A New Festival (From My Couch)
Still reeling from the two festivals I covered last year, I was primed and ready for more horror goodness in 2026. Little did I know that it would come so early. Enter Panic Fest — a Kansas City, Missouri-based horror film festival held at the historic Screenland Armour Theater. Where my last two festivals had been attended in-person, I would be going the virtual route (which is funny, considering I’m only 3 hours away).
After securing Press credentials, I was ready not only for the knowns, but the unknowns. There would be horror, but what kinds? How invested could one be while watching from their couch as opposed to a theater? What was the general vibe like? With my handy list of screeners, merch (I had purchased beforehand), and a plan to divide and conquer — I went into the festival filled to the brim with excitement.
Always Online
Most of the films I cover here on Let’s Talk Terror are done virtually; I receive a screener, watch it, and write about it. It was the same for Panic Fest. Actually going to a festival in person is priority, but for people like me — those who live farther out, those with kids, those with jobs, those with any other reason that keeps them from a theater — having a virtual option was a godsend. I could watch at my leisure, in between meetings, early in the morning, any time I wanted. That gave me free reign to choose specific films to watch (hello, The Barn Part III and Frogman Returns) and to fit in horror to the gaps in my already-busy schedule with shorts.
But there are cons for virtual attendees, mainly missing out on live audience reactions, something that makes horror a blast to watch. Compared to my previous experiences at Telluride and KORK, I didn’t get that sitting next to the director, stepping in popcorn pieces, and screaming along with the audience experience. But at the end of the day, I’m grateful to still join in on the fun through social media and Panic Fest‘s Gather virtual hangout space.
No matter how you participate in a festival, there is community space for you, and Panic Fest made sure to include as many people as possible.
Now Playing
And now, of course, the main reason for attending a film festival is to watch movies. This year’s Panic Fest featured a roughly even split of feature films and shorts, peppered with live events here and there. For the week-long festival, I caught 7 feature films and 14 shorts — that’s roughly 800 minutes, or 13 hours of fear.
And I barely scratched the surface!
Among the films I watched, I saw found footage, body horror, cryptid and Halloween madness, religious and psychological thrillers, modern monsters… there was truly something for everyone.
While I didn’t necessarily notice any trends among the movies, I did further my love for not only shorts, but for the horror community as a whole. Day after day I would post about what I watched, having others who had never heard of Panic Fest want to join in the fun. I had filmmakers reaching out to me to see if I would be tuning in for their movie (which I always obliged). I showed my audience not only how much fun I was having, but that the indie horror community in particular was thriving, making the coolest, scariest, most profound cinema I could stomach. And even now, days after the festival concluded, I am still thinking about films like Trad and Halfway Haunted.
Final Thoughts
As this was my first year attending Panic Fest, it was definitely an exciting experience adding that “leisurely” angle. Even disregarding the fact I was working as Press, every aspect of the virtual option was perfect, flowing so smoothly that I almost fest like I was actually there. The selection of films was amazing, and not one moment of the festival — be that watching the screeners, meeting up in Gather, or schmoozing over socials — was dull. Panic Fest really nailed it.
For my indie film friends out there, I urge you to consider submitting your work to Panic Fest in the future. Their eye for finding gems, glimmers of gore, fantastical frights, abominable atrocities, and horrific… well, horrors, is unmatched. And to have those presented to fans in person and online is something I wouldn’t pass up.
When thinking of attending in the future, that’s a no-brainer; the answer is YES. My only issue is deciding whether to go in person, or to watch at home in my pajamas again… good thing Panic Fest has a hybrid option!
Follow Panic Fest for more creeps and chaos! See my other reviews here: The Barn Part III, Hide, Itch, Frogman Returns, and a plethora of YouTube Shorts!
