Popcorn Frights is back and louder than ever. The horror festival's Third Wave lineup has arrived, bringing with it the U.S. premiere of Bullet Time, a blistering, mind-bending animated short from returning festival alum Eddie Alcazar (Divinity).
Running August 7-17, the 11-day genre extravaganza will feature a staggering 74 short films, 15 of them world premieres, curated into seven unique blocks available both in theaters and nationwide via streaming. Whether you're seated in the shadows of Savor Cinema or hiding beneath the blankets at home, this year's short film lineup is a wild ride through uncharted horror territory, packed with audacious vision, inventive storytelling, and pure cinematic mayhem.
With films from 20 countries, the lineup showcases a thrilling mix of new talents and returning fan favorites, all redefining the limits of genre cinema. Expect haunted social media séances, surreal animated nightmares, psychological gut-punches, and more. World premieres making their debut include:
- Tokyo Isn't Home by M.R. Ellis
- As Pale As Death by Ryan Kukec
- Vowels by Rafael De Leon
- Undertone by Shaun Munro
- Séance for the ‘Gram by Sam Schlenker
- You Have Her Eyes by Jordan Sommerlad & Cory Stonebrook
- Kilter by Bartley Taylor
- Obey! by Jordan Wippell
- Affirmation by Emily Bennett (also premiering her feature Blood Shine)
Also on tap: Andrew Bowser's riotous Frankenbabes from Beyond the Grave and The Specter of Christmas from Oscar-winner Joel Harlow, starring Paul Giamatti.
Popcorn Frights veterans are returning with new nightmares, including Rebecca Berrih's Slow, Bryan M. Ferguson's Pumpkin Guts, Chris McInroy's Skeeter, Ramon Menon's Virgin, Jackson Stewart's Stereo-Vision, and David Yorke's Nervous Ellie. Anthony Cousins (The Last Thing She Saw) and Tony Morales (The Visitor) mark their fourth festival appearances with fresh terror.
The festival also honors its Florida roots with the Homegrown: 100% Pure Fresh Squeezed Florida Horror showcase. This year's lineup includes an electrifying slate of world premieres:
- Dark Water Rising by Jessica Bachman
- Alpaca by Sylvia Caminer
- Phantom Pain by Kansas McWhirter
- That Ass by Andrew Kiaroscuro
- It Loves Me So by Colin Treneff
- Shift by Lucca Vieira
- Neuropsychosis by Michael Wright
By the numbers, the 2025 edition is a record-breaker, boasting 134 premieres in total (60 features and 74 shorts), including 21 world premieres. It's the biggest and most ambitious lineup in the festival's 11-year history.
Individual tickets and All-Access Badges for the in-theater experience, hosted at Savor Cinema Fort Lauderdale and Cinema Paradiso Hollywood, are now available. Get your Popcorn Frights In-Theater All-Access VIP Badge or secure a Popcorn Frights Virtual All-Access Pass for streaming access to the full digital lineup.
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 information, visit the official Popcorn Frights Film Festival website.
Tags: popcorn frights, south florida, shell, bullet time
