Elementary school teachers deal with the occasional little monster, but in the horror film Cooties, an entire faculty faces an army of disobedient, hungry zombie children that are wilder and far more dangerous than any human troublemakers. Starring Elijah Wood, Rainn Wilson, Alison Pill, and Leigh Whannell, Lionsgate Premiere's Cooties will kick off the 2015 Stanley Film Festival:

Press Release - "April 6, 2015 (Denver, CO) - The Stanley Film Festival, (SFF) produced by the Denver Film Society and presented by NBC Universal's Chiller, announced today that Lionsgate Premiere's COOTIES will open the festival on Thursday, April 30, 2015.

From the minds of Leigh Whannell (co-creator of Saw and Insidious) and Ian Brennan (co-creator of Glee), COOTIES is a horror comedy with unexpected laughs and unapologetic thrills. When a cafeteria food virus turns elementary school children into little killer savages, a group of misfit teachers must band together to escape the playground carnage. The film stars Elijah Wood (The Hobbit, Lord of the Rings), Rainn Wilson (The Office), and Alison Pill (The Newsroom) as teachers who fight to survive the mayhem while hilariously bickering in an uncomfortable love triangle on the worst Monday of their lives. The Sundance hit COOTIES will be one of the debut releases of the newly-launched Lionsgate Premiere label, which will release the film on September 18th in select theaters and on demand.

SpectreVision and Glacier Films present COOTIES, starring Elijah Wood, Rainn Wilson, Alison Pill, Jack McBrayer, Leigh Whannell, Nasim Pedrad, Ian Brennan and Jorgé Garcia. The film is directed by Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion from a screenplay by Leigh Whannell and Ian Brennan. Daniel Noah, Josh C. Waller and Elijah Wood produce along with Tove Christensen, Georgy Malkov and Steven Schneider. Ian Brennan, Leigh Whannell, Gevond Andreasyan, Sarik Andreasyan, Hayden Christensen, Seth William Meier and Vladmir Poliakov serve as Executive Producers.

The SFF welcomes back 2014 Visionary Award Winners and the producers of COOTIES, Elijah Wood, Daniel Noah and Josh Waller of SpectreVision. During last year's festival, the team teased audiences with clips from COOTIES and THE BOYas part of their panel, SPECTREVISIONARIES.

"The Stanley Film Festival is the coming together of people who love horror for all the right reasons," says SpectreVision co-founder Daniel Noah. "We promised we'd be back and we are thrilled to bring COOTIES, as well as THE BOY, to the Festival this year."

The film will play at the Concert Hall on the Stanley Hotel campus Thursday, April 30, with Elijah Wood (Open Windows), Alison Pill (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World), Leigh Whannell (Insidious: Chapter 2) and Directors Jonathan Millot and Cary Murnion in attendance. Immediately following the film, guests will be treated to a "School Cafeteria" themed party in the McGregor Ballroom. Local bands Snake Rattle Rattle Snake and Bad Luck City will provide the soundtrack for the evening.

"This year's Stanley Film Festival promises to showcase the best horror films and celebrate the art of horror in some most unexpected ways," said Denver Film Society Festival Director Britta Erickson. "We invite you to join us for this special presentation and party, but we suggest you stay away from the chicken nuggets."

A limited number of Opening Night tickets are now available. Opening Night is also available to Redrum badge holders. To purchase your pass, visit www.stanleyfilmfest.com.
Online & Social Media: www.stanleyfilmfest.com, "Like" SFF on Facebook (Facebook.com/StanleyFilmFest), "Follow" SFF on Twitter and Instagram (@StanleyFilmFest) , join the conversation using the hashtag #StanleyFilmFest

2015 Stanley Film Festival Sponsors:
PRESENTING: Chiller; HOST VENUES: The Stanley Hotel, Reel Mountain Theater, Historic Park Theater; GOVERNMENT: Colorado Tourism Office, Colorado Office of Film, Television and Media, Town of Estes Park; MEDIA: Badass Digest, Fangoria, Shock Til You Drop, Daily Dead, Bloody Disgusting, IndieWire, Crave Online; COMMUNITY: 13th Floor Haunted House, Telluride Horror Show, Estes Park Shuttle; EVENT: Ghost Pines, Kronenbourg ; FESTIVAL FRIENDS: Zerosun Pictures, Fandor, Scream Factory!,CEAVCO Audio Visual

Online & Social Media: www.stanleyfilmfest.com, "Like" SFF on Facebook (Facebook.com/StanleyFilmFest), "Follow" SFF on Twitter and Instagram (@StanleyFilmFest) , join the conversation using the hashtag #StanleyFilmFest

2015 Stanley Film Festival Sponsors:
PRESENTING: Chiller; HOST VENUES: The Stanley Hotel, Reel Mountain Theater, Historic Park Theater; GOVERNMENT: Colorado Tourism Office, Colorado Office of Film, Television and Media, Town of Estes Park; MEDIA: Badass Digest, Fangoria, Shock Til You Drop, Daily Dead, Bloody Disgusting, IndieWire, Crave Online; COMMUNITY: 13th Floor Haunted House, Telluride Horror Show, Estes Park Shuttle; EVENT: Ghost Pines, Kronenbourg ; FESTIVAL FRIENDS: Zerosun Pictures, Fandor, Scream Factory!,CEAVCO Audio Visual

About the film:
SpectreVision and Glacier Films present COOTIES, starring Elijah Wood, Rainn Wilson, Alison Pill, Jack McBrayer, Leigh Whannell, Nasim Pedrad, Ian Brennan and Jorgé Garcia. The film is directed by Jonathan Milott and Cary Murnion from a screenplay by Leigh Whannell and Ian Brennan. Daniel Noah, Josh C. Waller and Elijah Wood produce along with Tove Christensen, Georgy Malkov and Steven Schneider. Ian Brennan, Leigh Whannell, Gevond Andreasyan, Sarik Andreasyan, Hayden Christensen, Seth William Meier and Vladmir Poliakov serve as Executive Producers."

  • Derek Anderson
    About the Author - Derek Anderson

    Raised on a steady diet of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps books and Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Derek has been fascinated with fear since he first saw ForeverWare being used on an episode of Eerie, Indiana.

    When he’s not writing about horror as the Senior News Reporter for Daily Dead, Derek can be found daydreaming about the Santa Carla Boardwalk from The Lost Boys or reading Stephen King and Brian Keene novels.