Mario Cerrito Talks ‘The Amwellbury Hauntings,’ a New Ghost-Hunting Horror Film Set in South Jersey

South Jersey filmmaker Mario Cerrito III has built a horror career around taking unsettling ideas to bloody extremes. With films including Deadly Gamble, The Listing, and his Human Hibachi franchise, Cerrito has established himself in independent horror while keeping strong ties to the region. Originally from Salem County, the Rowan College at Burlington County alumnus studied criminal justice before eventually finding his way into filmmaking.

Now, he is returning to Salem County for a different kind of nightmare.

In an interview with Nerdthusiast, Cerrito shared details about The Amwellbury Hauntings, an upcoming found footage horror film following a group of ghost hunters investigating a cursed property. The project brings together real paranormal investigators, a rural New Jersey setting, and the director’s taste for gore.

And according to Cerrito, the idea began with a paranormal investigation inside his own home.

From a Home Investigation to a Horror Film

Before The Amwellbury Hauntings became a movie project, Cerrito met paranormal investigator Doug Hogate under circumstances that had little to do with filmmaking.

“I had a ghost hunter named Doug Hogate investigate my own house a while back,” Cerrito explained. “We became friends. He wrote the script and came to me with it and the pieces started falling in place.”

Cerrito will serve as the film’s producer and director, and he also plans to handle editing. Hogate’s script follows a ghost hunter who assembles a team of paranormal enthusiasts to investigate the cursed property known as Amwellbury.

Asked whether audiences should expect fiction or a documentary following real investigations, Cerrito offered a playful answer.

“It’s fictional….. or wait, maybe it’s not?”

That uncertainty fits the found footage approach, which can make viewers question where the staged scares end and something unexplained begins.

Real Paranormal Investigators Bring Their Experience

One element Cerrito hopes will help the film feel convincing is the involvement of JUMPS paranormal investigators.

Rather than relying entirely on actors handling unfamiliar equipment, the production will draw on people who have experience conducting investigations.

“They have all the equipment and know how to really make it look authentic,” Cerrito said.

That experience is especially valuable because, despite his background in horror, Cerrito considers ghost hunting unfamiliar territory.

“It’s a little different because ghost hunting is out of my wheel house,” he explained. “That’s why I’m glad I’m with the right group of people to make it authentic. My other stuff I had a firm grasp on the content.”

The planned setup includes a camera with a mounted light, boom microphones, and paranormal investigation cameras and equipment. Cerrito also mentioned another familiar piece of horror imagery: a Ouija board.

A Salem County Farm Sets the Scene

The production plans to film at a farm in Salem County, New Jersey. For Cerrito, access to the property helped the project come together.

“Out in Salem county, there was this farm we had access too and it is perfect,” he said.

The location also comes with an unsettling story. According to Cerrito, he has heard that a farm laborer died there in the early 1900s. That account has not been independently verified, but it adds another eerie association to the setting.

At the time of the interview, The Amwellbury Hauntings was in preproduction. Asked whether anyone had already experienced something unexplained while working on the project, Cerrito said nothing had happened yet.

“No…. Not yet at least lol.”

Nor’easter Nick Will Make an Appearance

South Jersey audiences will also recognize one of the faces expected to appear in the film.

Cerrito revealed that local weather personality Nor’easter Nick will make an appearance in The Amwellbury Hauntings. He did not disclose details about Nick’s role, leaving fans to wonder how he will fit into the investigation.

Between its Salem County location, paranormal investigators, and a familiar regional personality, the project is taking shape with a distinctly South Jersey connection.

A Personal Connection to the Paranormal

For Cerrito, interest in ghost hunting goes beyond finding material for a movie.

He said his own home was the subject of a paranormal investigation featured on Travel Channel’s Ghost Nation. Describing that experience, Cerrito said he believed the house was haunted until investigators identified what was causing the activity.

That personal history gives him another point of connection to the story, even as he relies on the investigation team’s knowledge to help shape what appears on camera.

His approach to the unpredictable side of the process is straightforward.

“Just go and do it! That’s what makes it fun.”

Ghost Hunting With a ‘Human Hibachi’ Spin

While the premise centers on a cursed property and a paranormal investigation, Cerrito does not intend to leave behind the bloody horror associated with his previous work.

Asked what could distinguish The Amwellbury Hauntings from other ghost-hunting movies and shows, he pointed directly to that influence.

“I think putting my signature spin on it with gore will make it stand out,” he said. “Like the Human Hibachi movies.”

Exactly how that gore fits into the story remains under wraps. For now, the combination suggests a film that could move beyond mysterious noises and shadowy figures into more graphic territory.

Getting it made still comes with the familiar challenges of independent filmmaking. Cerrito identified financing as the biggest obstacle.

“Financing is always the hardest part in making a movie.”

When Could ‘The Amwellbury Hauntings’ Be Released?

Cerrito hopes to premiere The Amwellbury Hauntings by summer 2027, with a possible streaming release in 2028. Those are current goals rather than confirmed release dates, and no streaming platform has been announced.

Fans may get an earlier glimpse of the project. Cerrito hopes to have a teaser ready before the end of 2026.

For updates, he encourages audiences to follow The Amwellbury Hauntings on Facebook and Instagram.

A cursed Salem County property, real paranormal investigators, and a director promising his own bloody twist give South Jersey horror fans plenty to keep an eye on as the film moves toward production.