The Chicago Horror Film Festival is almost like a mini Oscars for horror movies.
"We have a red carpet, we have photographers, we have press showing up," said festival director Chris Vecchio. "It's like instead of going out to L.A., just come to the Logan Theatre next weekend, and you're going to experience Hollywood in Chicago."
Vecchio said more than 150 independent horror films from around the globe will be shown at the festival. They're up for various awards, such as Best Horror Chicago, Best LGBTQ+ Horror and Best Final Girl. About 30 films are Chicago local.
He said this is the 26th iteration of the festival.
"We took it over about three years ago, fellow filmmakers, and what we wanted to do is to create a film festival for filmmakers," Vecchio said.
At the event, festivalgoers will be able to chat with actors and directors, all independent filmmakers. Vecchio said it's often these creatives who tend to make some of the best movies, especially in the horror genre.
"It's all 100% coming out of their soul," he said. "I think that's where you get just a clean horror film showcasing their talents. And that's what's exciting about indie horror."
He said the goal of the festival is to foster a greater appreciation for indie horror and show that it can be just as good, if not better, than larger, studio-backed productions.
"My ultimate goal is to have these filmmakers sign deals," he said. "We had a couple films in the last two years get signed, which is exciting. We just need to bring the focus to indie films ... there is so much talent out there."
The Chicago Horror Film Fest takes place Friday through Sunday at the Logan Theatre. You can buy tickets online.