The Canary Islands Fantastic Film Festival City of La Laguna Isla Calavera has announced the dates for its eighth edition, which will take place from November 8 to 17, 2024. It will be 10 days of programming, during which the 70th anniversary of Godzilla and the science fiction subgenre known as Kaiju will be celebrated, as revealed in the closing ceremony of the 2023 edition. The enormous mutant beast, which first appeared in 1954 in the film ‘Godzilla,’ produced by Toho Studios, has appeared in more than thirty feature films and remains relevant after the recent ‘Godzilla Minus One,’ a Japanese production. In addition, the highly anticipated ‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire,’ directed by Adam Wingard, is set to premiere in March, bringing together the two iconic creatures against another titan threatening the planet.
Throughout the year, various pre-festival activities will take place where details of the program and guests will be announced. One of the most anticipated pre-events already has a date: the Isla Calavera Tenerife Zombie Walk, City of La Laguna, which will return on Thursday, October 31. People of all ages take centre stage in the parade of the living dead, which will once again roam the historic centre of San Cristóbal de La Laguna on Halloween night. The UNESCO World Heritage city will be filled with participants dressed and made up as classic zombies popularized by cinema, television, comics, and fantasy literature. Free makeup booths, gastronomic spaces, music, entertainment, and other surprises will be part of the fifth edition of this ‘Zombie Walk.
Organized by the Cultural Association Charlas de Cine, Cultural Association Isla Calavera, Multicines Tenerife, and the specialized publication TumbaAbierta.com, with the sponsorship of the City Council of La Laguna, through the Department of Culture, among other public and private entities, the Fantastic Film Festival of the Canary Islands, City of La Laguna Isla Calavera, was established in 2017. In its seven years of existence, it has gained significant national recognition and is considered one of the five most relevant fantasy film festivals in the country.
In the international field, it has also become one of the events of note, thanks to the participation of prominent figures such as John Landis, Joe Dante, Sam J. Jones, Deborah Nadoolman, Sarah Douglas, Rick Baker, Caroline Munro, David Naughton, Enzo G. Castellari, Mick Garris, Neil Marshall, Charlotte Kirk, Nicholas Rowe, Colin Arthur, Jack Taylor, and Hollywood star Amber Heard, along with Eduardo Noriega. They presented their film ‘In the Fire’ in a national première at Isla Calavera.
Other guests who have visited Tenerife as part of the Fantastic Film Festival of the Canary Islands, contributing to the event’s recognition in the world of film, include Belén Rueda, Álex de la Iglesia, Eduardo Noriega, Manuela Velasco, F. Javier Gutiérrez, Víctor Clavijo, Silvia Tortosa, Paco Plaza, Carolina Bang, Paco Cabezas, Víctor Matellano, Juanma Bajo Ulloa, Eugenio Mira, or Lola Dueñas, among others.
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