To coincide with our Halloween themed Horror Promo, we’re highlighting five films directed by SP members and patrons in recent years. Five unique and exciting horror films that challenge the genre’s conventions, and subvert expectations, in the way only independent film can.

Prevenge (2016, Alice Lowe)

One of the more unique genre films of recent years, the feature debut from multitalented writer, director and actress Alice Lowe follows a mother whose unborn child convinces her to go on a murderous rampage. Starring Lowe and her daughter (Lowe was 9 months pregnant at the time of filming), Prevenge subverts many expectations – not least society’s ingrained, often nonsensical expectations of mothers and how they should respond to their pregnancy. Smart and shocking, Lowe’s first film as a director and as a mother manages to expertly dart between tones, as comic as it is moving and thought provoking. Prevenge has been acquired by Kaleidoscope and will be in UK cinemas in early 2017.

Kill List (2011, Ben Wheatley)

A frequent collaborator of Lowe’s, (they wrote Wheatley’s Sightseers together, which could have easily featured here too), Ben Wheatley’s Kill List was the film that really established his name. Having since handled larger budgets with new one Free Fire and J.G. Ballard adaptation High Rise, Wheatley’s Kill List was a low-budget sucker punch of a film – wild, unpredictable and truly nasty. Meshing elements of the occult with more traditional crime drama trappings, Kill List demands viewing without much foreknowledge as it surprises throughout. Kill List is viewable on Amazon Prime, BFI Player and elsewhere.

Nina Forever (2015, Ben and Chris Blaine)

Dubbed a “fucked up fairytale,” the first feature from longtime SP friends and filmmakers the Blaine Brothers, Nina Forever is another of the sort of trope-inverting, genre-subverting type of horror films that those making films outside of traditional models of filmmaking tend to excel at. A love triangle where one of the parties is undead, Nina Forever features a couple (Abigail Hardingham and Cian Barry) facing harassment from a reanimated, perseverant ex (a blood-soaked Fiona O”Shaughnessy) who exposes the difficulty of achieving closure whilst undergoing the process of grieving. Nina Forever has the same kind of tonal control that makes Prevenge successful, proving as funny as it is poignant, and finding levity in the darkness.

The Witch (Robert Eggers)

One of the most hyped horror films of recent years, Robert Eggers first film, The Witch, premiered at Sundance to huge acclaim and a festival prize. A New England folktale about, amongst other things, the disaster that can result from hysteria and the dangers of succumbing to paranoia, The Witch stars, amongst its ensemble, Ralph Ineson (The Office), Kate Dickie (Red Road) and a demonic goat. Showing a level of research and attention to detail that is commendable for a first time filmmaker, the 1830s witch hunt world Eggers creates is rich and precise, and the characters he fills it with believable and varied. There’s a reason The Witch caused such excitement on release. The Witch is on iTunes and Amazon.

An American Exorcism (Ed Boase)

The third feature from director Ed Boase, An American Exorcism was adapted by SP’s Andy Conway for the screen from a story by Andrew Prendergast. As it is yet to be released, not too much is known about the project, but the description is certainly enticing. “A dark comedy that revolves around a Jerry Springer-style show in which members of the public are ‘exorcised’ live on TV.” The shoot took place in Birmingham in August, and the film will appear sometime next year.

Two reminders. One, members you have 48 hours left to submit your script pitches for the Halloween Scream Pitch via our new on-site facilities. Two, non-members, join us for just £19.99 for a year if you sign up by Halloween. Make the next breakthrough horror hit with SP.