It’s here! Screenland Armour and Downright Creepy present Panic Fest 2026, which runs March 9–13, 2026 in Kansas City, Missouri. With nearly 150 features, long form shorts, and short films on tap, there is plenty to choose from. I have had an early peek at the following shorts and can recommend that fright-fare aficionados put them on their need-to-see lists.
Following are the official Panic Fest descriptions for the shorts. Click the links for more information, including tickets.
The Scene (director Daniel Meyers)
With the hope of discovering a new lead, a detective revisits the scene of his partner’s brutal murder. Yet, the longer he stays, the harrowing truth begins to reveal itself . . . Link below includes a trailer. (Our featured image for this article is from The Scene.)
https://panicfest.eventive.org/films/69ab1fb0d0cabe43751e0592
Hell’s Half-Acre: Sojourn (director Nicholas Nicastro)
Hell’s Half-Acre is a true-crime Western inspired by the haunting case of the Bloody Benders — America’s first family of serial killers. Set in the lawless heart of post-Civil War Kansas, it combines the brutal realism of In Cold Blood with the macabre intimacy of Sweeney Todd, as a prairie traveller is enticed into the Bender’s power by the attractive and enigmatic Kate (JoHannah James). Based on the acclaimed novel by Nicholas Nicastro, the film delivers a gripping, atmospheric descent into violence, secrecy, and the American hunger for reinvention. Hell’s Half-Acre will find a ready audience as it spins a unique, historically rich tale of psychological suspense and frontier justice. Link below includes a trailer.
https://panicfest.eventive.org/films/69ab1fb0d0cabe43751e050a
Un-Dead (director Bo Webb)
A zombie outbreak is ruining Jane’s first day at her new job, but she does something crazy and unexpected that changes everything. Link below includes a trailer.
https://panicfest.eventive.org/films/69ab1fb0d0cabe43751e05a0
Ekelbrode (director Ben Montgomery-Pierson)
In this dark science fiction tale, Cadulbrockt faces his final night aboard a roaming prison wagon that crawls across a toxic wasteland. Once a soldier in a failed revolution, he now labors under the rule of the Aelsassi empire. When Malta, a brooding mycologist, confronts him in his cell, buried memories of war, guilt, and betrayal resurface. As secrets emerge and trust fractures, Cadulbrockt must decide whether to protect himself or risk everything for a fragile hope of reclamation.
https://panicfest.eventive.org/films/69ab1fb0d0cabe43751e04f2
