Xanthe Pajarillo

Xanthe Pajarillo is a director, writer, musician, DJ, and USAF Veteran. Her films are absolutely horrifying and incredibly fun. She’s a wonderful director, and makes awesome short films (available here). She brings a unique and refreshing touch to everything she works on, and has a diverse knowledge of many cultures and places.

How Did You Get Into Horror?

“I always found the macabre fascinating as a kid. My mother used to show me movies like Carrie, Scream, and I Know What You Did Last Summer. I once skipped a New Year's party to finish reading Helter Skelter. And of course, I grew up on Goosebumps because I thought the cover art was so cool. The movie that got me into filmmaking was Psycho. I was in high school and mind blown by how complex and layered it was. It will always be dear to my heart. As I get older, my relationship to the genre gets more intimate. Like a marriage, I suppose? I'm horror's bride, at its mercy. It's always evolving and striking new chords in me.”

What Are You Currently Doing in the Horror Community?

“ I hosted a KXSC show called ‘Music To Be Murdered By’ which discussed horror films from an academic and supportive lens. Horror is underappreciated and often misjudged, and I wanted to show how much love and care goes into the creation of genre films. My most recent short called Aubergine is about a suicidal 11 year old girl who befriends a ghost. It was created out of a need to shed light on child depression, as it's often overshadowed by teenage and adult mental health issues. I'm also in the early stages on a few scripts about body horror and the military.”

What Are Your Goals?

“To direct films, television, and music videos for a living. As a director, I love doing female-driven horror. I had a culturally diverse upbringing, so I try to create work to expand empathy. I would love to direct for Into the Dark, Room 104, Castle Rock... There's so many! I'd love to direct anything with Bill Skarsgård. I think he's one of the greats, and he should have won an Oscar for Pennywise. But to wrap up, I find horror to be a beautiful unifying genre. I hope I live to see the day where the Academy honors it with its own category.”

Elise Lichtman

Elise Lichtman is a writer, director, and UCSB Freshman. I had the pleasure of working with Elise on multiple films over the summer and she has a hilarious yet sophisticated style. Elise often writes psychological medical horror pieces with unexpected twists.

How Did You Get Into Horror?

“When I saw Coraline at age six, it was like trying sugar for the first time. The movements and pacing were all so new to me. It was so creepy and dark and I loved every second of it. By the end of the movie, I felt like I had defeated something. And ever since then, I’ve just wanted to recreate that feeling of triumph for others.” 

What Are You Currently Doing in the Horror Community?

“The biggest contribution I’ve recently made to the horror community is watching horror movies and series, which I guess is productive? I’m really into AI and hard sci-fi right now, so my dad and I are trying to outline a series about the emotional horrors that come with human and AI relationships. Who knows if anything will come of it, but it’s given me some daily structure during quarantine.”

What Are Your Goals?

“My biggest goal is to make movies that leave the audience truly terrified. I don’t mean a couple of jump scares here and there (which I greatly appreciate and without jump scares we would all be lost) but instead the most realistic horrors that are, in some cases, inevitable. In Krisha (Shults, 2015) family members must confront their demons and learn patience and empathy. Those are scary, intimidating things to do. Those are some of the things that horrify us most. I hope to someday be able to successfully capture those frightening moments and let people know that they’re not alone.”

Hannah May Cumming

(Monstrous Femme Films)

Hannah May Cumming is a writer, director, producer, and co-founder of Monstrous Femme Films, a collective dedicated to producing progressive horror flicks. She works alongside Emma Cogan and Karlee Boon and the three currently have two amazing short films out (available here). Hannah often produces feminist and queer horror films with retro aesthetics.

How Did You Get Into Horror?

“I’ve been a devoted horror fan my entire life. Starting with gateway horror like Goosebumps and Tim Burton, and eventually turning into an obsession with the horror film genre. I made horror youtube videos when I was very little, and throughout high school too. It was always a passion that I was never really able to share with anyone else, since it’s not super common to find people who are THIS invested in horror at such a young age, as I’m sure you know. But I met my current group of friends, who share this passion with me, and we became the Monstrous Femme Films team. I co-founded the collective with Karlee Boon and Emma Cogan, and our cast and crew are made up of devoted horror fans and friends. A lot of us had a background in film production prior to this, but some of us didn’t, and found our love for filmmaking through the creation of FANATICO in 2018. What I think is really evident in the work we have put out so far, is that we are clearly horror fans making films for horror fans. Not every spectator gets that we’re paying homage to the tropes of a genre that we love, while also subverting them with our personal perspective - but horror fans do. And that’s really who we’re trying to reach.”

What Are You Currently Doing in the Horror Community?

“We spearhead a film collective that is focused on uplifting feminist and queer perspectives in front of and behind the camera. We have produced two films under Monstrous Femme Films: a neo-giallo, FANATICO, and a ‘70s summer camp monster flick, Camp Calypso. I am currently finishing up the script for a ‘70s prom night pro-choice body horror titled Baby Fever, with my co-writer Alex Hartwig. We have a few other ideas in the works from Karlee and Emma, and other folks on our team, but we’re looking for more filmmakers to collaborate with in the Portland area and beyond. I’m so excited to see where the anthology will go in future years.”

What Are Your Goals?

“My long term goal for this collective would be to continue adding to this anthology, releasing multiple films from a diverse group of femme and queer directors. I would also really love to develop the anthology for a streaming service one day! I would love to make like, adult Goosebumps, or something along those lines! This collective has been a dream of mine for years, and it’s been an absolute blast to see it come to life. We want to keep telling progressive and political stories through the horror medium.”