Films and TV shows depicting 'beautiful young vampires' have led to a surge of young people dabbling in occult forces, an exorcism expert says. Notable TV shows including True Blood and the Twilight film series - starring Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson - are said to be encouraging the surge and driving a new generation of what the Church considers demonic 'possessions'. Professor Giuseppe Ferrari, head of the Italian occult watchdog The Group on Research and Socio-Religious Information, made the revelation when speaking to a Vatican-backed exorcism course in Rome. Hollywood films portraying 'beautiful young vampires', such as Robert Pattinson in Twilight, are said to be driving an increase in young people dabbling in the occult . True Blood, featuring Anna Paquin (left) and Joe Manganiello (right), is another TV show which depicts vampires living in modern society . He told those in attendance: 'There are those who try to turn people into vampires and make them drink other people's blood, or encourage them to have special sexual relations to obtain special powers,' The Independent reported. 'These groups are attracted by the so-called beautiful young vampires that we've seen so much of in recent years.' Such incidents are considered a form of demonic possession by the Vatican. Although it continues to celebrate the role exorcisms play within the Church, it maintains strong guidelines on how and when they should be carried out. In 2013, Pope Francis appeared to cast out a demon from a wheelchair-bound man who said he was possessed by the devil. The Vatican insisted the pope 'didn't intend to perform any exorcism,' and it released a statement that said 'he simply intended to pray for someone who was suffering who was presented to him'. The man later said that Francis had failed to banish the demons from his body. However, after Francis placed his hands on him, he was able to walk again, he claimed. The ancient rite of casting out Satan and his demons from the souls of the possessed has been carried out in the Catholic Church for centuries. In 2013, Pope Francis appeared to cast out a demon from a wheelchair-bound man who said he was possessed by the devil . But the practice of exorcism saw a revival of interest following the 1973 film The Exorcist and other popular film and literature references. Speaking to Vatican Radio, Dr Valter Cascioli, a psychiatrist and spokesman for the International Association of Exorcists, last year warned of 'an extraordinary increase in demonic activity'. He said that this makes it even more worrying that 'the number of people who are turning to these practices, which are damaging psychologically, spiritually and morally, is constantly growing'. The Association, which brings together Catholic priests and psychiatrists, was founded in 1990 and given formal recognition by the Vatican in June. Dr Cascioli said that too many people today undervalue the temptation to engage in 'ordinary demonic activity', which leaves them unprepared to fight off greater attacks by the devil. In societies marked by 'rushing, superficiality, exaggerated individualism and secularization,' he added, 'the battle against evil and the devil increasingly is becoming an emergency'.
Films and movies are said to be driving a growing interest in occult forces.
An exorcism expert claims youngsters are inspired by 'beautiful vampires'
Such shows include the hugely successful True Blood series and Twilight.