Freaks and Psychos: The Disability in Horror Podcast

AnDread interviews director Daniel Lane Baker, writer Benjamin Roberts, and actor Daniel Aaron Harris to discuss their horror short Able Bodies. We discuss how incorporating the real experiences of disabled people (Harris has cerebral palsy, and Baker and Roberts have their own personal experiences with disability as well) and centering disability changes the story they tell. Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode021/

AnDread and returning guests Josh Anderson and Matt Connolly discuss John Carpenter·s Halloween (1978), mental illness, evil, and the mad psychiatrist Dr. Loomis. Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode020

AnDread celebrates the one-year anniversary of the Freaks & Psychos podcast by talking with film journalist and access consultant Charlotte Little and horror fan (and intro music composer) Dark Mark. We discuss the changing trends in disability representation in horror, horror short films, disability and apocalypse, the growth of the podcast, and Halloween horror! Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode019

AnDread & described video writer Liam Leonard aka Graham the Haunted Marshmallow discuss the benefits of audio description for viewers, the challenges & rewards of writing audio description, & the audio description for Gerald’s Game! Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode018

AnDread, Joshua T. Anderson, and Matthew Connolly discuss werewolves as a metaphor for mental illness and addiction, female puberty, and the tragic outsider! Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode017

AnDread and Disability Studies scholar Anne Jackson dive into zombies as metaphorical representations of people with disabilities. Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode016

AnDread and Columbus film critics Hope Madden and George Wolf cover Relic (2020). We discuss gothic metaphors of the mind, dilemmas of caring for elderly parents, and compassion for people with dementia. Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode015

AnDread and Bill the Butcher Van Veghel dive into The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1923). We discuss Lon Chaney’s connections to disability, Quasimodo as an empathetic disabled character, and the horrors of silent cinema. Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode014

Part Two of AnDread’s discussion with Erin C. Hendricks on Stephen King’s Misery (1987) and Rob Reiner’s film adaptation (1990). We discuss addiction and differences between the book and movie. Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode013

Part One of AnDread’s discussion with Erin C. Hendricks about Stephen King’s Misery (1987). We discuss physical disability and chronic pain, abuse and disability, and themes of writing and reading. Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode012

AnDread, Pastor Matt, and Jackson of Father and Son Watch Horror Movies dive into Wait Until Dark (1967). We discuss self-reliance, victimization, and discovering abilities through trial. Also reviews of the Evolution of Horror Podcast and Philip K. Dick’s Ubik (1969). Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode011

AnDread and Nichole Goble dive into Run. We discuss caregiver abuse, overcoming vs. living with disability, and factitious disorder imposed upon another. Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode010

AnDread and Lauren Strand dive into Hush to discuss deafness, social isolation, and disabled female protagonists. Show Notes at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode009

AnDread briefly reviews horror movies from 2020 that feature disability and discusses common themes such as trauma, grief, family dysfunction, independence, delusion, paranoia, and diversity within disability representation. Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode008

AnDread and Dark Mark (creator of the show’s theme music!) dive into disability in Christmas horror. We discuss obsession, PTSD, and Down syndrome in Christmas Evil, Silent Night, Deadly Night, and Red Christmas. Also reviews of the Faculty of Horror Podcast and and John Ajvide Lindqvist’s Let the Old Dreams Die. Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode007

AnDread and horror podcasting legend Jay of the Dead dive into Ari Aster’s Hereditary. We discuss mental illness, family dysfunction, and how these relate to the film’s supernatural aspects. Also reviews of the Stephen King Cast and Stephen King’s The Stand. Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode006

AnDread and author Vicious Victor Rodriguez dive into one of the show’s namesakes, Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho (1960). We discuss mental illness in horror, the Other, and the film’s shifting perspectives and sympathies. Also reviews of the Psychoanalysis Podcast and Robert Bloch’s 1959 novel that inspired the film. Show Notes available at freaksandpsychospodcast.com/episode005

AnDread is joined by his friends and fellow horror hounds Joshua Anderson and Matthew Connolly to discuss the prominence of disability in slasher films in classics such as The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Halloween, and Friday the 13th.

AnDread talks with actress Kristina Arntz about Fede Alvarez·s 2016 home invasion thriller Don·t Breathe, about three thieves who fight for their lives after breaking into the house of a blind man with a dark secret. Show notes for Episode 3

AnDread talks in-depth with film critic Angela M. Smith about Tod Browning's controversial 1932 classic, Freaks. Show Notes for Episode 002