When and where to see the Cinema Hooligante films at the 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival

Guess what? The 2026 Milwaukee Film Festival is set to light up the screens of the Oriental and Downer theaters April 16-30! (Tickets and passes are on sale NOW.) And MFF’s annual program of all things creepy, kooky, mysterious, and spooky, Cinema Hooligante, is back! And sponsored, as always, by Milwaukee Record! Boo!

“Even outside of the Milwaukee Film Festival, I find genre films to be the most fun to experience with an audience,” says Milwaukee Film’s Programming Director Kerstin Larson. “If you’re not hootin’ and hollerin’ at Hooligante screenings, you’re doing it wrong!”

Indeed! So without further ado, here’s when and where to see the MFF26 Cinema Hooligante films! Possessed vacuum cleaners! Toilet mishaps! Mario Bava’s A Bay Of Blood! Adam Scott! More! We can’t wait! (And stay tuned for info on our annual MFF/Hooligante treasure/scavenger hunt!)

A USEFUL GHOST
(dir. Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke, 2025, Thailand, France, Singapore, Germany)

March is mourning his wife Nat who has recently passed away due to dust pollution. He discovers her spirit has returned by possessing a vacuum cleaner. Winner of the Grand Prix at Cannes Critics’ Week, this film smartly plays with tones and social comments while revisiting classism and oppression throughout Thailand’s history. From ambitious and creative newcomer Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke comes a genre-smashing amalgamation of fantasy, horror, romance, comedy, art house and everything in between.

Friday, April 17 | 10 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Herzfeld Cinema)
Sunday, April 19 | 6:30 p.m. | Downer Theatre (South Cinema)
Thursday, April 30 | 6:45 p.m. | Downer Theatre (South Cinema)

BLACK ZOMBIE
(dir. Maya Annik Bedward, 2026, Canada)

From the flickering screens of Hollywood horror, to the haunted cane fields of colonial Haiti, Black Zombie unearths the buried origins of the zombie, reclaiming it as a symbol of survival and spiritual resistance. This documentary is for all walks of life, horror fans or not, as it digs into common misconceptions around one of fiction’s most popular tropes and leaves you with a firm grasp on what “zombies” are and represent outside of fiction.

Saturday, April 18 | 8:45 p.m. | Downer Theatre (South Cinema)
Wednesday, April 22 | 6:30 p.m. | Downer Theatre (North Cinema)
Friday, April 24 | 9:45 p.m. | Downer Theatre (South Cinema)

BOUCHRA
(dir. Orian Barki, Meriem Bennani, 2025, Italy, Morocco, United States)

Nine years removed from coming out as queer, Bouchra (who, yes, is a coyote) navigates the concrete jungle of New York City in search of inspiration, while also navigating a long distance relationship with her mother. Using vivid 3D animation and adapted from real phone calls made by the filmmaker’s families, this singular, autobiographical debut blends documentary techniques with inventive narrative play. As Morocco’s first animated feature, Bouchra turns personal history into bold cinematic storytelling.

Tuesday, April 21 | 11 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema)
Sunday, April 26 | 7:15 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema)
Monday, April 27 | 9:45 p.m. | Downer Theatre (South Cinema)

BURN
(dir. Makoto Nagahisa, 2025, Japan)

When runaway teen Ju-Ju is embraced by a tribe of misfit youths in Kabukicho, she finds belonging for the first time—until betrayal and despair twist her haven into a prison, and she’s left with one way to take back control. “While it contains some harsh, bleak truths, there’s an empathy for these kids that’s palpable, and it’s the sense that Nagahisa cares about Ju-Ju that makes it work.” (Brian Tallerico, RogerEbert.com)

Friday, April 17 | 10:30 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema)
Monday, April 20 | 9 p.m. | Downer Theatre (North Cinema)
Thursday, April 23 | 9:30 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema)

FLUSH
(dir. Grégory Morin, 2025, France, United Kingdom)

When middle-aged coke fiend Luc goes to confront his ex at the club where she works, determined to win back her love, he somehow finds himself wedged firmly in a toilet, effectively trapping him in a bathroom stall—not to mention the heap of coke that he stole from the bar’s resident dealer. When he’s found, it sets off an increasingly crazy series of circumstances that veer from the hilarious to the intensely grotesque.

Saturday, April 18 | 11:30 p.m. | Downer Theatre (South Cinema)
Friday, April 24 | 11:59 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema)
Wednesday, April 29 | 10:30 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema)

FUCKTOYS
(dir. Annapurna Sriram, 2025, USA)

Part-time sex worker, full-time chaos magnet, AP is convinced the universe has it out for her… and she might be right. She seeks a cosmic reset after a swampy tarot reading tells her she needs $1,000 and a lamb sacrifice to lift her curse. Armed with neither, she sets off on a bizarre quest with her ex-turned-bestie Danni through Trashtown, USA—a dystopian, neon-drenched sprawl of assorted oddballs, bondage cops, and strip clubs galore.

Saturday, April 18 | 10 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Herzfeld Cinema)
Sunday, April 26 | 7:45 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Herzfeld Cinema)
Tuesday, April 28 | 10 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema)

HOKUM
(dir. Damian McCarthy, 2026, United States, Ireland)

When novelist Ohm Bauman (Adam Scott) retreats to a remote inn to scatter his parents’ ashes, he is consumed by tales of a witch haunting the honeymoon suite. Disturbing visions and a shocking disappearance forces him to confront dark corners of his past. An homage to The Shining with an Irish lilt, Damien McCarthy’s follow up to Oddity cements him as a fresh new voice in the horror landscape.

Wednesday, April 22 | 11 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Lubar Cinema)
Saturday, April 25 | 11:30 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Herzfeld Cinema)

MÃRAMA
(dir. Taratoa Stappard, 2025, New Zealand)

1859, North Yorkshire. When young Māori woman Mary arrives from New Zealand, she’s trapped as governess to a wealthy whaler’s granddaughter. Living among her ancestors’ stolen artifacts, she uncovers Sir Cole’s horrific crimes. Embracing her Matakite powers, Mary becomes Mārama and must save Anne and avenge her family by destroying him. Taratoa Stappard’s feature debut brings gothic vibes rivaling Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu infused with a dark history more frightening than any jump-scare.

Saturday, April 25 | 8:45 p.m. | Downer Theatre (South Cinema)
Wednesday, April 29 | 9:15 p.m. | Downer Theatre (North Cinema)

OBSESSION
(dir. Curry Barker, 2026, USA)

After breaking the mysterious “One Wish Willow” to win his crush’s heart, a hopeless romantic finds himself getting exactly what he asked for, but soon discovers that some desires come at a dark, sinister price. “A simple, well-trodden concept transforms into a shocking and unsettling descent into abject horror in Barker’s capable hands, ensuring that his latest is destined to become horror’s latest, well, obsession.” (Meagan Navarro, Bloody Disgusting)

Thursday, April 23 | 9 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema)

SACCHARINE
(dir. Natalie Erika James, 2025, Australia)

Lovelorn medical student Hana joins an obscure weight-loss craze (eating human ashes), but her desperate pursuit of control unleashes a haunting force tied to the dead she devours. As physical transformation dances with supernatural terror, this eerie Australian horror interrogates body image, compulsion, and the dark cost of getting what you want fast.

Saturday, April 18 | 9:45 p.m. | Downer Theatre (North Cinema)
Tuesday, April 21 | 10:15 p.m. | Downer Theatre (North Cinema)
Friday, April 24 | 10 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema)

SEVERIN PRESENTS: A BAY OF BLOOD
(dir. Mario Bava, 1971, Italy)

A wealthy countess is murdered for her bayfront real estate, leading to the systematic slaughter of ruthless developers, greedy heirs, and bad neighbors. After he established the giallo genre with Blood and Black Lace, Mario Bava once again forever altered the horror landscape with A Bay of Blood, bursting onto the scene as the first slasher film. Arrive early for the Severin Films blu-ray booth and get a free branded barf bag for the screening (while supplies last).

Friday, April 17 | 11:59 p.m. | Oriental Theatre (Abele Cinema)