Matthew Sullivan & Brandon Winter, USA, North American Premiere

• Yo Soy Mariachero, Dir. Steven Wade Adams, USA, World Premiere

Short & Sweet:

• Bears in Hot Tubs, Dir. Maddie Bear & Claire Musser, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Dropping off, Dir. Will Mayo, Ian Scott McGregor, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Girls Night, Dir. Nicolas Block, England & France, San Diego Premiere

• Scouts Honor, Dir. Isabel Pask, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Soft Cargo, Dir. Christian Moldes, USA, California Premiere

• You Could’ve Been a Nurse, Dir. Meg Mateo, USA, San Diego Premiere

Student Showcase:

• Breathe, Brother, Breathe, Dir. Arman Khaghani, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Catching Claus, Dir. Ian Blom, USA, West Coast Premiere

• Post Mortem, Dir. Luca Rivetti, USA, World Premiere

• Ransom, Dir. Aaron Adrian, Indonesia & USA, World Premiere

• Reflections, Dir. Anya Zenooz, USA, California Premiere

• The Clark Family Road Trip, Dir. Constantine Tripodes, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Your Pepperminted Son, Dir. Dongmyeong Kim, USA, San Diego Premiere

Stranger in a Strange Land:

• A Hand to Hold, Dir. Philip Clyde-Smith, UK, San Diego Premiere

• Bidet, Dir. James Brylowski, Canada & USA, San Diego Premiere

• Goodbye, Monster, Dir. Luke Barnett, USA, West Coast Premiere

• Legend Has It, Dir. Thomas Lorber, Canada, San Diego Premiere

• Outgrowth, Sasha Das, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Supper, Dir. Savannah Braswell, USA, San Diego Premiere

• Uncle Artoo, Dir. Zoë Whittaker, UK, West Coast Premiere