Mark Aaron Cantu (born October 4, 1978) was raised in San Antonio, Texas, United States by his parents, Arturo and Alicia Cantu. Majoring in Fine Arts with Secondary Certification, Mark attended Texas State University-San Marcos. His early career includes numerous short films and stage work, including roles as Felix Ungar in "The Odd Couple," and John Williamson in "Glengarry Glen Ross." In 2002, he established LWF Films in San Antonio, which focused on short films and music video work. Spending several years developing his craft, Mark was finally able to focus on solely film work starting in 2009. He created three award winning short films for the SA 48 Hr Film Competition: "Saint Passions Landing" (1st Place-2009); "Endgame" (2nd Place-2010); and finally "Love After" (1st Place-2011). In 2012, Mark began preproduction on the superhero romantic comedy NOW HIRING. Initially plagued by early budgetary issues, LWF Films regrouped and was able to produce the feature film in 2014. Premiering in Summer 2014, the film won several international awards and was picked up for worldwide distribution by Indican Pictures. In 2015, LWF Films began preproduction on the military thriller ELITE, co-written by himself and actor Jason Scarbrough. The final film was well-received and picked up for worldwide distribution through Lost Empire Films. The success of this film led to funding for his fourth feature film NIGHT ZERO. It is currently slated for a release on May 22, 2018 through Lost Empire Films. As of 2018, Mark has six more films in preproduction. Mark currently lives in Pittsburgh, PA with his wife, Elizabeth and their children.
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Biography from IMDb.
- October 4, 1978 (48)
- San Antonio, Texas, USA
- Writer, actor, director, cinematographer and editor, also producer
- 9 on MovieCove · 12 credits in all
What are Mark Cantu's films like?
Across their 9 MovieCove titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Survival and Bonds.
Genres
Their MovieCove films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 2 · Wry 0 · Earnest 7
Light 3 · Serious 3 · Dark 3
A split, not a type: Grounded 5 · Stylized 3 · Heightened 1
Gentle 2 · Charged 5 · Intense 2
A split, not a type: Steady 5 · Shifting 3 · Whiplash 1
A split, not a type: Straight-faced 4 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 2
Slow burn 4 · Even-paced 4 · Relentless 1
Casual 5 · Engaged 4 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 4 · Affecting 4 · Heavy 1
Resolved 7 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 1
Moods and endings
- Happy4
- Bittersweet2
- Ambiguous3
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Mark Cantu's films?
As of October 24, 2026, 7 of their 9 MovieCove titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (6).
- Elite (2017) · director, writer, producer, cinematographer, editor · free
- Massacre Academy (2021) · actor, director, writer, producer, cinematographer, editor · free
- Night Zero (2018) · director, writer, cinematographer, editor · free
- Sanitarium (2013) · actor · free
- Wolf Hollow (2023) · director, writer, producer · free
- Average Joe (2021) · director, writer, editor · free
Subscription and free streaming for Mark Cantu's titles on MovieCove; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
12 credits, 9 with a MovieCove page.
Grind(2025)
Midcredits score: 7th percentile of all films
Wolf Hollow(2023)
Midcredits score: 5th percentile of all films
Massacre Academy(2021)
Midcredits score: 22nd percentile of all films
Average Joe(2021)
Midcredits score: 2nd percentile of all films
Night Zero(2018)
Midcredits score: 14th percentile of all films
Elite(2017)
Midcredits score: 23rd percentile of all films
Now Hiring(2014)
Midcredits score: 20th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Sanitarium(2013)
Midcredits score: 11th percentile of all films
Fuse (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2012)
Doctor S Battles the Sex Crazed Reefer Zombies: The Movie (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2009)
Echo (not in the MovieCove catalog yet)(2008)
Midcredits score: 94th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Career shape
Star power in the 12th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 8 titles from 2008 to 2023.
Biggest box office
Average Joe (2021)
Highest rated
Sanitarium (2013)
Most popular right now
Now Hiring (2014)
Film career
- 2013Screen debut· Sanitarium
How do Mark Cantu's films land?
Their typical MovieCove film has a Midcredits score in the 14th percentile, the median of all 9; across their 9 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 10th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up1
- Below 25th8
Shape of the crowd
5 of their 9 titles are Mixed.
- Divisive4
- Mixed5
Reviewers score the dialogue 26/100 and the plot and story 25/100 in their films, across 5 reviewed titles. The element that speaks to their work as a writer.
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on MovieCove; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their MovieCove titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Who does Mark Cantu work with?
People who share at least 2 of Mark Cantu's MovieCove titles, grouped by what they did on them; Elizabeth Cantu shares the most, 6.
Writers
- Brian CeponisShared titles: Grind (2025), Wolf Hollow (2023), Massacre Academy (2021)See all 3 shared titles with Brian Ceponis
Actors
- Felissa RoseShared titles: Grind (2025), Wolf Hollow (2023), Massacre Academy (2021)See all 3 shared titles with Felissa Rose
- Jason ScarbroughShared titles: Average Joe (2021), Elite (2017), Now Hiring (2014)See all 3 shared titles with Jason Scarbrough
- August KyssShared titles: Grind (2025), Wolf Hollow (2023)See all 2 shared titles with August Kyss
- Lynn LowryShared titles: Grind (2025), Wolf Hollow (2023)See all 2 shared titles with Lynn Lowry
Composers
- Dave FoxShared titles: Average Joe (2021), Elite (2017)See all 2 shared titles with Dave Fox
Producers
- Elizabeth CantuShared titles: Grind (2025), Average Joe (2021), Massacre Academy (2021), Night Zero (2018), Elite (2017), Now Hiring (2014)See all 6 shared titles with Elizabeth Cantu
- Tredd BartonShared titles: Grind (2025), Wolf Hollow (2023), Massacre Academy (2021), Night Zero (2018)See all 4 shared titles with Tredd Barton
- Brian BellShared titles: Grind (2025), Wolf Hollow (2023), Massacre Academy (2021)See all 3 shared titles with Brian Bell
- Donna SwaffordShared titles: Average Joe (2021), Massacre Academy (2021), Elite (2017)See all 3 shared titles with Donna Swafford
Mixed roles
- James ChapmanShared titles: Average Joe (2021), Now Hiring (2014)See all 2 shared titles with James Chapman
