Master of horror and George A. Romero is joining forces with the Toronto International Film Festival for LIVING DREAD: THE CINEMA OF GEORGE A. ROMERO. Running from October 31st to November 4th at the gorgeous TIFF Lightbox Theatre, the series features every major Romero work (of course, that long list is subjective but TIFF have pretty much nailed it), with some of them 35mm prints. Even more importantly, many of the shows will be hosted by Romero himself, who will engage in conversation with series mastermind and TIFF programmer Colin Geddes and welcome questions from the no doubt packed audience.

Here’s the schedule:

• Wednesday, October 31st at 7:00 p.m., Geddes will sit down with Romero for a special hour long "In Conversation," in which a myriad of clips will screen and Romero will riff on his rich, inimitable body of work.

Then…

• Wednesday, October 31st, 9:30p.m. CREEPSHOW (1982)

• Thursday, November 1st, 6:30 p.m. MARTIN (1977, Introduced and hosted by Romero)

• Thursday, Novemember 1st, 9:00 p.m  THE CRAZIES (1973)

• Friday, November 2nd, 9:00 p.m. MONKEY SHINES (1988)

• Saturday, November 3rd 5:00 p.m. NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968, Introduced and hosted by Romero) / 7:30 p.m. DAWN OF THE DEAD (1979) / 10:15 p.m. DAY OF THE DEAD

• Sunday, November 4th, at 7:30 p.m. As a special bonus, Romero hand picks one of his favorite pictures: Michael Powell’s still dangerous and underrated 1960 thriller PEEPING TOM

Here’s programmer Colin Geddes special note about this remarkable screening series:

As a proud young horror/sci-fi movie addict, I was aware of the importance and influence of George Romero's Night of the Living Dead long before I ever saw the film. Growing up in rural Ontario in the 1970s with no late-night horror offerings on the two channels our black-and-white Phillips television received, I wasn't able to see Night until the advent of home video, at which point I rolled pennies to buy a VHS tape of my very own that I watched over and over again. Yes Barbara, they are coming to get you!

Even at that early age, I could see that there was more to Romero's films than zombies munching human flesh. Lurking in the shadows of his shambling undead are themes of ideology run amok, of rampant, soul-destroying consumerism, the failure of the nuclear family and the total disintegration of (North) American culture and society. One of the true mavericks of American independent cinema, Romero has worked outside the mainstream studio system for almost his entire career, choosing a more socially conscious path than many of his peers and revolutionizing modern horror along the way. Equal parts radical allegorist and carny spook-show operator, Romero knows that telling us tales about the boogeyman helps to prepare us for the horrors of real life.

—Colin Geddes

For more on LIVING DREAD, including ticket info, head to its official HQ.

And keep an eye on FANGORIA tomorrow (Halloween!) for an exclusive new interview with Romero about this amazing series!

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