Häxan: The Esoteric Cut Pre-screening Talk & Film
The Peatyards, Haddo House, Aberdeenshire, AB41 7EQ
Saturday 24th October 2026 6:45PM
Pre-screening Talk with Jez Conolly
There are limited spaces for the pre-screening talk and we recommend booking early to avoid disappointment. If you attend the talk, a seat will be reserved for you in the Hall for the film screening.
Before the screening, join us for a special introduction to one of the strangest, most influential, and most visually astonishing films ever made. Released in 1922, Benjamin Christensen's Häxan is one of the defining works of early horror cinema.
Exploring the films production and Christensen's fascinating career. We'll also look at Häxan’s place within the golden age of silent cinema, a period when filmmakers had developed an extraordinarily sophisticated visual language, much of which was curtailed by the technical limitations that came with the arrival of sound.
Discover why Häxan remains one of the most daring films ever made, and why, more than a hundred years after its premiere, it continues to fascinate, disturb and inspire audiences and filmmakers alike.
Jez Conolly holds an MA in Film Studies and International Cinema.
He is the author of The Thing and co-author of Dead of Night in the Liverpool University Press ‘Devil's Advocates’ book series, and also co-author of Seconds in LUP’s ‘Constellations’ series.
He has contributed chapters to The Routledge Companion to Folk Horror, Horrifying Children: Hauntology and the Legacy of Children's Television published by Bloomsbury, and Midnight Movie Monographs: Bride of Frankenstein from PS Publishing.
His latest book 'Capture Spiral', published in March 2026, is an autoethnography exploring memories of his 1970s childhood, including the many visits to the cinema that his father managed, and staying up late to watch the Saturday night horror double bills shown on BBC2 in that decade.
Around the time of the book’s release, he was chosen to be one of the Locals in the Limelight at the annual Granite Noir literature festival in Aberdeen, at which he read his poem ‘The Witch’s Hat’.
Häxan: The Esoteric Cut Film
A unique reimagining of Benjamin Christensen’s legendary silent film, Häxan: The Esoteric Cut explores witchcraft, superstition and the European witch trials through some of cinema’s most striking and imaginative imagery. This specially edited version, accompanied by a live performance of a new score by Neil Birse and Matthew Kilner, commissioned by Haddo Arts, brings fresh energy and contemporary resonance to a landmark work that continues to challenge our understanding of fear, belief and persecution..
Film Information
Certificate: 15
Running Time: 115 Minutes
Genre: Documentary, Horror, History
Starring: Benjamin Christensen, Ella La Cour, Emmy Schønfeld, Kate Fabian, Oscar Stribolt, Wilhelmine Henriksen
The pre-screening talk will be followed by the screening of Häxan: The Esoteric Cut, which will be screened in the Hall at Haddo House.
There are limited spaces for the pre-screening talk and we recommend booking early to avoid disappointment. If you attend the talk, a seat will be reserved for you in the Hall for the film screening.
Before the screening, join us for a special introduction to one of the strangest, most influential, and most visually astonishing films ever made. Released in 1922, Benjamin Christensen's Häxan is one of the defining works of early horror cinema.
Exploring the films production and Christensen's fascinating career. We'll also look at Häxan’s place within the golden age of silent cinema, a period when filmmakers had developed an extraordinarily sophisticated visual language, much of which was curtailed by the technical limitations that came with the arrival of sound.
Discover why Häxan remains one of the most daring films ever made, and why, more than a hundred years after its premiere, it continues to fascinate, disturb and inspire audiences and filmmakers alike.
Jez Conolly holds an MA in Film Studies and International Cinema.
He is the author of The Thing and co-author of Dead of Night in the Liverpool University Press ‘Devil's Advocates’ book series, and also co-author of Seconds in LUP’s ‘Constellations’ series.
He has contributed chapters to The Routledge Companion to Folk Horror, Horrifying Children: Hauntology and the Legacy of Children's Television published by Bloomsbury, and Midnight Movie Monographs: Bride of Frankenstein from PS Publishing.
His latest book 'Capture Spiral', published in March 2026, is an autoethnography exploring memories of his 1970s childhood, including the many visits to the cinema that his father managed, and staying up late to watch the Saturday night horror double bills shown on BBC2 in that decade.
Around the time of the book’s release, he was chosen to be one of the Locals in the Limelight at the annual Granite Noir literature festival in Aberdeen, at which he read his poem ‘The Witch’s Hat’.
Häxan: The Esoteric Cut Film
A unique reimagining of Benjamin Christensen’s legendary silent film, Häxan: The Esoteric Cut explores witchcraft, superstition and the European witch trials through some of cinema’s most striking and imaginative imagery. This specially edited version, accompanied by a live performance of a new score by Neil Birse and Matthew Kilner, commissioned by Haddo Arts, brings fresh energy and contemporary resonance to a landmark work that continues to challenge our understanding of fear, belief and persecution..
Film Information
Certificate: 15
Running Time: 115 Minutes
Genre: Documentary, Horror, History
Starring: Benjamin Christensen, Ella La Cour, Emmy Schønfeld, Kate Fabian, Oscar Stribolt, Wilhelmine Henriksen
The pre-screening talk will be followed by the screening of Häxan: The Esoteric Cut, which will be screened in the Hall at Haddo House.
Event Details
Starts at 6:45PM
Location
The Peatyards, Haddo House, Aberdeenshire, AB41 7EQPrice
Ticket price incl. booking fee
£15.18
