FOUNDER’S MANIFESTO

By Fernando Perezgil

I founded the Sinister Horror Film Festival not as a marketplace, not as a checklist of films—but as a declaration. A reminder that horror is not a gimmick, not a genre you grow out of. It is one of the oldest forms of storytelling known to humanity. It is ritual. It is rebellion. It is memory.

Horror reveals what the rest of cinema often hides. It explores pain without apology. It sees beauty in destruction. It dares to look where others avert their eyes. At Sinister, we honor those who take that risk—not only to entertain, but to disturb, confront, and transform.

This festival was born out of admiration for the creators who do not fit into neat categories. The ones who write in shadows, who edit with urgency, who compose dread like a symphony. Directors, screenwriters, musicians, photographers, editors—every one of them is essential in keeping this genre alive and mutating.

Sinister is more than an event. It is a platform. It is a home. It is a challenge to do better—for horror, and through horror.

To all the storytellers who carry darkness with purpose: this is your space.

— Fernando Perezgil

Founder & Festival Director

Sinister Horror Film Festival