One of the initiatives that bring Blood Window to life is Tinta Oscura, which invites storytellers interested in films of the fantasy genre to submit original and unpublished stories to the competition. Blood Window works in conjunction with Del Toro Films, which will produce the adaptation of the winning entry, which can be in English or Spanish.
The first place winner will also receive $10,000 USD as payment for the rights to the unpublished story. This year’s finalists include Demián Rugna, Argentine director whose most recent film, When Evil Lurks, has won awards at Sitges and Mórbido Fest.
The finalists are:
All Your Fears (Todos tus miedos, Sandra Becerril, Mexico)
Chloe – a famed American horror author – has her car breakdown in a Mexican village with Mayan ruins, terrorized by the spirit of a serial killer looking for a way out of hell.
Genetic, (Genética, Demián Rugna, Martín Amoya, Argentina)
Rita, suffering panic attacks, loses touch with husband Juan in the woods, then stumbles across a strange community, guarded by a hostile ranger, whose inhabitants are the result of years of genetic engineering. Demián Rugna shares the writing credits with Martín Amoya.
Itzpapálotl, The Obsidian Butterfly, (Itzpapálotl, La Mariposa de Obsidiana), Helena Aguilera, writer-director-producer, Mexico)
An earthquake lays bare a buried part of the city of Tenochitlán, with Pepe Cortés, an archeologist, discovering an obsidian crucifix, revealing the image of Itzpapálotl, the monstrous goddess of vengeance, death and rebirth.
The Other Side, (El Otro Lado, Junior Rosario, Dominican Republic)
A newborn baby is discovered abandoned in a forest. As he matures into man, he is haunted by visions which connect him to the Other Side, positioning him as a conduit between the two worlds.
Past (Im)Perfect, (Pretérito Imperfecto, David Caiña Pérez, Spain)
2063: an elderly couple, sunk in tedium, travel back to 2023 and their first date in a run-down Chinese restaurant where they experience first signs of infatuation. They are watched by their older selves at another table who are barred from interacting with them.
The Time, (El Horario, Hector Cañas, Sergio Salgueiro, Argentina)
In the 1930s, a boatman on the Paraná River kidnapped and devoured children in the name of a supernatural being, El Horario. Nearly 100 years later, Paula arrives at Víboras, desperate to cross the Paraná to Paraguay. But El Horario is still under the waters, and it is hungry.
The winner will be announced on December 1st, during Blood Window. The jury is comprised by: Pablo Guisa (Grupo Mórbido), Luis Rosales (Curtas Festival do Imaxinario), writer-director Santiago Fernández Calvete (The Exorcism of God), Néstor Sánchez Sotelo (Del Toro Films) and Javier Fernández Cuarto (Blood Window).