Horror fans in Central Florida, are you looking for something fun to do this weekend? Check out NewCruz Films' 2025 showcase, where you can see five new original short films (and four of them are horror).
NewCruz Films’ founder Cesar Cruz has 20 years of experience in film and video production, and considers himself a huge fan of horror, fantasy and sci-fi.
Cruz taught film production to high school and college students, and created NewCruz Films in order to give his students a way to produce and create films for festivals. For more information on NewCruz Films, check out their website.
Looking for a breakdown of the films you can see at the NewCruz Showcase? Here’s what’s in store:
Choices (Thriller / Drama) – John has to make a life-changing decision in one night. Choices was shot in two days using a six-person crew, and had only a $200 budget. It was written and directed by Brett McNabb.
Relentless (Horror-Comedy) – Written by Dakota Dillon and directed by Elizer Hernandez, Relentless is about a woman named Rose, who has been kidnapped, and is determined to escape from the evil organization that has taken her. Filmed in four days with a crew of seven and a $200 budget, Relentless was previously featured in the 2018 Orlando Film Festival, 2021 Oregan Scream Week Film Festival, and won the Silver Award at the 2020 Horror Movie Awards.
The Hidden (Horror) – Filmed on a budget of $300, The Hidden was written by Cesar Cruz and Veronica Tullo, and Tullo also directed, shot the film and did makeup. She was only 16 at the time, and was one of Cruz’s film students. Filmed over a single weekend with a three person crew, it’s about Gillian, who finds herself alone in the wilderness during an expedition.
Did My Heart Love Till Now? (Horror/Romance) – Also written and directed by Veronica Tullo as her final college thesis film, this one had a budget of $24,000. “A love potion gone wrong forces a Spinster Witch to face her desperation for affection and find a cure before the man of her dreams is driven to insanity.
Shadows – Shadows is currently being submitted for film festivals, and was written and directed by Cesar Cruz. It’s the prequel to NewCruz Films’ award-winning short The Hidden, and is the most recent film in NewCruz’s Within the Dark eco-horror series. It was filmed in one day after spending six months in pre-production, and the budget totalled $400. In Shadows, Anani is struggling for her life after she makes a life-changing discovery that has the potential to rewrite history.
The 2025 NewCruz Film Showcase will be held in Orlando
All films will be shown at Touchstar Cinemas Southchase 7, located at 12441 South Orange Blossom Trail on Saturday, March 29. The showcase begins at noon, and tickets are $10 each. Please note that the showcase is designated as “adults only.” There will be a Q & A featuring the cast and crew after the screenings.