Creature Fear Turns Small-Town Dreams into Nightmares

By AO Network Staff | October 2025

In Creature Fear, first-time filmmaker Manny Gumina transforms rural Wisconsin into a haunting backdrop where artistry and madness collide. The 82-minute psychological horror-thriller follows Charlie, a Chicago musician seeking creative escape, and Miriam, an ambitious local singer—whose dreams unravel when a desperate ex-convict named Paul spirals into violence.

Filmed in the same Wisconsin county where serial killer Ed Gein’s gruesome crimes occurred, Creature Fear mixes Hitchcock-style suspense with gritty Midwestern realism. Gumina’s eerie storytelling, paired with Derek Schmitt’s moody cinematography and Antonio Romero’s haunting score, amplifies every unsettling moment.

The result is a raw, atmospheric descent into human fear where ambition, guilt, and desperation intersect. Creature Fear is more than horror; it’s an unflinching portrait of survival and obsession from a filmmaker unafraid to explore the darkness behind the dream.