The 10th annual MidWest WeirdFest - a cinematic celebration of of all things fantastic, frightening, paranormal, and just plain weird - takes place March 5-8, 2026 at the Micon Downtown Cinema in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.
The fest's fantastic line-up of horror, sci-fi, underground, paranormal, and documentary cinema showcases 16 feature films, and almost 70 shorts; including world premieres of four feature films.
One of the films that is world premiering at the festival is the terrifying and claustrophobic home invasion shocker INCUBATION.
“We couldn’t think of a better place to premiere our movie, INCUBATION, than MidWest WeirdFest”, says Joshua Land who wrote and directed the film with his longtime producing partner Victor Fink.
“In 2020, we launched our feature film, BAD WITCH, at MidWest WeirdFest. When we got back home, the entire world shut down. Naturally, it seems only fitting that our new film about a fictional pandemic and a family locked in their isolated cabin in the woods infects the screen here six years later. Of course, we hope the return trip goes better this time. MidWest WeirdFest is such a unique, special, community-focused festival, and it means the world to us to be able to be included once again. Festival director Dean Bertram has created such a wonderful, closely knit, supportive community of filmmakers and audiences. It’s truly an honor to finally unleash the product of years of 'blood, sweat, and tears' in such an incredible place. Let’s keep it weird!”
The feature films screening at the 10th annual festival include:
THE DEMONATRIX (Aurelio Voltaire, Jeff Ferrell / USA) - WISCONSIN PREMIERE - A Mexican priest comes to the aid of his good friend and neighbor, a dominatrix, when she unwittingly summons an incubus demon. Starring Doug Bradley (Hellraiser), Larry Fessenden (Jakob's Wife, Brooklyn 45), Hannah Fierman (V/H/S, Creepshow) and Nivek Ogre (Repo! The Genetic Opera, Skinny Puppy). Kinky chills and scares abound in this demonic thrill ride, which is sure to satiate the appetite of diabolic cinema lovers.
THE DRIFTLESS (dir: Tim Connery / USA) - MIDWEST PREMIERE - Deep river valleys, tall limestone bluffs sawing through the sky... thousands of years ago, this unique portion of the Midwest escaped the crushing effects of the giant Ice Age glaciers. But with its scenic beauty, this preserved primal landscape also conceals unimaginable terrors. THE DRIFTLESS is a horror film that weaves through four terrifying Midwest tales of the macabre. Guided by a mysterious antique store owner, these stories delve into a Mississippi River cult of masked assassins, a grieving musician's struggle with a cursed bottle of liquor, a motel pool cleaner's uncanny ability to retrieve time-altering artifacts, and a woman's blood-thirsty revenge from beyond the grave. A Night of Horror presents not only the Midwest premiere of this terrifying anthology, but it's first ever screening in “The Driftless Area”!
THE HEDONIST (dir. Nick Funess) - MIDWEST PREMIERE - Reed's monotonous days lead to a meltdown at his dead-end job. He bails and heads to his parents' place in Arizona, spending his days floating in the pool while his parents persuade him to get back on track. Reed comes up with a wild plan instead. He hires an escort, Tess, to take care of him for a week. Debauchery and buffoonery ensue as Tess joins Reed on his journey to nowhere fast. Confronting, and uncomfortably hilarious, THE HEDONIST marks director/star Nick Funess as a major new talent of American cinema.
THE HOLE STORY: (dir. Elijah Sullivan) - MIDWEST PREMIERE - The discovery of a sixty-foot man-made hole on a California mountain implicates a small town’s unusual local industry in a bizarre unsolved crime. Abandoning the conventional investigative format, THE HOLE STORY unfolds as a multi-faceted oral history, immersing us in personal mythologies and painting a haunting and unsettling portrait of a community shaped by fringe belief. A captivating documentary that draws you into a deep and unsettling mystery.
INCUBATION (dir: Joshua Land, Victor Fink) - WORLD PREMIERE - In an isolated cabin amidst a devastating pandemic, Helen takes every precaution to protect her children Ethan and Lily. But when a mysterious stranger named Gideon arrives, the family's fragile reality shatters. As secrets unravel and a deadly confrontation ensues, Ethan must make a harrowing choice to protect his sister and mother. A shocking and brutal new addition to the home invasion sub-genre, from fest alumni Joshua Land and Victor Fink (BAD WITCH).
I'VE SEEN ALL I NEED TO SEE (dir: Zeshaan Younus) – WISCONSIN PREMIERE - Two sisters are separated by the expanse of death. Parker, an actor in Los Angeles, returns to her hometown in search of answers after the sudden and violent loss of her estranged sister, Indiana. Told through a non-linear and haunting lens, I’VE SEEN ALL I NEED TO SEE is equal parts ghost story and noir. It looks at the gaps in space, time, and judgment that are created when attempting to move on from personal tragedy.
THE MID-NIGHT DRIVER (dir: Alex Cherney) – MIDWEST PREMIERE - When a young girl summons a driver using a seemingly innocent ritual, she must fulfill his demands if she ever wants to get back home in 1992 Long Island. A taught, atmospheric, descent into paranormal paranoia; THE MID-NIGHT DRIVER is one of the freshest and most captivating horror films of the decade. Do not miss it's 2nd ever screening, only at MidWest WeirdFest.
PEEPING TODD (dir: Josh Munds) - MIDWEST PREMIERE - When his peeping passions become compromised, Todd decides he’ll do whatever it takes to continue stalking his beloved Claire. An obsessive HOA fleet and a dense boyfriend are obstacles Todd must dance around if he wants to sing his way into Claire’s heart. As Claire gets wrapped up in the lies of her fiancé and the web of her stalker, she must escape the two most toxic relationships she’s ever faced. Disturbing, toe-tapping fun, this gloriously deranged musical has to be seen (and heard) to be believed.
PERSONHOOD (dir: Richard Jordan) - MIDWEST PREMIERE - In a near-future world, a lonely, physically challenged man purchases a companion robot to escape his isolation. But his own insecurities and a jealous brother threaten his chances of ever finding love. PERSONHOOD captivates the viewer, drawing us in to a story which becomes increasingly difficult to watch, but hooks so deep that one is unable to look away. A lo-fi sci-fi masterpiece.
THE PHILIP EXPERIMENT (dir. Thomas Eliot) - WORLD PREMIERE - Inspired by a parapsychology experiment from 1972, a team of paranormal researchers led by an unscrupulous documentary filmmaker try to summon the ghost of a fictional character. This found footage gem blurs the lines between real paranormal history and edge-of-your-seat terror.
PSYCHOPOMP (dir: Jeremy Sher ) - MIDWEST PREMIERE – A young man steals a Hearst from a funeral home. Soon after he narrowly escapes a run in with locals at a dive bar, and picks up a female hitchhiker in the process, who joins him on his mission. PSYCHOPOMP has the makings of a mumblecore classic; resonates with the type of weird cool of an early Hal Hartley film; and is steeped in the spirit of early 90s American indie cinema.
THE RULES OF ATTRACTION (dir: Roger Avery) – MEMORIAL SCREENING - Come and join us for a very special retrospective screening of THE RULES OF ATTRACTION, to commemorate the life of the film’s departed star James Van Der Beek. Since it’s release in 2002, THE RULES OF ATTRACTION, has been all but forgotten by the mainstream. Often misunderstood, and almost never given the attention it deserves, it is an incredible film: Hilarious, disturbing, poignant, and as much a snapshot of late 90s early 2000s misplaced machismo as the much better know FIGHT CLUB. This dark satire of nihilistic college life - masterfully directed by Roger Avary (PULP FICTION) and based on the novel by best-selling and infamous author Bret Easton Ellis (AMERICAN PSYCHO) - features one of Van Der Beek’s best and most memorable performances.
SUNSET STRIP KILLERS (dir. Chad Ferrin) - WORLD PREMIERE - From prolific modern master of horror exploitation, Chad Ferrin (THE CHAIR, DEEP ONES, ED KEMPER), comes this vicious true crime stunner. Los Angeles, 1980. Beneath the glittering lights of the Sunset Strip, a horrifying tale of obsession and bloodshed unfolds. Carol Bundy, a lonely nurse, crosses paths with Doug Clark, a charming but dangerously unstable man. Drawn into his web of deceit and depravity, Carol's quiet existence spirals into a nightmare she never imagined.
VARIATIONS ON VIOLENCE (dir: Zachary Nichols) – WORLD PREMIERE – Johnny – a traumatized military drone pilot - and Mary are siblings bound together through childhood abandonment, scraping by in a dead-end rural town. Through tragedy, the film’s reality shifts into an abstract afterlife, where personal guilt is stripped of its human scale and dissolves into something vast and impersonal. This is a masterful and breathtaking feature directorial debut. Nichols was a collaborator with David Lynch, and fans of the late auteur will feel Lynch’s presence resonate in some sequences.
WAKING STATE (dir: Andrew Salerno) – MIDWEST PREMIERE - After watching a top secret videotape, a small town law clerk must track down the tape's origin and its connection to a deeper conspiracy. An artfully crafted and compelling thriller, riffing on the great conspiracy movies and shows of the past – from the 70s films of Alan J. Pakula through THE X-FILES and THE LONE GUNMEN - but with a contemporary, and indie, edge.
WE PUT THE WORLD TO SLEEP (dir. Adrian Tofei) – WISCONSIN PREMIERE - The highly anticipated, genre-bending film, from cult director Adrian Tofei (BE MY CAT: A FILM FOR ANNE) and Duru Yücel. Part reality-bending sci-fi, part chilling horror, part domestic drama, this film masterfully subverts and surpasses the conventional tropes of found footage. Adrian and Duru get lost in the characters they play in an apocalyptic film and embark on a secret mission to end the world for real. What follows goes beyond their wildest imagination.
Full program and schedule here.
Buy festival passes and tickets to individual sessions here.
Durring the festival tickets and passes also available at the Micon Downtown box office.