Given the current state of journalism, there’s no shortage of talented culture writers trying to monetize their work through newsletters and blogs. And while we’ve always tried to keep the focus on our contributors at Certified Forgotten, the truth is that any publication is also an exercise in selling the people on its masthead. That means keeping myself and my co-founder Matt Donato at least a little front-and-center of the Certified Forgotten festivities.
So while our podcast actually predates our website, we’ve finally decided to start recording at least some of our episodes as video. You know, to put a face to the name.
That’s the case with this week’s episode, which focuses on Ready or Not: Here I Come. Donato and I have a fun conversation about a movie we both liked for different reasons, and the video feed really sells our mismatched style as writers. For now, we will probably only record our :30 Uncertified episodes as video; anyone who has ever tired to schedule a video call with someone outside your organization knows how hard it is to control for video quality.
But as much as possible, our goal is to be able to provide folks with insightful film criticism in their preferred medium. As someone who doesn’t watch a lot of video essays, I’ll be dead and buried before we ever fully “pivot to video,” but our podcast and YouTube channel are great options for people who prefer a more interactive relationship with writers. So whether you read every article or just tune in occasionally, we hope you’re having the experience you want at the site.
And if not? You can always hit that little reply button and let us know.
Matthew Monagle, Cofounder
Certified Forgotten
New This Week
The Cremator Is a Meditation on Extremist Indoctrination
Speaking of the podcast: you may remember that we had writer Tori Potenza on the show a few weeks ago to talk about Juraj Herz’s The Cremator. It’s hard to overstate how hard this movie hits — about war, about genocide, and, above all, about the malleability of masculinity. So when the episode was done, we commissioned a piece from Tori on the spot, because we need more writing about The Cremator in the world.
From the Archives
The Exorcist III Knows We Don’t Need It
While the biggest driver behind Certified Forgotten is giving a spotlight to festival favorites that struggled to find distribution, we also have a soft spot for movies whose cultural standing has changed drastically (and for the better) over time. And nothing can beat a horror franchise sequel that actually makes you give a shit. Anyways, here’s Wang Sum Luk on The Exorcist III just in time for Easter season.
Around the Web
Quick hits from around the world of horror and indie journalism.
We didn’t cover SXSW this year, but boy howdy, were there a lot of good horror films on the docket. You should check out Donato’s work at Daily Dead or our friend Molly Henery’s reviews at The Blogging Banshee.
Horror filmmaker Jamie Blanks passed away last week, and while he might not have gotten a fair shake in life, /Film’s BJ Colangelo is here to explain why you should care about his legacy.
Anyone who podcasts would be lucky to produce a show half as good as April Wolfe’s long-running series Switchblade Sisters, so we’re pumped that the screenwriter (and former guest!) has a new horror film in development. The Black Christmas remake is, of course, underrated.
Fangoria is, as usual, doing the lord’s work to celebrate international horror.
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.