Small Budget Films Track

The ongoing renaissance in fan films and small-budget productions continues to deliver impressive new works of science fiction and fantasy. This year, we’re focusing on showcasing videos from a wide range of fictional storylines, while connecting fans with four different production groups.

Are you looking to submit a film for our next Shore Leave convention? Use the Small Budget Film Track Submission Form!

Shore Leave 45 (2025) Films

Attending Group Section

A Planetary Step New Dawn : The Orville Fan Film Group is Back! Come and hear what Eric “The Smoke” Moran and his cast and crew have been up to since their visit three years ago. There will be a presentation, a Q&A session, and a screening of their latest.

Batman Section

Batman Beyond – Year One : Witness the rise of a new Batman.  

The Batman:  Harvest MoonOne year after the events of The Batman, the Caped Crusader continues his war on crime. After making a discovery at a gruesome crime scene, Batman’s attention is focused on a new and dangerous serial killer, only known as “The Scarecrow”. It’ll take everything he’s got to tackle this new foe and preserve hope for the desolate Gotham City.

DUST Experimental Sci Fi Section

DUST is a thriving community of storytellers, working together to present thought-provoking science  fiction stories. Beyond our longstanding presence on YouTube, DUST also operates ALIEN NATION,  a free streaming tv channel available on The Roku Channel, Samsung TV Plus, Sling TV Freestream,  LG Channels, Tubi, Freevee, Vizio Watchfree+, Xumo, and Redbox.

Outer Reaches A DUST Sci-Fi Short Film When two explorers crash-land on an alien-infested planet, a grim decision arises: as one is infected by the alien menace, the other must choose between containment and cataclysmic consequences.

Firmware A DUST Sci-Fi ShortFilmA young woman and her decommissioned military droid struggle to escape a nuclear exclusion zone, hoping to find a better life on the outside — free from the oppression of the forces that keep her there.

Lost In The Sky – Although made by DUST, this is not a typical DUST video. It is the heartwarming story of a lone rescue robot that locates a surviving astronaut in spiraling disk of material around a black hole.  Can it reach her and save her before she’s consumed? 

This live-action space adventure was created entirely with practical effects using a water tank, a real robot and miniature models. Six years in the making, this is Simon Öster’s directorial debut.  Winner of Méliès d’argent for Best European Fantastic Short Film 2023.

Dystopia Section

Slice of Life – a Croatian film-making group. 

This video is, without a doubt, the best low-budget dystopian film to come along in years! It has won 11 awards and been nominated for 9 more. It’s all the more impressive when one considers that it was shot in a garage using old school, inexpensive visual effects like miniatures and matte paintings to create the vast futuristic landscape. 

Set in the Blade Runner universe, the world is falling apart where the wealthy are exploiting everything and everyone. It has been overly industrialized and most of Earth is left in urban decay. An entrepreneur has built “paradise” offworld and advertises it relentlessly, but it costs far more than all but a few can afford. The ads make it sound so very good! This film is the story of what a low-level drug dealer is willing to do leave this nightmare life behind. Is Paradise really worth  what must be done to get there?

Simulation – Won an Award of Excellence at the 2019 Global Shorts Los Angeles (a bi-annual, Los Angeles based international short film competition accepting films 55 minutes or less) 

An advanced alien civilization builds a simulated reality where infinite beings, including humans,  are imprisoned.

Star Wars Section

STAR WARS: Darkness Emerging It’s finally here! Torin and Jaina take off on their final adventure, discovering new things about the force, and each other… The producer, Samuel Davis, says “Two and a half years of work later, I’m incredibly proud with how this film has turned out.”

Star Wars – The Ghost’s Apprentice A century after the Skywalker saga, a new chapter unfolds. Jace Moon, a young Jedi, has spent the last decade training under the spectral guidance of his uncle, Orin, a Force Ghost. Now, as a  rising darkness emerges—the High Imperium—Jace must step forward to face this growing threat  and shape the future of the galaxy.”

Star Trek Section

The Lost Starship Joshua Erwin, the head of this prolific film-making group, continues writing stories set in his  Avalon universe. 

The Romulans want peace; the Federation wants peace; what could go wrong? Can the Romulans really be trusted?

To Know Thine Enemy – Captain Daniel Hunter has picked up a distress call from a Starfleet ship that was long thought to be lost, but not all is as it seems. The Klingon Mersa is up to things yet unknown.

Legacy of the Enterprise 1701-A It is the 5th anniversary of the launch of the Enterprise D and Memory Alpha is talking to cadets around Starfleet Academy! Cadet Anna Keeley has been approached to talk about a mission from the Enterprise 1701-A which resonates with her, the mission she picks is not one the interviewer  expected.

Harry Potter Section

The Marauders Explore what happened in Hogwarts before “the boy who lived” was born and watch how it all began. Follow Severus, a shy young wizard attending Hogwarts for the fifth year with a  remarkable interest in the dark arts. Although undeniably talented, he’s an outsider and victim of  bullying. He’s the target of James and Sirius, two of the most popular students in school. Lily,  always trying to solve these conflicts, sees something bad coming when Sirius lures Severus to the  Whomping Willow.

Mischief Managed Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs are proud to present (and star in) … MISCHIEF  MANAGED, a short film about Lily, Snape and the Marauders, set on Valentine’s Day 1978,  during their 7th year at Hogwarts. 

The film was created by a team of Oxford students and shot on location at the University of Oxford in March 2016. After a 6-day shoot and a mammoth post-production, we’re super happy to be able to show you the final result of our hard work.

Voldemort’s Ashes 19 years after the Battle of Hogwarts, a young witch named Delphini goes on a journey to find the last remains of Lord Voldemort.

Mudblood: Part 1 After fleeing from Hogwarts, a teenage witch named Muriel Warrington finds refuge in  America. It is there that she becomes involved with a group of dark witches known as The  Sisters, who are faithful apprentices of the famous death eater, Bellatrix Lestrange. Muriel’s new alliances prove dangerous, as her secrets are slowly revealed and the fight for her life begins.

Mudblood: Part 2 After successfully evading capture by The Sisters, Muriel finds herself haunted by dark memories as she recalls her time at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Meanwhile, Merlin Evergreen, one of the most skilled Aurors in New York City must formulate a plan to save himself from his doomed past.

Mudblood: Part 3 The third and final chapter of the Mudblood series finds Muriel Warrington being held hostage by The Sisters as Merlin and Alvin face uncertain dangers during their rescue mission. A  greater evil will emerge and darker memories are revealed. The fight for Voldemort’s last horcrux (spoiler deleted) will reach a conclusive end as darkness and light battle for the fate of the Wizarding World.

Return of the Dark A new threat has emerged for the wizarding world. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is shut down by the Ministry following James’ disappearance. Professor Thomson sets out on an adventure with his student Simon in search of the magic they require after realizing that the spells they use-including Avada Kedavra-are insufficient. Harry experiences trauma about his son’s abduction. For the first time, helpless Harry is unsure of what to do. The army of the Dark Knight is being assembled in the meantime by the new foe Tenebris. James is discovered by Merlin and prepared to face Tenebris while everyone else believes he has died. The James Potter series’  greatest epic battle starts.

Want to know more?

Contact our Small Budget Film Director with specific questions.

Contact Small Budget Film Director

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