Amiallana Justus
Horror-lando started with a spooky game of trivia and ended with a night of terror for guests as Scream 4 played throughout the BookBurn Cafe at 8 p.m. on Tuesdays, Jan. 20.
This horror-filled event kicked off at 7:30 p.m. with board games, trivia, and casual conversations among the horror community brought together by a genre many people at the BookBurn cafe love. Scream 4 (2011) was picked for the annual horror movie night this month due to Scream 7 coming out on February 27.
BookBurn Cafe has a relaxing environment for horror enthusiasts to learn more about the genre and support the cafe by buying beverages and just having fun. What makes BookBurn Cafe so special is that every month, Horror-lando is able to put on monthly horror movie screenings for an audience to enjoy.
Horror-lando began in July 2025 with a screening of The Lost Boys (1987), and has continued to grow throughout the year with new audience members at every event. Cult classics, slashers, and seasonal horror films are enough to make any horror fan want to come out and show their support for this club.
The People Behind the Scenes
Marcel Urena, one of the collaborators for Horror-lando, said having the opportunity to create a safe space for horror fans to collaborate and come together is the ideal goal for this group.
“I feel like there needs to be more to represent horror fans and that’s where this group started,” Urena said, “We kind of wanted to just get together and just screen some of our favorite movies, do themed events, and bring the Orlando people together.”
Urena said that this space has been great for welcoming different personalities and individuals together to grow and learn about each other’s interests. He grew up in the Orlando area, so horror was always around for him to learn and love.
Chloe Salazar, social media collaborator of Horror-lando, said that she used to be terrified of horror until she saw Scream, and it turned her whole perspective of the genre around.
“I used to be really scared of everything, and something kinda flipped for me, and it really was the Scream movies,” Salazar said. “I watched Scream my senior year of high school and got obsessed with the slasher genre, and that led me into horror movies.”
Salazar said this group began on Reddit about horror and then moved over to a Discord where local people in the area started brainstorming ideas they could bring horror to life in Orlando.
BookBurn Cafe, being a space for Horror-lando to put on these horror events, has been helpful for guests and the collaborators, as it allows a space for individuals to be themselves and find common interests with different people.
“I think there is such a huge niche for every pop culture genre in Orlando, so it’s just bringing in a lot of horror fans,” Salazar said. “I think it’s just a really fun spot for people to be able to be interested in what they’re interested in and have like-minded people.”
Horror-lando wants horror fans to be on the lookout for more exciting, scary-filled events that will be happening in the next few months as this collaboration horror group takes off, so stay alert and aware of the upcoming events.
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