One of New York City’s more freakish events, What the Fest!?, returns today. Think of it like IFC Center’s answer to Alamo Drafthouse’s Fantastic Fest, or as a more immersive version of the Film Society of Lincoln’s Scary Movies series. What the Fest!? seeks to expand minds as well as twist them into pretzels. Some of the content can be cringe-inducing, so be careful when picking your poison. Or, to save time, check out some of our recommendations below.

IFC Center hosted its inaugural What the Fest!? last year. The four-day showcase featured a scandalous slate of cult favorites including Joko Anwar’s Satan’s Slaves, a restoration of Polish-Soviet sci-fi adventure film Curse of Snakes Valley, and the world premiere of Frank Henenlotter’s documentary Boiled Angels: The Trial of Mike Diana. Kicking the fest off was Coralie Fargeat’s knockout horror feature debut Revenge.

The 2019 edition promises to be more outlandish than its predecessor. Running March 20-24, 2019, the series opens with the world premiere of Larry Fesseden’s Depraved. For his latest low-budget feature, the indie maestro of horror delivers an enthralling modern take on Frankenstein. Set in Brooklyn, a surgeon suffering from PTSD builds a man out of random body parts and brings him to life in his loft. The screening is preceded by live music, and is followed by a Q&A with the cast and an afterparty.

From Frankenstein, the fest serves up zombies, killer bears, and a suburban satire. There is also a special festival sidebar: “Satan Is Your Friend”, a look at contemporary satanism. Many of the series’ screenings are accompanied by pre- and/or post-screening discussions or performances related to the film.

You’ll find the complete program here. All films screen at IFC Center. For those that don’t have time to wade through the offerings, below are our picks. If you like cinema that goes to the extremes, seriously, don’t sleep on this year’s What the Fest!?.

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One Cut of the Dead
Screening: Thursday, March 21 at 9:45pm

Breaking news, Variety is reporting that this award-winning Japanese horror-comedy is getting an English-language remake. One Cut of the Dead is about a film crew who while working on a low-budget zombie movie are attacked by zombies. The Japanese version, directed by Shin’ichirô Ueda, doesn’t have US distribution yet, so this could be one of your only opportunities to catch the original in a theater. The screening is followed by a discussion with filmmakers who share their horror stories about getting low-budget zombie films made.

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The Wind
Screening: Friday, March 22 at 7pm

For her first narrative feature, Emma Tammi tackles a supernatural thriller set in the Western frontier at the end of the 19th century. The film stars Caitlin Gerard (American Crime) as Lizzy, a dutiful wife who begins to sense a menacing presence coming from nature. Beware, before the screening, fest-goers may encounter a sermonizing preacher or sinister forces. After the screening, Tammi will answers questions, with a party to follow at Vol de Nuit. The WTF!? 2019 screening will be the film’s New York premiere.

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Greener Grass
Screening: Friday, March 22 at 9:30pm

This dark comedy from Jocelyn DeBoer and Dawn Luebbe is set in a suburban surreal world where adults vie for acceptance and perfect teeth. DeBoer and Luebbe adapted the feature from their award-winning 2016 short of the same name. The filmmakers also star in the film, along with Beck Bennett (Saturday Night Live), Neil Casey (Inside Amy Schumer), Mary Holland (Veep) and D’Arcy Carden (The Good Place). Greener Grass had its world premiere earlier this year in the Midnight section of the Sundance Film Festival and the film’s screening at WTF!? 2019 will be its East Coast premiere. Attendees of the screening are invited to a festival party at Vol de Nuit before the film.

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The Dead Center
Screening: Saturday, March 23 at 2:30pm

Shane Carruth (Primer, Upstream Color) stars as a psychiatrist in this thriller, in which a dead man comes back to life and is misdiagnosed as being a catatonic amnesiac. Both Carruth’s character, and the coroner who was set to do the autopsy on the dead man set out to solve the mystery of who is this “John Doe.” Billy Senese, who directs the film, will be at the theater for a Q&A following its New York premiere. Prior to the film, a real-life pathologist, Brian D. Robinson, discusses the nature of his work.

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Freaks
Screening: Sunday, March 24 at 3:30pm

Any film screening that is preceded by an ice cream social is good in our book. Directed by Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein, Freaks had its world premiere at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival. The sci-fi thriller stars Emile Hirsch as an over-protective dad who forbids his daughter Chloe from leaving the house. But of course, Chloe has her own agenda. Bruce Dern also stars as Mr. Snowcone, a mysterious ice-cream truck driver. Be sure to get there early for the ice cream, and expect to stay late for a post-screening discussion with filmmaker Adam Stein. The WTF!? 2019 screening will be the film’s U.S. premiere.

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Hail Satan!
Screening: Sunday, March 24 at 6:15pm

Penny Lane’s timely, enlightening, and highly entertaining documentary enjoys its New York premiere at the fest ahead of its theatrical release next month. Part of WTF!? 2019’s special focus “Satan Is Your Friend,” Hail Satan! introduces audiences to the work of the Satanic Temple, a national organization co-founded by Lucien Greaves. For followers of the temple, worshiping Satan isn’t necessarily what you might expect. Their main function is to remind people that our country was founded on the separation of church and state. After the screening, you might feel compelled to join up. Fortunately, Lucien Greaves will be on hand to answer questions.