About Us
We're so underground...
Experience the celebration of independent films from around the world at the South Carolina Underground Film Festival, where all genres have been welcomed with open arms since 2015. SCUFF is an iMDB qualifying event and a Top 100 Best Reviewed film festival on FilmFreeway.
Get ready for three action-packed days of indie films at The SCUFF. Join us as fans and filmmakers come together to celebrate obscure and independent cinema.
In addition to promoting and showcasing the best in truly independent cinema, the SCUFF also serves as a platform for championing local filmmaking in South Carolina. We are dedicated to shining a special spotlight on films and filmmakers produced in South Carolina, providing them with the opportunity to have their works screened for a captivated audience. Furthermore, we will be presenting special awards exclusively for projects originating from South Carolina.
From novices to professionals, students to experimental filmmakers, SCUFF is on the lookout for all types of films that might struggle to find an audience at more conventional film festivals.
Calling all filmmakers! Whether it's drama, comedy, horror, action, animation, music videos, fake trailers, puppet shows, claymation, or documentaries, we want to see it all. The more unique, boundary-pushing, and unconventional, the better! Don't hesitate to submit your film if you think it's too much for our festival - we want to see it! If your film challenges social boundaries and wouldn't stand a chance at mainstream festivals, we definitely want to see your movie!
Get ready for an exceptional event celebrating remarkable films and screenplays. The prestigious SCUFFY awards will honor excellence in categories including Best Feature, Best Short, Best Unproduced Screenplay (short and feature), SC Feature and Short Film, SC Filmmaker, and Audience Choice Award.
SCUFFY is our mascot, a miner always digging for new films and screenplays. SCUFFY Awards will be given out in many categories. Our SCUFFY awards were designed and sculpted by special effects artist Tony Rosen who is most famous for creating the Annabelle doll used in the films "The Conjuring" and "Annabelle".
The grand finale on the third night will be an unforgettable awards ceremony where the prestigious SCUFF awards will be presented. Follow us on Facebook, X, and Instagram for exciting updates leading up to the festival. Get ready to showcase your talent at the 2024 Festival on November 8-10, 2024, at The Nickelodeon Theater. We can't wait to see the incredible work you'll bring!
Festival Director - Tommy Faircloth
Festival Director Tommy Faircloth is a proud native of South Carolina, where he harnessed his passion for storytelling at the University of South Carolina. With an accomplished career as a PGA-accredited producer, and award-winning writer, and director, Faircloth has carved a niche in the horror film genre with his chilling creations from his production company, Horse Creek Productions.
His notable works, including "Dollface," "Family Possessions," and the spine-tingling "A Nun's Curse," showcase his unique ability to captivate audiences and evoke a sense of dread. Faircloth's films have reached a global audience, finding homes with prestigious distributors such as Breaking Glass Pictures, Sony Entertainment, 4Digital Media, and Uncork'd Entertainment. His commitment to celebrating independent cinema shines through in his role as the director of the South Carolina Underground Film Festival (SCUFF), where he fosters innovative storytelling in the local film community.
In tandem with SCUFF, Faircloth also helms the Crimson Screen Horror Film Fest, an annual celebration of all things horror that has become a beloved tradition in South Carolina over the past 12 years. Both festivals hold significant prestige, being recognized as IMDb-qualifying events and earning a spot in FilmFreeway's elite list of the "Top 100 Best Reviewed Film Festivals" out of more than 12,000 festivals worldwide. With each festival, Faircloth continues to shine a light on emerging talent, creating a vibrant platform for filmmakers to share their work and connect with passionate audiences.
