Upcoming Events

Accepting Submissions for the 2025 Sacred Underground Film Festival

Date: November 20-22, 2025

Submission Deadline: October 4, 2025

Notification Date: October 18, 2025

Location: Carver Community Cultural Center, San Antonio, Texas

Categories & Awards

🎞️
Submission
Categories

Short Film

Extended Short Film

Animated Film

Documentary

Student Film

Music Video

Poetry Multimedia

🎬
Top Level
Awards

Best Short Film

Best Animated Film

Best Documentary

Best Student Film

🎭
Performance
Awards

Best Actor

Best Actress

Best Supporting Actor

Best Supporting Actress

✍️
Creative
Awards

Best Director

Best Screenplay

Best Cinematography

Best Editing

Best Sound Design

❤️
Special Recognition

Honorable Mention

Puro Award (Local Submissions)

Submit Your Film

The Sacred Underground Film Festival Logo

50’s Night at the Sacred Underground Film Festival

Step back in time and celebrate the golden age of cinema! Join us for 50’s Night at The Sacred Underground Film Festival. Guests who arrive dressed in 1950s attire will receive 50% off their admission for the evening. Break out the leather jackets, poodle skirts, and vintage flair—and be part of a night that honors the spirit and style of a classic era.

2024 Award-Winning Films

Lebmig's Department Store - Short Film – Best Picture / Best Lead Actress / Best Soundtrack / Best Sound Mixing winner at 2024 Sacred Underground Film Festival
Lebmig's Department Store

RUN TIME: 12:02
DIRECTED BY: MARC ANTHONY MORALES

Best
Picture
Best
Lead Actress
Best
Soundtrack
Best
Sound Mixing
Scary Sasquatch Attack - Short Film – Best Lead Actor / Best Supporting Actor winner at 2024 Sacred Underground Film Festival
Scary Sasquatch Attack

RUN TIME: 11:46
DIRECTED BY: TAYLOR JAMES JOHNSON

Best
Lead Actor
Best
Supporting Actor
Flowers - Short Film – Best Cinematography winner at 2024 Sacred Underground Film Festival
Flowers

RUN TIME: 15:50
DIRECTED BY: CLIFF CRULL

Best
Cinematography
Across - Short Film – Best Editing winner at 2024 Sacred Underground Film Festival
Across

RUN TIME: 18:38
DIRECTED BY: CARLOS EVARISTO FLORES & NICOLAS J. LEWIS

Best
Editing
The Pocong Shroud Ghost - Short Film – Best Director winner at 2024 Sacred Underground Film Festival
The Pocong Shroud Ghost

RUN TIME: 3:12
DIRECTED BY: ISAAC RODRIGUEZ


Best
Director
Unrest - - Short Film – Best Screenplay winner at 2024 Sacred Underground Film Festival
Unrest

RUN TIME: 12:20
DIRECTED BY: CECILIO MARTINEZ & STEFANY SANCHEZ

Best
Screenplay

We Are The Sacred Underground

We are a homegrown, grassroots film festival dedicated to showcasing local talent and supporting charitable causes.

The Sacred Underground is more than a name—it's a community. That includes you. That includes all of us, working together in the spirit of creativity and connection.

We call ourselves Sacred because something deep within drives us to create. Through that shared calling, we come together to celebrate the act of artistic expression.

We are proudly Underground—not hidden, but rooted. Every meaningful movement begins from the ground up. This is our moment to shine, a collective unveiling of the voices and visions shaping our cultural landscape.

We honor the storytellers—writers, filmmakers, actors, and behind-the-scenes innovators—who represent a rich and diverse creative ecosystem. Our programming spans genres, including action, comedy, documentary, music video, stream of consciousness, suspense, and horror.

Based in the creative heart of Texas, from the (210) to the (512), we invite you to join us in this celebration of independent art and community spirit.

Welcome to The Sacred Underground

Where creativity grows.
Where voices rise.
Where we rise—together.

Board of Directors

John Lambert – Festival Director of The Sacred Underground Film Festival
John Lambert

Festival Director

John Lambert is a multifaceted creative—writer, actor, speaker, improv performer, and teacher—driven by the belief that leadership and innovation come from collaboration across disciplines. John serves as the President and Founder of The Sacred Underground Film Festival.

Jorge Robledo - Technical Director of The Sacred Underground Film Festival
Jorge Robledo

Technical Director

Jorge Robledo Jr. is a San Antonio-based writer, director, photographer, filmmaker, and audiovisual expert. He currently serves as Media/Audiovisual Technical Director for The Sacred Underground Film Festival, ensuring top-tier production quality for all film presentations.

Amy Hamilton - Treasurer of The Sacred Underground Film Festival
Amy Hamilton

Treasurer

Amy Hamilton, a former U.S. Air Force C-130 Loadmaster, is an Audit Manager specializing in non-profits and uniform guidance audits. With degrees in Accounting and Finance, she brings her expertise and community passion to her role as Treasurer of the Sacred Underground Film Festival.

Ashley Hamilton - Secretary of The Sacred Underground Film Festival
Ashley Hamilton

Secretary

Ashley Hamilton is a writer, actor, and marketing expert. She brings a lifelong appreciation of the arts and a drive to make the world a better place to her role as Secretary for the Sacred Underground Film Festival.

Our SACRED History

Our Story

The Sacred Underground Film Festival was born from love, loss, and the healing power of cinema. What began as Short Shorts Film Festival in 2009 emerged from a deeply personal place—as a way to cope with the profound challenge of a loved one's terminal illness and to create something meaningful for our community.

Our Origins

From 2009 to 2013, Short Shorts Film Festival brought independent cinema to San Antonio audiences across several beloved venues. Starting at the Overtime Theater in October 2009, we grew steadily through multiple events at the Overtime Theater, 13th Floor Studios, and finally the Josephine Theater. Throughout this journey, our festival maintained a mission close to our hearts: raising funds for families of cancer patients at the Cancer Therapy & Research Center (CTRC).

The festival represented more than just film screenings—it was a gathering place for community, creativity, and compassion during some of life's most challenging moments. After our founder's wife passed away on May 9th, 2012, we held one final Short Shorts event in February 2013 before taking time to grieve and reflect.

Our Rebirth

After a decade of reflection, we reemerged in 2023 as the Sacred Underground Film Festival. Our new name honors both the sacred nature of storytelling and the underground spirit of independent cinema that has always driven our mission.

Now calling the Carver Theater home, we continue to celebrate the transformative power of film while carrying forward the compassionate spirit that first inspired our festival. Our 2025 season launched in January and continues through November, bringing together filmmakers, audiences, and community members in spaces where stories can be shared, heard, and honored.

Our Mission

Sacred Underground Film Festival remains committed to showcasing independent cinema while fostering community connection and supporting meaningful causes. We believe in the power of film to heal, inspire, and bring people together—especially during life's most profound moments.

Join us as we continue this sacred work of storytelling and community building.

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Contact Us


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Address:
226 N Hackberry
San Antonio, TX, 78202

Phone:
210 621 8634

Email:
info@thesacredunderground.com