The Rewind

Certified Forgotten is pivoting to video! OK, not really, but we are starting to seriously tinker with video content for the first time in our six-year existence.

Years after Facebook broke the internet by fabricating video metrics on their site, the unsteady social media landscape has a lot of writers actually thinking seriously about video content. Some, like our friend and film journalist BJ Colangelo, have made the pivot from writer to video interviewer and TikTok creator look deceptively simple. Others continue to struggle to establish a consistent rhythm to their video releases. I would put Certified Forgotten in that second bucket, though our most recent episode on Kane Parsons’s Backrooms is an indicator of the kind of results we hope to do going forward.

But why even give a shit about video as a text-based web publication? It’s a pretty powerful tool, albeit only one of many that can help a site like Certified Forgotten grow.

First, it’s important to acknowledge that adding video content to the mix is a challenge for any publication, especially small ones like ours. While production value is often overrated – good audio and half-decent video will cover a multitude of sins – it can still be challenging to turn video into a format that viewers actually want to engage with. Plus, video invites obvious comparisons between publications. While I’ll stand our written words toe-to-toe against any goddamn horror publication under the sun, you can easily compare our webcam videos to, say, The Ringer’s podcast studio and know who’s just happy to get something on the feed.

But even for the Certified Forgottens of the world, video can be a boon. There’s no denying the power of the algorithm; it’s been two short days and our Backrooms clip is already the fifth-most watched video in our YouTube channel history. Plus, selling Certified Forgotten is synonymous with selling Donato and myself as the Bert and Ernie of the brand. We have a fun dynamic when we talk about movies – we’re, like, friends in real life and everything – and that (dare I say) chemistry pops even harder on video than it does on audio.

Does the success of any modern online business depend on your audience developing a parasocial relationship with your team? In some areas, yes. And in other areas, also yes.

And that does not include the best reason to do video: meeting your readers, listeners, and watchers where they’re at. I’m too old and too cranky to ever prefer video content over the written word when it comes to film criticism. But what works for me doesn’t work for everyone, and I want people to be able to enjoy the kind of insights you can only get at Certified Forgotten in whatever format they want. So don’t be surprised if we continue to experiment with our :30 episodes – the episodes where Donato and I discuss a new release – and also keep an eye peeled for a few guests who might be brave enough to go on-camera for their episodes.

If you read my review of Russell Goldman’s Sender, you might walk away uncertain if you’ll enjoy the film. That’s a totally fair read. I didn’t like Sender all of the time, but I was hooked on its unique vibe — say, Alan J. Pakula with iPhone face — and the way it taps into the very specific and very boring flavor of paranoia so many of us take for granted. If nothing else, the film shows that Britt Lower is not a one-hit wonder with Severance, so c’mon, Hollywood, let’s get busy getting her dance card filled with a ton of new movies and television shows.

I try and maintain a little balance in our newsletter. If our most recent piece focuses on something dense and difficult to pin down, then our archival shout out needs to be a real barn burner of a horror film. So consider this my recommendation to schedule a Sender and Demonicus double feature once the former is available on streaming. Will you walk away a better person? I can’t say for sure, but after re-reading Simpson’s piece, I’m at least confident that Demonicus will be memorable.

Quick hits from around the world of horror and indie journalism.

Want more? Certified Forgotten also offers a weekly podcast series featuring some of the biggest names in the horror genre. Subscribe today on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or your podcast platform of choice.