Gore in the Desert: Palm Springs's First Horror Film Fest

Palm Springs doesn't really conjure up images of terror, unless you have an unnatural fear of palm trees and crystalline pools, but that may change after this week's horror film festival.

The desert city will host the first ever Feartastic film festival on Halloween and the two following evenings. The first night's activities center around a Halloween bash at the brand-new Hard Rock hotel, with the screenings and discussions on Friday and Saturday night.

One much anticipated film is Contracted, about a young queer woman who engages in a one-night stand with a man, only to see her body overcome with strange and increasingly disturbing symptoms. Also of note is Delivery, about a couple chronicling their pregnancy for a reality camera crew before the production spirals out of control, and Here Comes the Devil, where two children disappear in Mexico before reappearing, but very changed.

Aspiring filmmakers could also take advantage of panels on producing independent horror movies made. For more information, click here.