New on Into Film+ for Halloween: 'The Nightmare Before Christmas'

We're delighted to reveal that the latest title added to Into Film+ is The Nightmare Before Christmas, just in time for Halloween - and we've got other spooky titles on the platform to screen around the date too!

Directed by Henry Selick (who also helmed adaptations of James and the Giant Peach and Coraline for the big screen) and produced by macabre maestro Tim Burton, who also co-wrote the feature, The Nightmare Before Christmas is a strange hybrid: an animated musical which works equally well as a spooky or festive title.

The first animation ever to be nominated for Best Visual Effects at the Oscars, the story follows Jack Skellington - voiced by composer and frequent Burton collaborator Danny Elfman - the King of Halloween Town, who stumbles upon a new world, Christmas Town, and is determined to celebrate the holiday with his people.

Accompanying the film being available to stream now on Into Film+, we have a film guide which explores aspects of the title including the characters and the songs, prompting further discussion ideas and activities.

Halloween Titles on Into Film+

The Nightmare Before Christmas is not the only title appropriate for the upcoming holiday on Into Film+, however. We have lots more spooky, scary, ghoulish, chilling titles available for all ages and audiences, whether you're a Film Studies student or looking for some high-octane escapism for your class.

Our youngest viewers might enjoy Pixar short film Mater and the Ghostlight, a 7 minute spin-off story from the Cars franchise in which the prankster vehicle, Mater, becomes haunted by a mysterious blue light on his journey home through the dark and dusty roads.

For upper-primary students looking for live-action scares, there's Goosebumps. Starring Jack Black as the author of the children's scary stories, R.L. Stine, who teams up with his neighbour to vanquish the monster creations that have escaped from his books into the real world. For further reading we have a blog exploring the story behind the film - from the special effects to the origins of the books - as well as a film guide for further discussion.

We've mentioned him already, but what would Halloween be without a Tim Burton film? For lower-secondary students, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children - which features the likes of Asa Butterfield and Samuel L. Jackson - is a dark gothic fantasy in which young people with special and bizarre powers shelter from the world in a 24 hour time loop.

If you're interested in introducing older students to a classic horror, where better to start than with Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece, Psycho? Featuring some of the most iconic scenes, moments, characters, and settings in film history, this tense black-and-white chiller breaks all the rules and is a must for anyone with an interest in the genre. For more on the Master of Suspense, check out our Hitchcock blog.

For the most mature students, we recommend what is arguably the most significant horror film - and one of the most impactful titles full stop - in the last decade. Jordan Peele's satire Get Out is a genre film which comments on race relations in the modern day while remaining unapologetically menacing, and is consistently funny too! To unpack it further, download our film guide.

You can find all these titles and many more on Into Film+.

Halloween Titles at the Into Film Festival

If the half-term break comes at an awkward time in planning your Halloween film club, we have free screenings of suitable titles at our Festival in November.

For primary students, The Addams Family 2 follows the ultimate oddball, spooky family of cinema as they embark on a road trip in this comedic animated sequel.

For secondary students we also have a sequel, and another chance to catch A Quiet Place Part II in the perfect environment to watch this incredibly tense and well-crafted alien invasion story.