There are plenty of things that might be lurking in the dark beneath West Virginia's mountains. In filmmaker Daniel Byers' latest horror movie, one of them is a monster.
But the story of how "Dark Hollow" was made — including its filming inside a West Virginia coal mine — will take center stage Wednesday, Oct. 14, when Byers joins moviegoers in Charleston for a special screening and question-and-answer session.
The 95-minute film will be shown at 7 p.m. at the Floralee Hark Cohen Cinema, located in the basement of Taylor Books. The screening is part of the West Virginia International Film Festival's "West Virginia Wednesdays" series. Byers will answer audience questions afterward.
The film follows a young mother who must hunt down a nightmarish creature that emerges from an Appalachian coal mine to protect her home and save her family.
The production has deep roots in the Mountain State, according to the film's publicist. Portions of "Dark Hollow" were filmed inside the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine, with additional filming in the Beckley and Spruce Knob Mountain areas.
The filmmakers also used practical creature effects — physical effects created without relying solely on computer-generated imagery — giving Wednesday's audience an opportunity to ask Byers about the challenges of bringing the monster to the screen.
"Dark Hollow," which received a theatrical release in September, is Byers' second feature film. His directorial debut, the 2022 science fiction horror film "Eradication," was featured in The New York Times' streaming horror and science fiction selections, according to the biography on Byers' website. His horror screenplay "Paradise" also won a jury award at the 2023 Austin Film Festival.
Byers has also worked extensively in documentary filmmaking, with projects spanning more than 60 countries and subjects ranging from wildlife to environmental issues.
Wednesday's screening offers Charleston audiences a chance to hear directly from the filmmaker about bringing an Appalachian horror story to life in the region where portions of it were filmed.
A second screening is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 21, at 7 p.m. No question-and-answer session with Byers has been announced for that date.
Tickets and additional information are available through the West Virginia International Film Festival website.
