Jordan Peele and N.K. Jemisin discuss the purpose of horror and the impact of 'Get Out'. They delve into the taboo topic of race in horror, the significance of diverse voices, and the cathartic impact of facing fears. The podcast also explores the motif of eyes in relation to the black experience and the transformative power of 'Get Out'.
Horror storytelling can help individuals confront and overcome their fears, providing a sense of catharsis and serving as a creative form of exposure therapy.
Creating movies that address violence against black people and challenge societal norms can lead to widespread acclaim and become a collective catharsis for viewers, offering a platform to tell stories that address the experiences and fears of black communities.
Deep dives
The Power of Horror: Confronting Fear through Storytelling
Horror has the ability to help individuals confront and overcome their fears through storytelling. Jordan Peele discusses how telling scary stories as a child helped him feel liberated from his fears. Nora Jemisin, a former psychologist and writer, explains that confronting fear through storytelling allows individuals to exercise control and find value in the things that scare them. Horror can provide a sense of catharsis and serve as a creative form of exposure therapy.
Breaking Taboos: Get Out and Tackling Black Experience in Horror
Jordan Peele's film Get Out, which mixed classic horror with contemporary black experience, was initially seen as a risky and unproducible film. However, it gained widespread acclaim and became a collective catharsis for many viewers. Peele explains that making movies that address violence against black people and portraying white characters as villains challenges societal norms. He and other black creators hope to tell more stories that address the experiences and fears of black communities.
Out There Screaming: Exploring the Eyes Motif in Horror Stories
The short story collection Out There Screaming, edited by Jordan Peele, explores the motif of eyes in horror stories. The eyes symbolize the trauma and marginalization experienced by black communities. Peele connects the eyes to the concept of the sunken place in his film Get Out, representing the feeling of being unheard and marginalized. Nora Jemisin's story "Reckless Eyeballing" features a black cop who starts seeing realistic eyes in car headlights, highlighting the constant surveillance and judgment faced by black individuals. The eyes motif serves as a means of understanding and confronting the truth for black communities.
After Jordan Peele directed the movie Get Out in 2017, he unlocked the genre of Black horror, which mixed classic horror with the modern Black experience. In a conversation with Peele and best selling sci-fi writer N.K. Jemisin, we talk about the purpose of horror and what happens when Black writers and directors get to create the monster. Jemisin wrote the first story in Peele's new collection Out There Screaming: An Anthology of New Black Horror.