The former Institute of Anatomy once housed mummies, murder victim corpses, Ned Kelly's skull and champion racehorse Phar Lap's heart. This Halloween, "one of Australia's most haunted buildings" will host its inaugural overnight movie marathon – for those who dare to join.
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The National Film and Sound Archive of Australia in Acton will kick off its fright-fest with a haunting story from local ghost hunter Tim the Yowie Man, followed by a screening of seven Australian horror films.
The program includes the iconic 1981 Road Games by Richard Franklin with the ultimate scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis, more recent movies such as The Babadook – which didn't last long in Australian cinemas but did well abroad – and some low budget Aussie films such as Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead.
The archive's education and community engagement manager Cris Kennedy is excited for 100 Bloody Acres which he said was Australia's most downloaded film in one recent year.
"Australian filmmakers don't have anywhere near the budget that British or any international filmmakers often have to work with, so often they are most successful when they work in a genre," he said.
"And horror is one of the genres where Australian filmmakers excell."
As a warm-up for the spookathon, NSW ghost-busters are spending the night in the 1930 building trying to contact the afterlife. Mr Kennedy said his colleagues have shared stories of "ghost sightings" around the building, usually in the library. The basement used to have a lab for forensic examinations of animals and the area was used as a morgue.
Some "zombies" involved in the night are taking part in the Canberra Zombie Walk on Saturday October 31 (Halloween) who will shuffle stiffly through streets and malls. It's raising funds and awareness for the Brain Foundation.
Tickets for the fright-fest are $20 and are available at trybooking.com/IISK
Fright-fest schedule:
- 9pm – Door open. Food and drinks available
- 10pm – Ghost story from Tim the Yowie Man
- 10.30pm – Razorback (1984, 95mins, M)
- 12.10am – Road Games (1981, 101mins, M)
- 2.05am – The Loved Ones (2009, 84mins, MA)
- 3.40am – The Babadook (2014, 93mins, M)
- 5.35pm – Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead (2014, 98mins, MA)
- 7.15am – 100 Bloody Acres (2012, 91mins, MA)
- 8.45am – Breakfast
