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Instagram Suggests #Horror Fans are in Danger of Harm

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instagram #horror

If you’ve recently been on Instagram and tried to search anything #horror, you’ve probably noticed something odd. An alert pops up, warning genre-loving Instagrammers that “posts with words or tags you’re searching for often encourage behavior that can cause harm and even lead to death”.

Another screen reads:We’ve hidden posts for #horror to protect our community from content that may encourage behavior that can cause harm and even lead to death.”

But don’t worry, they’d like to help.

Users have the option to “Get Support”, which will take them to a page that suggests they “talk to a friend”, talk with a helpline volunteer, or “get tips and support”.

And still, there are far more destructive terms that can be effectively searched on Instagram with no issue. You can even search #death, #killer, #despair, #hurt, and other emotionally loaded hashtags with no alert.

But for whatever reason, Instagram (which is owned by Facebook) has decided that #horror was harmful enough to halt and warn its users.

Horror is a genre. It’s lively; it celebrates the thrills that life can bring and pushes the limits of what effects teams are physically capable of creating. Horror is cathartic and has been known to help relieve anxiety and depression among its viewers. Horror is a lifestyle.

As a genre, it explores darkness without encouraging it; we can imagine ourselves in the position of the survivor. A quote from author Joe Hill perhaps explains it best: “Horror isn’t about extreme sadism; it’s about extreme empathy”.

Even after the horror hot takes of 2018, you would hope that we’ve moved beyond such overdramatic misunderstandings. Horror has made a lot of progress with mainstream appeal, and there’s still more on the horizon.

And while it’s noble (if not a touch misguided) for an app to provide crisis support, the implication that horror “encourages behavior” that can “cause harm and even lead to death” is a bit of a slap in the face. It harkens back to concerns about “violent movies and videogames” that are… very outdated. These negative stigmas and delinquent stereotypes are far more harmful than the media they oppose.

In the wake of last week’s shooting in New Zealand (of which a Facebook video livestream played for 17 minutes before it was reported), it is to be expected that Facebook would aim to tighten their (very) loose grip on what is published on their platform.

But this seems like an odd stance for Instagram to take. A lot of fans, creators, influencers, and merchants all follow the popular hashtag as a way to find and connect with one another on this platform, which focuses on still frame photos and 15-second video clips.

In the grand scheme of things, is a hashtag on a social media platform really that important? Not really. We’ll adapt. But perhaps that’s one of the reasons why this particular update feels so petty. Because all things considered, there are far bigger fish to fry.

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Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

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Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

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Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

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The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
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Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

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Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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