HEAVY METAL AND HORROR IN A FORMER SLAUGHTERHOUSE IN DOLJEVAC
On Friday, July 4, 2025, the fourth edition of the Slaughter Festival begins in the space of a former slaughterhouse in Doljevac, once again merging the fiercest heavy metal and underground bands with a program of artistic horror films.
The music segment of the festival delivers a rich spectrum of energetic sound, from garage rock to extreme metal. On the opening night, starting at 7 p.m., the lineup features Wan Žulj (Vlasotince/Ladovica), veterans of the Serbian underground scene with fresh material, followed by Manitu (garage/hardcore, Niš), whose raw energy draws on North American folklore, Stellar Tomb (progressive extreme metal, Niš), who explore cosmic themes through atmospheric expression, and Unbaptised (melodic death metal, Bulgaria), recognized as one of the most promising young metal acts in the region.
The film program unfolds across three parallel festival cinemas. On the main screen at 7:30 p.m., the festival opens with Dog of God (Latvia) – a dark medieval tale laced with black magic and rotoscope animation. Note: this film is not suitable for children. It is followed by the Serbian feature Dartakum – a psychological horror about a war veteran from Kosovo and Metohija. The evening concludes with a selection of Serbian short films competing for the festival award Golden Sledgehammer.
At the “Water Movie Screen” near the pool, the evening program at 9 p.m. begins with the Japanese film Bakemono – an urban horror parable about a creature stalking budget hostel guests in Tokyo. The screening concludes with the Austrian film 2551.01: The Kid – an experimental dystopia inspired by Chaplin’s cinematic motifs, and the first-ever winner of the Golden Sledgehammer back in 2022.
The third festival cinema, “Air Movie Screen,” presents 2551.03: THE END at 9 p.m., the final chapter of a post-apocalyptic quest led by a man wearing a monkey mask, directed by Norbert Pfaffenbichler. At 11 p.m., the British film The Cellar closes the night – a claustrophobic story of escape from underground captivity.
This year’s special guests and jury members are artists and genre specialists well known within the horror community: Arpad Slančik, a Subotica-based artist famed for his dark industrial sculptures; Dr. Marko Pišev, anthropologist and author specializing in horror and the narrative theory of dread; and Jovan Ristić, selector of the Serbian Festival of Fantastic Film.
Single-day tickets for all festival nights are available via Tickets.rs. Free transportation from Niš is organized daily, departing at 6 p.m. from the parking lot in front of the House of the Serbian Army, with return rides from Doljevac each night after the program ends.
The Slaughter Festival brings together fans of extreme music and artistic horror, offering a one-of-a-kind blend of sound and shadow in the authentic industrial setting of the former slaughterhouse in Doljevac.
The festival is supported by the Municipality of Doljevac and the Ministry of Tourism and Youth of the Republic of Serbia.
