A film festival that is truly a blood-splattered love letter to horror's past, present, and future, Popcorn Frights is an infectiously fun celebration of both the scares on the big screen and the people who put their hearts and souls into cinematic magic. This August, that celebratory spirit will haunt South Florida again when Popcorn Frights returns for its eleventh edition from August 7th–17th with an in-theater and virtual lineup that is brimming with legendary special guests, retrospective screenings, immersive theatrical experiences, and must-see movies from emerging filmmakers with their own killer styles.
Following a scary good first wave reveal, a frightfully fun second wave unveiling, and a killer closing night film announcement, Popcorn Frights has revealed their third and final wave of programming that showcases 74 short films, including Eddie Alcazar's Bullet Time, Scott Vasey's Brick Boy, Joel Harlow's The Specter of Christmas, and many more!
Below, we have a look at the official press release with additional details as well as this year's festival artwork by Kent Hernández. If you've never had the pleasure of experiencing Popcorn Frights, trust me when I say that it's a sun-soaked horror cinema celebration unlike any other.
You can purchase In-Theater All-Access VIP Badges here and Virtual All-Access Passes here. In the meantime, mark your calendars, stay tuned to Daily Dead for updates, and be sure to visit Popcorn Frights' official website for more information!
Press Release: July 29, 2025 // – Sound the alarms, board up your windows, and hold onto your eyeballs—Popcorn Frights is turning up the volume, unveiling its Third Wave lineup, headlined by the U.S. premiere of BULLET TIME, a brain-scorching, eye-melting animated short from Popcorn Frights alum Eddie Alcazar (DIVINITY).
Kicking off August 7 and running through the 17th, this year’s 11-day hybrid horrorpalooza will showcase 74 bold, boundary-pushing, badass short films—including 15 world premieres—across seven curated short film blocks available in-theater and streaming nationwide. Whether you’re watching in the dark of a theater or cowering under the covers at home, rest assured, this year’s short film slate promises a genre-defying rollercoaster of chaos, chills, and cinematic creativity.
From the darkest corners of genre cinema across 20 countries, Popcorn Frights welcomes both returning short filmmakers and daring new voices who are redefining horror on their own gloriously gruesome terms. From haunted social media séances to surreal animated freakouts and gut-punch psychological thrillers, these films drag you through every dimension of dread.
Among the world premieres igniting the screen are M.R. Ellis’ TOKYO ISN’T HOME, Ryan Kukec’s AS PALE AS DEATH, Rafael De Leon’s VOWELS, Shaun Munro’s UNDERTONE, Sam Schlenker’s SEANCE FOR THE ‘GRAM, Jordan Sommerlad & Cory Stonebrook’s YOU HAVE HER EYES, Bartley Taylor’s KILTER, Jordan Wipel’s OBEY!, and Emily Bennett’s AFFIRMATION—her second world premiere at the fest, alongside her feature film BLOOD SHINE. Other notable entries include Andrew Bowser’s FRANKENBABES FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE and Academy Award-winner Joel Harlow’s THE SPECTER OF CHRISTMAS featuring Paul Giamatti.
Fan-favorite alumni return with a vengeance, bringing a fresh round of nightmare fuel including Rebecca Berrih’s SLOW, Bryan M. Ferguson’s PUMPKIN GUTS, Chris McInroy’s SKEETER, Ramon Menon’s VIRGIN, Jackson Stewart’s STEREO-VISION starring Jacqueline Donahue, David Yorke’s NERVOUS ELLIE, and Popcorn Frights veterans Anthony Cousins (THE LAST THING SHE SAW) and Tony Morales (THE VISITOR), each making their fourth festival appearance.
True to its twisted roots, Popcorn Frights continues to champion Florida’s horror underground with its signature “Homegrown: 100% Pure Fresh Squeezed Florida Horror” program—a showcase of blood, sweat, and screams from the Sunshine State’s finest. This year’s lineup includes a potent batch of world premieres like Jessica Bachman’s DARK WATER RISING, Sylvia Caminer’s ALPACA, Kansas McWhirter’s PHANTOM PAIN, Andrew Kiaroscuo’s THAT ASS, Colin Treneff’s IT LOVES ME SO, Lucca Vieira’s SHIFT and Michael Wright’s NEUROPSYCHOSIS.
By the numbers, Popcorn Frights’ 2025 edition is already a record-setter, boasting a staggering 134 film premieres—60 features and 74 shorts—including 21 world premieres. It’s the Festival’s largest and most electrifying lineup to date, a ferocious celebration of horror, innovation, and the genre’s most exciting emerging and established storytellers.
So, dim the lights, crank the volume, and prepare to face what lurks beyond the screen. The scream-fest of the summer awaits!
Individual tickets and All-Access Badges for the in-theater experience—hosted at Savor Cinema Fort Lauderdale and Cinema Paradiso Hollywood—are now available. Virtual All-Access Passes can also be purchased for streaming access to the full digital lineup. To order an In-Theater All-Access VIP Badge, click here, to order a Virtual All-Access Pass, click here.
The eleventh edition of the Popcorn Frights Film Festival is made possible with the support of its generous sponsors, including AGFA, Blue Underground, Fangoria, Flick Direct, Kino Cult, MVD, Paramount Scares, Radiance Films, Troma, and its loyal fans. For more info about Popcorn Frights, visit PopcornFrights.com
SHORT FILM LINEUP
Animation Domination
The endless possibilities of genre animation are on dazzling display in this retina-reeling, round-the-world showcase of some of the medium’s most innovative, boundary-pushing, and mind-enhancing short films:
As I Was a Tree, dir. Jalal Maghout (Germany-Syrian Arab Republic); Bullet Time, dir. Eddie Alcazar (USA, U.S. Premiere); Burned Cans for Aluminum Children, dir. Rob Kleinschmidt (USA); Cosmic Crash, dir. James Smith (Germany); Diaboli, dir. Shaddy Safadi (USA); Dolores, dir. Cecilia Andalón Delgadillo (Mexico); Flatastic, dir. Alice Saey (France-Netherlands); La Voix des Sirenes, dir. Gianluigi Toccafondo (Italy); Luz Diabla, dirs. Gervasio Canda, Paula Boffo & Patricio Plaza (Argentina-Canada); Next Show in 90 Minutes, dir. John T. Hill (USA); Worm, dirs. Mattis Dovier & Yoann Dovier (France)
Homegrown: 100% Pure Fresh Squeezed Florida Horror
Celebrating the cream of Florida’s homegrown crop:
Alpaca, dir. Sylvia Caminer (USA, World Premiere); Brick Boy, dir. Scott Vasey (USA); Dark Water Rising, dir. Jessica Bachman (USA, World Premiere); It Loves Me So, dir. Colin Dean Treneff (USA); Mimic, dir. Thomas Edward Hindy (USA); Neuropsychosis, dir. Michael Wright (USA, World Premiere); Phantom Pain, dir. Kansas McWhirter (USA, World Premiere); Shift, dir. Lucca Vieira (USA, World Premiere); Shore Gore, dir. Valentino Dors (USA); Swallows, dir. Queenie Zhang (USA, U.S. Premiere); That Ass, dir. Andrew Kiaroscuro (USA, World Premiere); Want, dir. Zalman Zuckerbraun (USA)
International Midnighters
A celebration of some of the year’s most fantastic international short films from new emerging voices and established filmmakers:
As Pale As Death, dir. Ryan Kukec (Canada, World Premiere); Defile, dir. Brian Sepanzyk (Canada); Femme, dir. Nina Noël Raaijmakers (Netherlands); Help, I’m Alien Pregnant, dir. Thunderlips (New Zealand); Mirror, dir. Kathy Hu (China); Nervous Ellie, dir. David Yorke (United Kingdom); Pumpkin Guts, dir. Bryan M. Ferguson (United Kingdom); Reflections, dir. Julia Cassini (Brazil, U.S. Premiere); Snare, dir. Sam Blakeney-Edwards (United Kingdom); Terror Night, dir. Jakob Arevärn (Sweden); Undertone, dir. Shaun Munro (United Kingdom); The Visitor, dir. Tony Morales (Spain)
Midnighters
A celebration of new works from cinematic scaremongers that bring nightmares into waking hours with thrills, chills, and spills:
I
Baby Blues – Going Dark, dir. James P. Gleason (USA); Cruelty, dir. Sam Das (USA); Devil’s Prism, dir. Kika Magalhães (USA); Masks, dir. Andre LeBlanc (USA); Obey!, dir. Jordan Wippell (USA, World Premiere); Slow, dir. Rebecca Berrih (USA); Stereo-Vision, dir. Jackson Stewart (USA); There’s Something in My Eye, dir. Richard Louprasong (USA); Tokyo Isn’t Home, dir. M.R. Ellis (USA, World Premiere); Vowels, dir. Rafael De Leon (USA, World Premiere); Will Helm, dir. Bobby Roe (USA)II
Buzzkill, dir. Amanda Griswold (USA); Crawl Space, dir. Randy Scott Slavin (USA); Princeton’s in the Mix, dir. Jonathan DiMaio (USA); Rabbit, dir. Nathan Catucci (USA); Rebrand, dir. Edoardo Ranaboldo (USA); Red Flag, dirs. Malin Barr & Cleo Handler (USA); REM, dir. Blair Bathory (USA); Up Close, dir. Lukas Hassel (USA); Virgin, dir. Ramone Menon (USA); The Widower, dir. Michael Buran (USA)III
Endzgiving, dir. Tina Carbone (USA); Frankenbabes from Beyond the Grave, dir. Andrew Bowser (USA); The Last Thing She Saw, dirs. Anthony Cousins & Rebecca Daugherty (USA); Séance for the ‘Gram, dir. Sam Schlenker (USA, World Premiere); Skeeter, dir. Chris McInroy (USA); The Specter of Christmas, dir. Joel Harlow (USA); They Came Home to Die, dir. Zeke Farrow (USA); Whitch, dir. Hoku Uchiyama (USA); Wild Animals, dir. David B. Jacobs (USA)IV
Did You Remember the Cat, dir. Daniel Foster (USA); don’t.4get2smile, dir. Stefano Alessandro Pennisi (USA); Kilter, dir. Bartley Taylor (USA); Look Closer, dir. Tyson Edwards (USA, U.S. Premiere); Never Let You Go, dir. Alex Domenici (USA); Pandora, Inc., dir. Joel Lueben (USA); Sewing Machine, dir. Tyler Hagen (USA); Turn It Off, dir. Senda Maud Bonnet (USA); You Have Her Eyes, dirs. Jordan Sommerlad & Cory Stonebrook (USA)###
For all further details please visit http://popcornfrights.com
Follow Along!
facebook.com/popcornfrightsABOUT POPCORN FRIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL
Popcorn Frights Film Festival is the ultimate summer celebration of the art of horror, showcasing the finest contemporary genre cinema from around the world. As the largest genre film festival in the Southeast U.S., this eleven-day event takes pride in premiering works from both emerging and established filmmakers. By offering a platform for these artists, the festival aims to provide an immersive experience that highlights the captivating power of storytelling through genre film.
Raised on a steady diet of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps books and Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Derek has been fascinated with fear since he first saw ForeverWare being used on an episode of Eerie, Indiana.
When he’s not writing about horror as the Senior News Reporter for Daily Dead, Derek can be found daydreaming about the Santa Carla Boardwalk from The Lost Boys or reading Stephen King and Brian Keene novels.
Raised on a steady diet of R.L. Stine’s Goosebumps books and Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Derek has been fascinated with fear since he first saw ForeverWare being used on an episode of Eerie, Indiana.
When he’s not writing about horror as the Senior News Reporter for Daily Dead, Derek can be found daydreaming about the Santa Carla Boardwalk from The Lost Boys or reading Stephen King and Brian Keene novels.
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