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The Festive Fans end their Creepmas in October with a review of the 2021 film “The Advent Calendar” and a salute to Belgium. We also speak with Sabine Janisela, a diplomat at the Latvian Embassy, who helps us on our Piragi journey, offering both official cultural knowledge along with her own personal experience.

The "Advent Calendar" is a horror film about a mysterious wooden advent calendar that intertwines the coziness of Christmas with a sinister twist. Each door offers to satisfy your deepest wish — at a terrible cost. While the movie may be scary, Belgium is not. It is only the size of the state of New Jersey, but it is surprisingly diverse with its Flemish, Walloon, and Brussels influences. Belgium is like living in a fairy tale, with its cobblestone streets, Gothic churches, medieval castles, canals, and beers brewed by monks in ancient abbeys. Along with the scent of chocolate and waffles in the air, you can’t help but raise a toast to this compact little country.

And speaking of drink, Belgium is a place where its rich beer tradition stretches back nearly a thousand years. They brew more than 1,500 distinctly different beers. Belgians have a deep cultural appreciation and reverence for beer, and the Festive Fans may have just died and gone to heaven, especially since this is also the birthplace of Christmas beers. In Belgium, beer is an art form, and the Christmas beers—also known as “bières de Noël” or “kerstbier”—are their masterpieces. Traditionally brewed for the holiday season, these beers are stronger, richer, and more complex, just like us!

They often have higher alcohol content and seasonal spices—like clove, cinnamon, nutmeg, and orange peel—to evoke the warmth needed for a winter’s night. The aroma alone recalls festive meals shared with family. These rich, spiced brews embody the Belgian soul—rooted in history and brimming with craftsmanship. Why don’t you crack one open now, gather by the fire, and join us as we get a little spooky in our crossover celebration of Christmas with a little Halloween appreciation.

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The Festive Fans are off to the “nicest place in the world”, a nation that looks like Christmas itself, with its pine forests, captivating snowfalls, and Hallmark worthy quaint little towns. The people there are so friendly that the place is bursting with joy. They even claim Santa as an official citizen. Yes, that’s right, we are off to our neighbor to the north, Canada, to explore the other parts of the country outside of Quebec. There’s a certain gentleness to it, a politeness that feels downright festive. Even their flag is red and white.

It’s also ironic that we are watching the Canadian film Black Christmas, one of the first and most influential slasher films ever made. It is directed by Bob Clark, the same filmmaker who also gave the world another Christmas classic, A Christmas Story. In 1974, Clark made this stylish horror film about a killer stalking a sorority house during the holidays. It introduced elements that later became popular tropes likes showing the point-of-view of the killer, featuring a male stalker targeting young women with the “final girl” left who is strong and defiant, and the famous line that the "calls are coming from inside the house". In addition, it has a chilling ambiguous ending where the killer's identity and motive are left unknown.

And it takes place in Canada — the unlikeliest backdrop for yuletide joy and terror. It is so at odds with the cozy cheer of the host country, but it is also deeply Canadian. There’s something perfectly absurd about both films being shot in a country known globally for its niceness.

Black Christmas is the first of our two “Creepmas in October” films, because there’s something irresistibly entertaining about Christmas horror movies. After a year of mostly feel-good stories, the Festive Fans like to turn the season of goodwill on its head with a refreshing scary twist. We want some ordinary holiday cheer mixed with dark humor and creeping dread. From yuletide laughter to bloodcurdling screams, it can feel a bit cathartic.

Watching Black Christmas and its ilk feels a bit like sneaking a bite of moose tongue at the holiday table— shocking, nauseating, but oddly satisfying. Join us now in the land of Hallmark Christmas movies with charming main streets and crazed killers, snowy landscapes and silent stalkers. We explore this land of Christmas to learn about its festive customs and holidays because Canadians are stereotyped for their generosity — qualities that echo the heart of the holiday season. It is a country that either feels like Christmas year-round or where holiday cheer goes to die. You decide.

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The Festive Fans take a thoughtful and enlightening journey to South Africa this episode to discover Christmas in a country still scarred by apartheid. We tend to overlook how South Africa is a place of extraordinary beauty — with its Table Mountain, Kruger National Park, pristine beaches, and a rich array of wildlife. Instead, we define it by its painful past. By doing so, we discount this rich and diverse nation with 11 official languages and strong ethnic and cultural traditions. The movie Liewe Kersfeesvader is a perfect reflection of South Africa. While on its surface, the story may seem grim, with its themes of dysfuction, death, and mental illness. However, what it hides is a soulful and uplifting story about the strength of family and self-discovery, just like the recent history of South Africa itself. It is a film that reminds us how even with so much chaos in the world, we should never let our dreams be diminished by our flawed humanity. Instead, the Festive Fans embrace and words the vision of Nelson Mandala, the anti-apartheid South African activist who was imprisoned for 27 years and who would later become the country's first black head of state and democratically elected president upon his release.

Mandela said that remembering the past is not about bitterness, but it opens a path to healing. We don’t want to ignore the painful chapter of apartheid, but we also don’t want to dwell on it. Christmas is a holiday that offers the promise of peace and the longing for a more just and generous world, and nothing proves this more than modern South Africa. Few nations have faced such a deep historical trauma and still found a way to seek healing. This nation is a model for how to confront and work toward reconciliation, even with serious economic and social challenges. It is not perfect, the deep inequality in South Africa still remains a challenge today, but it is trying. South Africa’s transition to democracy and advocacy for human rights has inspired other nations.

In his first Christmas message after his release, Mandela spoke of the profound joy of spending the day without being a fugitive. He talked about all of the other prisoners and detainees still torn from their families, urging South Africans to extend compassion, and describing the possibility of renewal, unity and a better future for the country. This perspective is inspiring. The healing power of Christmas should last for more than just one festive day. South Africa is a reminder that with love and kindness, even after years of cruelty and despair, communities can rebuild, families can reunite, and light will return. Mandala explicitly connected Christmas to the broader political shifts going on in his country. His voice invites us all — in South Africa and beyond — to let Christmas renew our courage to fight injustice and to recognize that our differences are a source of strength rather than conflict. Christmas in South Africa is a living testimony that even in places with a dark and ugly history, light can break through, and hope can be reborn. This is a message we all can celebrate

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