Credits

Regie

Shinya Tsukamoto

Cast

Kenji Sawada, Naoto Takenaka, Megumi Ueno

Genre

Comedy, Horror, Fantasy

Speelduur

89 minuten

Land

Japan

Taal

Japanese

Ondertiteling

English

Storyline

A school was built on one of the Gates of Hell, behind which hordes of demons await the moment they will be free to roam the Earth. Hiruko is a goblin sent to Earth on a reconnaissance mission. He beheads students in order to assemble their heads on the demons’ spider-like bodies. Hieda, an archaeology professor, and Masao, a haunted student, investigate the gory deaths.

The films are part of the program Shapes of Fear B-Movie Oddities and Experimental Asian Horror. Shapes of Fear brings together Asian B-movies, cult oddities, and experimental horror that explore the strange shapes of fear. The program features two Japanese double bills alongside a selection of Asian horror shorts from East and Southeast Asia. From Malay folklore and the Pontianak to cyberpunk body-horror, these films twist genre conventions as bodies mutate, the everyday turns uncanny, and terror slips into laughter. Rooted in the unruly spirit of the B-movie, these works embrace chaos, camp, and visible seams, revealing cinema as an act of creative rebellion. Horror is at its most compelling when it reveals its own construction. 

Curated by Marieke Peeters: a visual artist and curator based in The Hague, the Netherlands. She creates immersive installations, sculptures, and films that combine material research with performance. Her recent work has focused on the obake yashiki, the Japanese haunted house attraction exploring how fear can become a catalyst for connection and reflection. 

Find out more about the program and other events here