Abertoir is an annual horror and horror film festival held in the Aberystwyth Arts Centre in Ceredigion, Wales in November. The festival began as a three-day event and has grown since to a six-day schedule. Abertoir is also a long-standing member of the Méliès International Festivals Federation.
As well as screening new big-budget horror films, classic and independent films form a large and important part of the festival line-up. Each year a short film competition is held, which showcases horror and fantasy short films from around the world. In addition to film screenings, the festival regularly features concerts, theatre shows and masterclasses in its line up.
Read our Code of Conduct. Abertoir is a Good Night Out accredited event.
Read our Covid-19 statement.
Read our environmental statement.
Meet the team
Gaz Bailey
Festival Director & Founder
Nia Edwards-Behi
Festival Co-Director
Rhys Fowler
Festival Co-Director
Vincent Price
Official Festival Patron “Saint”
Support Team
Puck Andrew / Abdallah Dannaoui / Mali Foote / Matt Hardwick / Tristan Bishop / Colin Osborne
Aberystwyth Arts Centre
The award winning Aberystwyth Arts Centre is the largest and busiest arts centre in Wales, with a wide-ranging programme of events and activities across all art forms. It is recognised as a national centre for arts development. It welcomes over 650,000 visitors a year through our doors, including over 98,000 attendances to the unique community arts and education programme.
Aberystwyth Arts Centre is a department of Aberystwyth University, and sits at the heart of the university’s campus, with stunning views over the town of Aberystwyth and along the coastline of Cardigan Bay.
In 2000 Aberystwyth Arts Centre completed a major £4.3 million redevelopment project which was largely funded by the National Lottery. With facilities unrivalled throughout much of the UK, it is recognised as a ‘national flagship for the arts’.
MIFF Membership
Abertoir is proud and honoured to be an adherent member of the MIFF, representing Wales in this highly respected European film festival federation.
Founded in 1987, the Méliès International Festivals Federation (MIFF, formerly the European Fantastic Film Festivals Federation) is a tightly knit network of 25 festivals from 19 countries, promoting European fantastic film across the globe. With a reach of 800.000 spectators annually, the MIFF plays a vital economic and cultural role in the fantastic film scene.
Through our festival network in Europe and with supporting members in Asia, North America and South America, we enhance the visibitily and standing of European fantastic cinema, both among the public and within the industry. Present in 16 countries, it has developed a tight network of festivals that allows films to reach foreign audiences more easily and offers them a potential visibility among the public, press and professionals that it cannot find in film markets.
With the objective of supporting European fantastic cinema artistically and economically, the MIFF has created the Golden Méliès Competition for Best European Fantastic Film. This unique competition, open to feature films and short films, is co-organised by all the European members of the Federation. The films selected in this competition are promoted at the major film markets and at each of the festivals.
As part of Abertor’s role in this unique network, our short films competition will award a Short film Nomination for a Méliès d’Or, meaning the winner from Abertoir will be put forward in the final lineup at the Sitges Film Festival in Spain for the prestigious Méliès d’Or Award for the Best European Fantastic Short Film.
Supported by Ffilm Cymru Wales
Abertoir’s primary funder is Ffilm Cymru Wales. The sole agency for film in Wales, it has a remit to ensure that the economic, cultural and educational aspects of film are effectively represented in Wales, the UK and the world.
Established in July 2006 as a strategic agency, Ffilm Cymru Wales aims to facilitate the emergence of a viable and sustainable Welsh film industry and to promote a vibrant and dynamic film culture.
Abertoir thanks Ffilm Cymru Wales for supporting the festival and bringing it this far!