Why this film matters
John-O’-Lantern flips Halloween customs: pumpkins carve and cook humans, then frighten their children with stories of people who decorate homes with pumpkin heads. Curious Refuge describes cheerful family dialogue played against a gruesome premise. The joke depends on sustaining a domestic tone, so performance and writing matter more than effects.
John-O’-Lantern won the Audience Favorite award in Curious Refuge’s 2026 AI Horror Film Competition. That award is decided by public vote, not by the jury.
Production evidence
The film is available only through the organiser’s Instagram reel. The organiser’s pages give two different credits, Artem Krykun and 41 Frames. The description draws on the organiser’s write-up; the journal has not watched the complete film.
