Why do horror movies thrive in times of chaos?

Chuck Marra
Oct 20
4 min read

How Indie Filmmakers Are Reinventing Genre Movies

There's something stirring in the shadows this October: a renaissance of independent filmmaking that's breathing new life into genre cinema. As autumn leaves fall and Halloween approaches, we find ourselves in the midst of what might be the most innovative period for indie horror and genre films in decades. But perhaps more fascinating than the films themselves is what they reveal about our collective psyche during these uncertain times.

The Psychology Behind Our Craving for Fear

Why do we gravitate toward the very experiences that should, by all logic, repel

us? As the world grows more uncertain, our appetite for carefully curated terror seems to intensify. The mental health community has been studying this phenomenon with renewed interest, and their findings are illuminating.

Dr. Coltan Scrivner's research reveals that horror films function as "emotional drills": safe spaces where we can practice confronting fear and building resilience. A paper published by Denver University studies during the pandemic showed that horror fans demonstrated greater emotional preparedness for crisis situations and bounced back from stress more effectively than their genre-averse counterparts.

Another article from University of Chicago says "Horror movies allow us to experience fear in a controlled environment," notes Psychology Today's analysis of pandemic-era viewing habits. "They provide catharsis: a release valve for the

anxieties we carry but rarely acknowledge." This cathartic function becomes especially pronounced during Halloween season, when societal permission to explore our darker impulses reaches its annual peak.

NPR's recent exploration of evolutionary fear responses suggests that our love of scary movies taps into ancient survival mechanisms. We're not just entertaining ourselves; we're honing skills our ancestors needed to survive. The controlled adrenaline rush, followed by the relief of safety, creates a powerful emotional cycle that leaves us feeling more equipped to handle real-world uncertainties.

Genre Reinvention in the Independent Sphere

Independant horror films have a freedom that studio films don't have. Take Yorgos Lanthimos's Bugonia, a sci-fi black comedy that transforms paranoid thriller conventions into something altogether more unsettling: a film where the true horror lies not in alien invasion but in the breakdown of consensus reality itself.

Atmospheric works like Jérémy Clapin's Meanwhile on Earth demonstrate how indie filmmakers are creating "haunting vibes" that prioritize emotional resonance over conventional scares. These films understand that the most effective horror often comes from what we don't see, what lurks just beyond the frame of our understanding. At Foley Marra Studios, we've been exploring these same territories with our projects: Scream House and Reflected Shadows takes classic horror tropes into the spaces where reality blurs with nightmare.

The Collective Experience of Fear

There's something profoundly communal about being scared together. In an era of increasing isolation and small-screen addiction, the movie theater becomes a sacred space where complete strangers can collectively confront their demons

and emerge, paradoxically, more connected to one another.

Mirroring Societal Anxieties

Horror and suspense films have always functioned as cultural barometers, from climate anxiety to social fragmentation, from technological overwhelm to political turbulence, the erosion of the communal bonds that once held us together. This is a big theme in our movies at Foley Marra Studios; we’re obsessed with this idea—it’s in everything from Scream House to Toast the Ghost.”

The Craft of Controlled Terror

The most effective filmmakers understand that effective fear isn't just about startling the audience: it's about creating a sustained state of unease that reflects the low-level anxiety that characterizes of our daily real lives.

To do this, sound design becomes crucial: the absence of sound often more terrifying than its presence (as in "A Quiet Place"). Also, cinematography favors suggestion over revelation, understanding that what we imagine is invariably more frightening than what we're shown. The horror that lingers is the horror that trusts the audience's imagination.

Halloween is Cultural Permission

October ushers in a season which reminds us of magic and mystery and powers that are beyond our comprehension. It offers filmmakers and audiences a culturally sanctioned moment when we can explore the unknown and perhaps darker aspects of our human experience without judgment or apology. Halloween is the doorway to the miraculous. It's a great time to blur the lines of what we think know and what we like to peek behind the curtain to see.

The tradition also connects us to something ancient and essential: the recognition that confronting our fears, whether real or imagined, is a necessary part of psychological health. As Psychology Today notes, this confrontation serves multiple functions: it builds resilience, provides catharsis, and creates opportunities for social bonding that transcend the momentary experience of the film itself. In our award-winning film 'Toast the Ghost" we explore the history of Halloween and tell famous and personal ghost stories.

Looking Forward

As we move deeper into this Halloween season, it's worth considering that these films, may not be simply entertainment: they may be diagnostic tools and treatments, helping us understand both our individual and collective psychological state.

So, grab a friend and an enormous bowl of fresh popcorn, turn out the lights and walk down that hallway, do down into that dark basement, and all means...let's split up and investigate.. the other side of the veil.