Tobe Hooper

As the son of a Texas movie theatre owner, Tobe Hooper (°1943) literally grew up in the movies. In the sixties he made short films, documentaries and commercials, until he made his first long feature “Eggshells” out of Austin’s psychedelic counterculture. With his hippie friends he continued on his next project, and this turned out to be one of the most legendary horror films ever made: “The Texas Chain Saw Massacre”. This influential work would dominate his career, despite an even greater commercial success later on with “Poltergeist”. Next to film, Hooper was also fond of horror comics as a child, an influence that’s very noticeable in his work. The colourful, cartoonish sets of “Eaten Alive”, “The Funhouse” and “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2”, the references to 50’s Sci-Fi of “Invaders from Mars” and “Lifeforce”, or the powerful, iconic images of “Salem’s Lot”. This retrospective, in Nova, Cinematek and Bozar, shows that all these films bear the distinct mark of a unique film maker. Tobe Hooper is our main guest this year and will personaly introduce his films during the festival.