Imagine Film Festival

The Imagine Film Festival (formerly known as the Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival) is an annual film festival held in the capital of the Netherlands. Focused on horror, fantasy and science fiction films, it aims to acquaint both seasoned cinema-goers and the general public with the finest specimen of the genre from across the globe.

The history of the festival began in 1982 when the Alhabmra Theatre hosted the first Weekend of Terror. The first official edition of the Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival was held in 1984. Its program featured a retrospective of David Cronenberg’s works of which many are considered the classics of body horror.

Over the years, the festival has become one of the major fantastic film festivals in Europe. To remind the attendees of where it all started, the Imagine Film Festival hosts the annual Night of Horror for die-hard horror fans. It’s a nighttime film marathon featuring four horror movies.

The Imagine Film Festival screens about 50 feature films and 25 shorts from different countries, acquainting its audience with both latest blockbusters and low-budget independent films. A large part of the program consists of obscure films, cult films, exploitation films and genre films. Along with film screenings, the program of the festival includes workshops and masterclasses, symposia, talks and panels featuring filmmakers, screenwriters and actors, exhibitions, and other events and activities. Imagine attracts around 17,000 attendees every year.

The Imagine Film Festival presents a number of awards in several categories. The Black Tulip Award is awarded by the festival’s international jury to the best fantastic film. The MovieZone award is presented by the youth jury, ranging from 16 to 19 years old. The Silver Scream Award is the festival’s audience award.

Imagine is one of the affiliated members of the European Fantastic Film Festivals Federation, thus it is eligible to present the Méliès d’Argent (Silver Méliès) Award. It is the award for the best European fantastic film which is presented to the best feature film and the best short film. The award was named after Georges Méliès, a French illusionist and film director famous for his innovations in the use of special effects.

Since 2000, the festival has also been presenting the Lifetime/Career Achievement Award. Past recipients include Wes Craven, Dario Argento, Paul Verhoeven, Lloyd Kaufman, Paul Naschy, Ray Harryhausen, Roger Corman, Terry Gilliam, Tim Burton, Dick Maas, Rutger Hauer, Stan Lee, Neil Jordan, and Alejandro Jodorowsky.

In 2020, the event was held online due to the coronavirus pandemic.