I really got into horror films pretty late, I watched ‘Night of the Living Dead’ by George Romero for the first time at age 29 and I couldn’t stop thinking about Barbara’s mental anguish of knowing she had a brother loose amongst the countless mob of zombies and Ben’s traumatic state of being a Black man simultaneously fighting off zombies and racial oppression. It terrified me but it made me want to check out more films in the genre. However, during my film studies at New Jersey City University, I noticed horror films were predominantly written and directed by men.

I still loved watching stuff like Tobe Hooper’s ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Argento’s Suspiria but I yearned to see more horror films of any kind made by women like Kathryn Bigelow’s ‘Near Dark and Mary Harron’s ‘American Psycho.’ I’m glad that ‘A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night’ by Ana Lily Amirpour, Jennifer Kent’s “The Babadook’, Karyn Kasuma’s ‘The Invitation’ and received some recognition. Now with Netflix’s phenomenon Birdbox directed by Susan Bier, we may see more entertaining horror films that have actresses in the lead that are filled with complexities driving the narrative.

I believe there is a new wave of films with bold messages in the horror genre that are written and directed by women; In addition to that, women of color like myself that have experienced different forms of marginalization will make films using the horror genre to artistically express our experiences. Horror deals with the darkest aspects of society and ourselves. As a screenwriter, I hope to be a part of this new wave.