Terror-Fi Film Festival 2025 is here!

The 2025 edition of the Terror-Fi Film Festival launches at the end of October, and the annual festival's got some stonking films laid on for 2025.

Here's what's coming up and you can get tickets at their website - Terror-Fi Film Festival | New Zealand's Genre Fest

Ticket prices stay the same as last two years – $18.50 Adults and $16.50 Students, Seniors, and Guilds. You can buy a Fan Badge to see all 17 screenings (including all bonus screenings) for just $199 – that’s less than $12 per film!

Here are the 2025 Terror-Fi Film Fest dates

Opening Night (all cities)

29 October

Wellington

30 October – 2 November

Auckland

6 November – 9 November

Christchurch

12 November – 18 November

Bonus Screenings (all cities)

5 + 12 + 13 November

2025 FILM LINE-UP

Bugonia

NEW ZEALAND PREMIERE -OPENING NIGHT FILM

Director: Yorgos Lanthimos
Cast: Emma Stone, Jesse Plemons, Aidan Delbis

The new masterpiece from Yorgos Lanthimos opens Terror-Fi 2025. 90% on Rotten Tomatoes and best enjoyed in a cinema full of people!

“… you’ll find much to enjoy in the heightened performances, pitch-black humor, bursts of gory violence, and bizarre twists, including a mind-melting final sequence.” – Radhika Seth, Vogue 

Two conspiracy obsessed young men kidnap the high-powered CEO of a major company, convinced that she is an alien intent on destroying planet Earth.

SISU: ROAD TO REVENGE

NEW ZEALAND PREMIERE

OPENING NIGHT FILM 2

Director: Jalmari Helander
Cast: Stephen Lang, Richard Brake, Jorma Tommila

Do not miss the wildest action film of 2025 on the big screen. 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and the perfect way to open Terror-Fi 2025!

This Terror-Fi exclusive will be your only chance to see the film in a cinema!

“… builds off the gleeful, comic-level brutality of the original with an inventive, more direct sequel.” – Jeff Ewing, Collider

Returning to the house where his family was brutally murdered during the war, ‘the man who refuses to die’ dismantles it, loads it on a truck, and is determined to rebuild it somewhere safe in their honor. When the Red Army commander who killed his family comes back hellbent on finishing the job, a relentless, eye-popping cross-country chase ensues – a fight to the death, full of clever, unbelievable action set pieces.

PRIMATE

NEW ZEALAND PREMIERE

CLOSING NIGHT FILM

Director: Johannes Roberts
Cast: Jessica Alexander, Troy Kotsur, Johnny Sequoyah

See the film that sent the Fantastic Fest crowd wild at its World Premiere … and won’t be in cinemas until 2026. What a way to finish Terror-Fi 2025!

“If you wish that Nope had just doubled-down on the chimp violence, Primate is absolutely the blood-flavored popcorn flick you’ve been waiting for.” – Richard Whittaker, Austin Chronicle

After returning home to Hawaii for summer break, Lucy is reunited with her father Adam, sister Erin and their pet chimpanzee Ben. Lucy and her friends Kate, Hannah and Kate’s older brother Nick decide to throw a pool party to take advantage of an empty house after Lucy’s father is called away for work. Unbeknownst to them, Ben is bitten by a rabid animal and the gentle chimpanzee they once knew is no more. The group is forced to barricade themselves in the pool, but with no means of calling for help, they must work together to figure out how to outsmart the now ferocious Ben and survive their ordeal.

KEEPER

ADVANCE SCREENING / BONUS SCREENING

Director: Osgood Perkins
Cast: Tatiana Maslany, Rossif Sutherland, Christin Park

Be one of the first in the world to see the most anticipated horror of 2025 … from the twisted mind of Osgood Perkins. You do not want to miss watching this in a packed cinema!

There’s so much under wraps with this film … it’s gonna be epic going in knowing nothing about the wild ride we’re about to take!

During an anniversary getaway at a remote cabin, a wife is left alone after her husband departs, only to confront a sinister presence that exposes the cabin’s chilling past.

PREDATOR: BADLANDS

ADVANCED SCREENING / BONUS SCREENING

Director: Dan Trachtenberg
Cast: Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatang, Elle Fanning

After the sensational ‘Prey’, we can’t wait to see Dan Trachtenberg’s next fresh and exciting look into the Predator Universe.

A young Predator outcast from his clan finds an unlikely ally on his journey in search of the ultimate adversary.

THE RUNNING MAN

NEW ZEALAND PREMIERE

Director: Edgar Wright
Cast: Glen Powell, Josh Brolin, Colman Domingo, Michael Cera, Lee Pace, Katy O’Brian

In a near-future society, The Running Man is the top-rated show on television—a deadly competition where contestants, known as Runners, must survive 30 days while being hunted by professional assassins, with every move broadcast to a bloodthirsty public and each day bringing a greater cash reward. Desperate to save his sick daughter, working-class Ben Richards is convinced by the show’s charming but ruthless producer, Dan Killian, to enter the game as a last resort. But Ben’s defiance, instincts, and grit turn him into an unexpected fan favorite—and a threat to the entire system. As ratings skyrocket, so does the danger, and Ben must outwit not just the Hunters, but a nation addicted to watching him fall.

WE BURY THE DEAD

NEW ZEALAND PREMIERE

Directors: Zac Hilditch
Cast: Daisy Ridley, Matt Whelan, Brenton Thwaites, Mark Coles Smith

Be the first in New Zealand to see this truly fresh and emotional take on the zombie genre … and it’s not coming to cinemas until February 2026!

“Just when you thought nothing original could come to the zombie genre director Zak Hilditch proves that wrong with the brilliant We Bury The Dead.” – David Griffiths, Subculture Entertainment

Ava, a desperate woman whose husband is missing in the aftermath of a catastrophic military experiment, joins a “body retrieval unit,” but her search takes a chilling turn when the corpses she’s burying start showing signs of life.

NIRVANNA: THE BAND – THE SHOW – THE MOVIE

NEW ZEALAND PREMIERE

Director: Matt Johnson
Cast: Matt Johnson, Jay McCarrol

If you love the unique comedies Terror-Fi brings you, like ‘Hundreds of Beavers” and ‘Greener Grass’, this gem is for you! 100% on Rotten Tomatoes and not to be missed in a crowded cinema!

“Consistently hilarious and mesmerizing in its sheer audacity and execution. There has never been a movie like this before, and I have a hard time imagining there ever will be again.” – Nathan McVay, HeyUGuys 

In a harebrained attempt to get their band booked at a local dive bar, two lovable losers convert an old RV into a time machine taking a temporal road trip leaving behind a trail of destruction, alternate timelines and a broken friendship.

DEATHGASM II: GOREMAGEDDON

NEW ZEALAND PREMIERE + Q&A

Directors: Jason Lei Howden
Cast: Milo Cawthorne, Kimberley Crossman, Joshua Blake 

The sequel to the cult Kiwi splatter-metal classic is finally here! Let’s enjoy the blood-soaked carnage together. We’ll crank this one up to 11 for ya!

This Terror-Fi exclusive will be your only chance to see the film in a cinema!

Director, producers and stars attending with special Q&A (Wellington & Auckland).

Brodie is washed-up, broke, and stuck in small-town purgatory. But when he learns that ‘NoizeQuest’, a battle-of-the-bands competition is coming to his town, he sees a shot at redemption – and maybe even a second chance with Medina. One problem: his drummer is missing an arm, and the rest of his band is, well… dead. Luckily, Brodie still has the pages of The Black Hymn, so raising his bandmates from the great beyond is just a riff away. But with every chord comes blood, guts, and the kind of apocalyptic chaos only DEATHGASM can unleash.

FLUSH

NEW ZEALAND PREMIERE + Q&A

Directors: Grégory Morin
Cast: Jonathan Lambert, Élodie Navarre, Elliot Jenicot, Rémy Adriaens

Wild, hilarious, unexpected, and truly original … FLUSH is that festival gem you tell all your friends you found.

This Terror-Fi exclusive will be your only chance to see the film in a cinema!

Middle-aged coke fiend Luc is having a pretty terrible night. Having gone to confront his ex at the club where she works, determined to somehow win back her love, one thing leads to another and he soon finds himself wedged firmly in a toilet, effectively trapping him in a bathroom stall. Trapped, we should mention, with a heap of coke that he stole from the bar’s resident dealer. He’s soon found, setting off an increasingly crazy series of circumstances that veer from the hilarious to the intensely grotesque as Luc’s world is assailed from every conceivable direction in a bizarre race against time that will have you gasping.

THE LEGEND OF OCHI

NEW ZEALAND PREMIERE

Directors: Isaiah Saxon
Cast: Emily Watson, Willem Dafoe, Finn Wolfhard, Helena Zengel

This stunning fantasy adventure from A24 is a beautiful piece of magical escapism. Not to be missed on the big screen.

This Terror-Fi exclusive will be your only chance to see the film in a cinema!

In a remote village on the island of Carpathia, a shy farm girl named Yuri is raised to fear an elusive animal species known as Ochi. But when Yuri discovers a wounded baby Ochi has been left behind, she escapes on a quest to bring him home.

POP

WORLD PREMIERE + Q&A

Directors: Tim Hamilton
Cast: Trenton Colbert, Tim Hamilton, Sarah Munn, Peter Sugden, Raymond Hamilton

Be the first in the world to see New Zealand filmmaker Tim Hamilton’s meta love-letter to independent filmmaking, and the emotional impact of losing a best friend.

A truly unique story and vision from one of the most talented upcoming filmmakers we have in Aotearoa.

Director, producers and stars attending with special Q&A (all cities).

This wasn’t supposed to be a true story, but it became one. American actor Gene came to Aotearoa to be in a movie. His role? A wannabe influencer on a quest to restart the internet. Simple concept. Easy to execute. Yeah, nah. The no-budget indie flick quickly spirals out of control when his Kiwi director’s unprocessed grief wreaks havoc on the production. Tensions boil over. The cast refuses to stay in character. The fourth wall is smashed to pieces. 

BLIND PANIC

WORLD PREMIERE + Q&A

Directors: Mark Willis
Cast: Ralph Johnson, Erroll Shand, Jodie Hillock, Simon Phillips

This homegrown gem is a love letter to crime thrillers, keeping you on the edge of your seat all the way.

Producers attending with special Q&A (all cities).

It is 1992. Louis is released on home detention after serving six years for his involvement in a botched heist. Trapped in suburbia, he fears he is now a sitting duck with his psychotic ex-boss, Prescott, on the hunt for some missing money, and the person responsible. A few doors away lives Madeleine, a blind woman, once vibrant and outgoing, but now fearful even to step out the front door. As Madeleine takes her first steps to re-connect with the outside world, she meets her new neighbour. Though nervous around new people, and oblivious to Louis’ circumstances, a friendship develops. A heat wave engulfs the neighbourhood, and things heat up between the two. But Madeleine soon finds herself caught up in Louis’ past, and in an impossible predicament: Bound, gagged and alone, while Prescott draws closer and closer… 

HER WILL BE DONE

NEW ZEALAND PREMIERE

Directors: Julia Kowalski
Cast: Ralph Johnson, Erroll Shand, Jodie Hillock, Simon Phillips

A gritty and powerful European folk horror, with stunning performances and ‘Carrie’ vibes.

This Terror-Fi exclusive will be your only chance to see the film in a cinema!

Nawojka, 20, dreams of escaping her harsh life working at the family farm. Under the influence of the free-spirited Sandra, Naw experiences trance-like episodes and strange powers, just like her dead mother before her.

PSYCHO THERAPY

NEW ZEALAND PREMIERE

Directors: Tolga Karaçelik
Cast: Steve Buscemi, John Magaro, Britt Lower

A delightfully twisted tale that has you hooked from the first scene and leaves you with a smile on your face. One of those indie gems you love to discover at a festival.

This Terror-Fi exclusive will be your only chance to see the film in a cinema!

A struggling writer in the midst of a divorce befriends a retired serial killer who incidentally becomes his marriage counselor by day, and killing counselor for his next book by night.

BLOKE OF THE APOCALYPSE

WORLD PREMIERE (SERIES) + Q&A

Directors: Charlie Faulks
Cast: Charlie Faulks, Jack Marlin, Anika Moa, Loren Taylor

In Terror-Fi’s first ever series screening, be the first in the world to see this side-splitting zombie apocalypse animated series, from New Zealand’s best upcoming animation talent. Director, producers and stars attending with special Q&A (Wellington & Auckland).

This Terror-Fi exclusive will be your only chance to see the series in a cinema!

In the rural back blocks of New Zealand, a father and son battle a zombie apocalypse and some annoying neighbours, all while taking care of their pet lamb, Lambie, and zombified Mum Julie. 

SHORT FILM SHOWCASE

FREE SESSION – WORLD & NEW ZEALAND PREMIERES

Cities: Wellington only

Come see an incredible range of genre shorts from New Zealand and around the World… for free!  

This signature Terror-Fi event is carefully curated to showcase a range of new talent across a wide mix of genres…. filmmakers and films to look out for in the future!  

In Wellington this year we’ve added a new feature… where you also get to enjoy pitches from up-coming New Zealand feature film genre projects that are in currently development! 

Please note: the session is free but a booking fee applies both for online and in-person ticket sales.  

FAN BADGE

Enjoy all 17 screenings at Terror-Fi 2025 for just $199 … that’s under $12 each!

Every Fan Badge holder receives a special Swag Bag full of goodies! You’ll also get priority reservation on seats at our free Short Films Showcase.

This year’s line-up has a stunning range of blockbuster hits and indie gems … World and New Zealand Premieres … across a wide range of genres!

16 Feature Films (including the Bonus Screenings) and our first ever Limited Series!

Fan Badges are limited so get in quick!