Bloodsuckers ran amok at International Vampire Film Festival

Last Saturday, the haunted halls of Balboa Theater in Outer Richmond reveled in tales of bloodsuckers from ghastly to heartwarming, as the 100-year-old theater played host to the International Vampire Film Festival. Organized by Kai Wada Roath as part of his Super Shangri-La Show film series, the all-day celebration featured films centered around one of horror cinema s most beloved archetypes, each selection from a different country. This was the latest in a decade-long line of Roath s annual film festivals dedicated to various monsters and cryptids: Previous editions featuring lineups for witches, ghosts, and Bigfoot. This fang-fest was co-presented by city favorites Amoeba Records, Green Apple Books, and Rainbow Grocery Co-Op, with vintage oddities and crafts by Sacramento s Nanometer Vintage Shop. Super Shangri-La Show is a monthly screening series at the Balboa Theatre that Roath characterizes as supernatural, not horror. It has been a Balboa mainstay for 11 years, continu