Uncomfortable stories are Norwegian director Viljar Bøe's speciality.

In 2023, he provoked audiences at the Haapsalu Horror and Fantasy Film Festival with Good Boy, a film about a man who is kept at home like a dog. Now Bøe is back - with a new film in which the hero is obsessed with... amputating his perfectly good leg.

The long-awaited psychological horror thriller Above the Knee premiered in Los Angeles late last year at Beyond Fest, the most popular genre film festival in the US, and has already been hailed as a gut-wrenching ride into madness and physicality at its best.

The 27-year-old Bøe proves that no prophet is famous in his own country - his low-budget independent films, which he writes, films and edits himself, are better known around the world than in Norway.

“We are delighted to welcome back Viljar Bøe, whose previous film won him many fans in Haapsalu,” said festival director Helmut Jänes.

In addition, HÕFF unveiled the first film in its retro programme, the 1985 horror comedy The Return of the Living Dead by Dan O´Bannon. A cult film, which hit the screens 40 years ago and has now been restored.

This year's Haapsalu Horror and Fantasy Film Festival runs from 1-3 May.

A limited number of festival passes are already on sale. The full programme will be announced and tickets will go on sale in early April.

The festival is presented by the City of Haapsalu and Elisa.

Find out more about HÕFF and get your festival pass HERE.