‘Vampire Academy’ arrives in theaters on February 7th, with hopes being that the movie will kick off a new franchise.  The movie is based on Richelle Mead’s popular YA novel series, so of course all those involved are keeping that their fingers crossed that eventually all of the books will transition to the big screen.  Unlike ‘Twilight’ and ‘The Mortal Instruments’, ‘Vampire Academy’ features a lighter more comedic tone.

Writer Maggie Pehanick from the website BuzzSugar has compiled a primer, breaking down the different types of blood-suckers featured in the movie.:

Moroi: Basically these are “living” vampires — the good guys. All Moroi, including Lissa, need blood to live, but they also possess magic. Each one specializes in a certain element: earth, water, fire, or air. Though they have these gifts, using them is not allowed, especially for personal gain. Physically, most Moroi girls have slight, slim builds, and they can tolerate some sunlight.

Dhampir: These are a strange hybrid of Moroi and human. Because of a genetic glitch, Dhampirs can’t have children with each other, but they can reproduce with Moroi. This is part of why Dhampir want to protect the Moroi, because without them, their race would die out. Dhampir girls — including Rose — are curvier, and they are attractive to Moroi men as “exotic” conquests.

Strigoi: These are the bad guys. Technically, they’re the “undead” vampires, unable to go out in the sun at all. There are a couple of ways to make a Strigoi: either a Strigoi can forcibly turn a human, Dhampir, or Moroi with one bite, or a Moroi can become a Strigoi by choice by purposely killing another person while feeding on his blood. That second route is considered really dark and twisted. Strigoi can be killed one of three ways: with a stake through the heart, by cutting off its head, or by setting it on fire.

Speaking of the Moroi’s elemental powers, a new clip from the movie has also been released, which depicts Christian (Dominic Sherwood) employing his fiery powers.  You can view it below:

If that weren’t enough, also check out these new still photos from the movie:

‘Vampire Academy’ will hit theaters on February 7th (bumped up from the 14th) and was directed by Mark Waters (‘Mean Girls’) and was written by Daniel Waters (‘Heathers’). It stars Zoey Deutch, Lucy Fry, Danila Kozlovsky, Gabriel Byrne, Sarah Hyland, Joely Richardson, Cameron Monaghan, Sami Gayle, Claire Foy and Ashley Charles.

Are you excited about this movie?

Sources: ComingSoon and BuzzSugar