About

Now in its 13th year, Monster Fest is a celebration of all that is weird and wonderful in the international cult cinema palette – horror, science fiction, fantasy, dark drama, black comedy, animation, and much more.

Founded in 2011 by genre distribution specialists Monster Pictures, Monster Fest is a mix of world premieres, international festival favourites, challenging new discoveries and curated repertory sidebars alongside panels, talks and filmmaker q&as with renowned international and local guests, and a special emphasis on supporting emerging Australian genre talent through the festival and beyond.

From its humble beginnings in Victoria back in 2011 at Cinema Nova to present day with nationwide festivals in partnership with Australia’s largest exhibition chain Event Cinemas, Monster Fest has grown to become the country’s premier genre film festival.

More than a film festival though, Monster Fest is about engagement and a shared experience, uniting its audience as community.

The Producers would like to acknowledge and pay respect to the people of the Kulin Nation as the traditional owners of the land on which Monster Fest takes place.

For Festival Enquiries, contact Monster Fest:
info@monsterfest.com.au

To book or license Monster Pictures titles, contact: info@monsterpictures.com.au

Grant Hardie
Co-founder | Festival Director |
Business Director | Programmer

Grant, an RMIT film graduate, has worked within the Australian film industry for over twenty years in roles ranging from production through distribution. Since Monster Pictures’ inception in 2010, Grant has worked in various capacities within the company and is now Business Manager & Head of Sales. Grant’s passion for film harks back to late nights as a child, waiting for his parents to fall asleep before he would sneak out to the living room to catch a Hammer Horror film on television. This enthusiasm for genre cinema carried through Grant’s adult life and has proved a driving force behind co-founding Monster Pictures. In addition to being the financial manager for the annual Monster Fest in Melbourne, Grant also oversees coordination of year-round ‘Monster Fest Presents’ satellite events.

Jarret Gahan
Online Content Director | Digital Marketing Director | Social Media Manager | Programmer

Jarret is a film writer, critic, commentator, programmer and award-winning documentarian from Melbourne, Australia. He’s the editor-in-chief on the Monster Fest site, a correspondent on ABC Radio and has been a filmmaker for over two decades. Jarret has worked in various capacities within film from director to cinematographer to editor to commentator on numerous promotional and supplemental featurettes for such local and international labels as Umbrella Entertainment, Madman Entertainment, Via Vision Entertainment, Arrow Video, Lionsgate, Kino Lorber, Severin Films, Second Sight Films, Vinegar Syndrome and 88 Films among others. Aside from the day-to-day running of the Monster Fest site and social platforms, Jarret creates and manages digital campaigns for both Monster Fest and key affiliates along with being a head programmer for the festival and key liaison between filmmakers, sponsors and cinema management for the festival also.

Ben Hellwig
Technical Director | Print Traffic | Programmer

Ben has worked in all aspects of film distribution for over a decade, from acquisitions to product development, production, design and everything in-between. He has been a head programmer for the festival since its inception and worked as the print traffic coordinator since 2014. Outside of Monster Pictures, Ben is the co-host of the GOOD MOVIE MONDAY podcast, was the co-founder of a boutique VHS distribution label, Celluloid Apocalypse, was a co-producer on the TV programs RUNNING ON EMPTY and BEHIND THE SCREEN for Channel 31, and on the popular web-series  VIDEO HOARDERS. He has also produced various physical releases for Umbrella Entertainment.

Kim Taylor
Operations Manager / Programmer

Kim Taylor is a VCA alumna and has worked on multiple award-winning short films as an assistant director and stills photographer. Her experimental short INTERRUPTED had its world premiere at BIFF – Brooklyn International Film Festival followed by its local premiere at St Kilda Film Festival, also winning a finalists award at Shepparton Shorts Film Festival. Kim has been one of the head programmers at Monster Fest since 2017. Her programming duties range from international and local features to short and student films. She is also the festival’s event photographer when travelling to the MF interstate festivals. Kim oversees the general organisation of the annual festival events as Monster Fest’s Operations Manager, coordinating volunteers and liaising with filmmakers and guests of the festival.

Loretta Kindness
Co-Owner

Based in Brisbane, Loretta is co-owner of Monster Pictures and an Executive Producer of Monster Fest.

Robert Kindness
Co-Owner

Based in Brisbane, Robert is co-owner of Monster Pictures and an Executive Producer of Monster Fest.