Mary Wild

Psychosis and Identity Fragmentation

Psychotic conditions are among the most misunderstood and stigmatised mental illnesses, partly because they involve a severe personality change. Many filmmakers have relied on this diagnostic classification to create provocative works within the Psychological Horror canon. This talk will focus on cinematic representations of identity fragmentation, where the fabric of the psychotic’s reality is ripped apart and there is a struggle to achieve Symbolic meaning. A discussion of accompanying symptoms (e.g., hallucinations, paranoia, delusions, derealisation) will be provided.

Films discussed: The Ghoul (dir. Gareth Tunley), The Brøken (dir. Sean Ellis), Black Swan (dir. Darren Aronofsky).

Mary Wild is the creator of the PROJECTIONS lecture series at Freud Museum London, applying psychoanalysis to film interpretation. She also co-hosts the PROJECTIONS Podcast with Sarah Kathryn Cleaver.

Brad Hanson

Sins of the Father: Contemporary horror's generational guilt

Is there anything more horrifying than parents? Let us consider the words of Philip Larkin on those monsters…

Who half the time were soppy-stern

And half at one another’s throats.

Brad will be examining contemporary horror’s fraught relationship with the generation that came before, and the steady slope from disfranchisement to outright mortal hatred. Those guys brought us into this world, but will they take us out?

Brad is a wide-ranging expert in horror cinema and regular contributor to the Evolution of Horror podcast, charging with gusto and passion through huge numbers of underseen and comparatively obscure horror gems in the standout "also-rans" episodes that close each series. Brad has an encyclopedic knowledge of horror, with a particular love of psychotronic schlock, gloopy trash, and general extremity.

Celluloid Sorceress

The Art of Sneaking into Horror Films: Blagging your way in the '80s

Take a personal journey with acclaimed film curator and historian The Celluloid Sorceress through her ‘80s film diaries and formative horror experiences. With clips, tales of Cannon Cinemas and an invitation to to share your stories of sneaking into movies underage*, this is a typically left-field Sorceress discussion of how the movies we see when we are young hold a special place in our bloody, beating hearts.

With a family background in theatre and film exhibition, and her own theatrical training, Rebecca Nicole Williams has curated or participated in over 70 film events since 2016. She has written for Little White Lies, for Indicator Series blu-rays, and been programme consultant on Widescreen Weekend since 2017. She splits her time between London, LA, and the Duke of Yorks Picturehouse in Brighton.

*Sneaking not formally endorsed by The London Horror Symposium.

Orla Smith

Unsane, Raw & Thelma: Female agency in feminist horror.

From Julia Ducournau's Raw to Joachim Trier's Thelma, some of modern horror's greatest monsters aren't physical tangible -- they're internal demons. These 'female monsters' face no antagonist but themselves and their lack of agency over their own minds. Smith draws from the ideas explored in Seventh Row's book, Beyond empowertainment: Feminist horror and the struggle for female agency to explore the contrast between these internal battles for agency and more external ones (Unsane, Carrie).

Orla Smith is a freelance film critic and the Executive Editor of Seventh Row, an online publication dedicated to helping you understand how your favourite films make you feel the way you do, through technical analysis and detailed interviews. Orla is based near London.

Andrew Pope

Introduction and MC

Andrew will be introducing this, the inaugural London Horror Symposium, and acting as MC for the night.

Andrew co-hosts Whitlock & Pope, a wide-ranging film blog with a particular interest in horror films and Korean cinema.

…and more!

Lineup, including speakers, order, and any timings, is subject to change!