CineWyre Film Festival

09/08/2025

The start of something very special.
Come and enjoy the films. Meet some great people. Hear stories from the filmmakers.

Be part of something new and exciting on the Fylde Coast! 🎥

Join us for the launch of CineWyre Film Festival SUNDAY 10 AUGUST, a bold new celebration of cinema rooted in Fleetwood and dedicated to showcasing powerful, diverse storytelling from around the world.

This special screening features a curated selection of world-class, award-winning short films, including BAFTA winners and international festival favourites.
Several films will be introduced by the filmmakers themselves, with a live Q&A offering a unique chance to hear directly from local talent.🎞️ Screening highlights include:

📽️End to End – Introduced by the filmmaker
📽️Bonfire – Introduced by the filmmaker
📽️Rock, Paper, Scissors – BAFTA Winner
📽️Sister Wives – Directed by Louisa Connolly-Burnham, starring Mia McKenna-Bruce
📽️Choked Up – Directed by Jill Worsley, starring Maxine Peake
📽️Last Chance – Multi-award-winning international hit

Whether you're a film lover, filmmaker, or just curious about what’s happening in your creative community, this is your chance to experience the spirit of CineWyre before the full festival programme rolls out.

🎟️ Tickets are limited — book now and be part of the beginning - https://bit.ly/45334BY

CineWyre Film Festival

30/07/2025

23/07/2025

‼ COMING TO TOWN ‼

Cine Wyre Film Festival - The Launch

📅 10 August 25

Includes the short films

🎬End to End (Introduced by the filmmaker)

🎬Bonfire (Introduced by the filmmaker)

🎬Rock, Paper, Scissors (BAFTA Winner)

🎬Sister Wives (Director and lead - Louisa Connolly-Burnham,
Co-starring - Mia McKenna-Bruce

🎬Choked Up – (By TV and film director Jill Worsley and starring Maxine Peake)

BOOK NOW - https://bit.ly/45334BY

21/07/2025

Today’s Behind the Screams looks at ‘Saw’ (2004).

Directed by James Wan, the film is a landmark in horror cinema that redefined the psychological thriller genre through its morally complex narrative, raw aesthetics, and brutal simplicity. What makes Saw unique is not just its goriness, but its underlying existential question: what is the moral cost of survival?

The film follows two strangers trapped in a filthy bathroom, forced to play a sadistic game orchestrated by the Jigsaw Killer, who punishes perceived moral failings with life-or-death choices. Unlike typical slasher villains, Jigsaw never kills directly; he sees himself as a teacher, forcing people to confront the value of their lives. This twisted moral game gives Saw its signature psychological edge.

Its low-budget roots add to its grit and realism, heightening tension through clever editing, oppressive atmosphere, and inventive cruelty. Saw is not about spectacle. It’s about desperation, consequence, and how far people will go when pushed to the edge. The result is a film that’s both viscerally disturbing and thematically compelling.

Stay tuned every Monday for more Behind the Screams! All part of the excitement as we get ready for Fleetwood’s first film festival - Cinewyre!

Follow us here

And if you have a psychologically explorative tale to tell, then submit your feature and short films to us via Film Freeway!

15/07/2025

Marine Hall, Fleetwood is set to roll out the red carpet as it launches the CineWyre Film Festival—a four-day celebration of international cinema 🎥🎞️📽️

From February 26 to March 1, 2026, audiences will be among the first to experience award-winning stories and fresh content from filmmakers around the world.

Attendees can look forward to immersive screenings, live Q&A sessions, interactive workshops, and networking events that bring together emerging talent and industry veterans alike.

The festival features four distinct strands:

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Family Friendly
🎞️ Documentary
🏳️‍🌈 LGBTQ+
😱 Horror/Thriller

Each category will showcase new work, with awards presented for Best Film in each strand, alongside accolades for Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Cinematography, and more.

Submissions are now open via FilmFreeway, with early deadlines running through summer 2025. Selected filmmakers will receive promotional support, including social media spotlights and industry recognition.

Submit your entry: https://bit.ly/3IHfJmt
More information: https://cwfilmfest.com

15/07/2025

This Monday’s BEHIND THE SCREAMS focusses on the classic thriller, Se7en (1995) and why it changed the game, and set the tone for psychological thrillers ever since.

“WHAT’S IN THE BOX?”

We all know the line. But what makes Se7en a groundbreaking film isn’t just its shocking twist. It’s the way it redefined the psychological thriller from the inside out. Here’s why it still haunts us, thirty years later!

John Doe, played by Kevin Spacey, isn’t just a killer. He’s a seer, vaticinating the moral decay of society. Instead of seeking power or chaos, he believes he’s doing God’s work, which makes him more terrifying than your typical villain. Why? Because he believes he’s right. He’s impassioned. He has an ideology. He thinks he’s doing good. He has drive and conviction. And when a killer is driven by moral righteousness – that’s terrifying.

The theme of moral decay is represented by the city: unnamed, grimy, and shrouded in perpetual rain. The city in Se7en isn’t a backdrop. Rather, it’s a moral wasteland: a place where good men burn out – or give up hope – and the bad guys bloom, because they can. The city is corrupt. Ridden with sin. And this gives John Doe his moral reasoning. Like ‘Heretic’ after it, Se7en is constructed like a parodic yet sinister sermon. Each murder is a lesson. A message. An unveiling of humanity’s sinfulness.

Most thrillers reassure us in the end: good prevails over evil and justice is restored. But not Se7en. Oh no. Here, justice becomes part of the punishment. Detective Mills gets exactly what he ‘deserves’, and so does John Doe. It’s a grim, deeply unsettling, almost nihilistic conclusion. And it’s utterly brilliant.

In a genre built on tidy resolution, Se7en leaves things unresolved. No hero. No redemption. Just a brutal reminder that the world is worth fighting for, even if it’s a grim, morally destitute place.

Stay tuned every Monday for more Behind the Screams! All part of the excitement as we get ready for Fleetwood’s first film festival - Cinewyre!

Follow us on IG

And if you have a psychologically explorative tale to tell, then submit your feature and short films to our horror/thriller category!

08/07/2025

This Monday’s BEHIND THE SCREAMS is a look at THE INVISIBLE MAN (2020).

What makes The Invisible Man so powerful isn’t just the twist; it’s the terrifying realism of being disbelieved, stalked, and manipulated.

Elisabeth Moss plays a woman who escapes an abusive relationship, only to be haunted by her ex’s invisible presence. What follows is a masterclass in tension, trauma, and the slow erosion of sanity.

Director Leigh Whannell uses empty rooms, long takes, and silence to make you feel what she feels: isolated, watched, dismissed. The invisibility tech isn’t just a gimmick, but rather a metaphor for coercive control and the subsequent impact on your sense of reality.

The twist? Cathartic and chilling.

The theme? Abuse isn’t always visible. It’s insidious. It’s internalised. It erodes your sense of self as you witness your reality collapse around you.

This is of the most important thrillers of the decade. Have you seen it? If so, share your thoughts below 👇

Stay tuned every Monday for more Behind the Screams! All part of the excitement as we get ready for Fleetwood’s first film festival - Cinewyre!

Follow us here

And if you have a psychologically explorative tale to tell, then submit your feature and short films to our horror/thriller category!

04/07/2025

04/07/2025

It is a busy week at Smit HQ with prep for 4 big Hollywood movies, as well as a record week of submissions for CineWyre Film Festival. But just how does the man himself keep tabs on all the festival's various LGBTQ, Family Friendly, Horror/Thriller and Documentary contenders... well, with the oldest tool in the arsenal.

Help fill the Little Black Book by submitting your short or featurefilm to Cinewyre: everything you need to know is at filmfreeway.com/cinewyre.

30/06/2025

BEHIND THE SCREAMS: Heretic (2024)

“The devil doesn’t always knock. Sometimes, he answers.”

In a genre saturated with jump scares and demonic clichés, Heretic - directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods - breaks the mould. It’s a slow-burn, single-location psychological thriller that redefines religious horror. Tension isn’t found in gratuitous gore, but rather in sustained silence, in its deconstruction of religious ideology, and in the creepy way a man cuts a pie…

It’s subtle. But it’s eerily disconcerting.

Indeed, what makes Heretic unique is its structure: two Mormon missionaries knock on the wrong door and end up in a theological chess match with Hugh Grant’s Mr. Reed, a man whose intellect is more dangerous than any weapon. This is horror as it plagues the mind…the soul.

Where most horror films are about surviving the monster, Heretic asks deeper questions: What do you believe? Why do you believe it? What would you sacrifice to protect that belief?

Yes, it’s polarising. Some viewers may find its climax jarring and its ambiguity frustrating. But that’s the point. Heretic doesn’t care about tying things up unequivocally. Like faith itself, it leaves room for doubt.

This is existential horror. Perhaps the most terrifying kind…

Have you seen Heretic? If so, what makes it different?

Stay tuned every Monday for more Behind the Screams! All part of the excitement as we get ready for Fleetwood’s first film festival - Cinewyre!

Follow us on IG

And if you have a spine-chilling or soul searching tale to tell, then submit your feature and short films to our horror/thriller category!