Join your intrepid host, Vincent Midgard, as he interviews writers and filmmakers who produce works in dark literature and film, including horror, noir, gothic, as well as nonfiction and documentaries on dark subject matter.

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Join your intrepid host, Vincent Midgard, as he interviews writers and filmmakers who produce works in dark literature and film, including horror, noir, gothic, as well as nonfiction and documentaries on dark subject matter.

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A.K. Espada: Monsters, Morals, and Mental Illness

The Dark Mind Podcast

1 hour 23 minutes 33 seconds

3 weeks ago

A.K. Espada: Monsters, Morals, and Mental Illness

In this episode, horror filmmaker A.K. Espada joins me to discuss her deeply personal short film I Could Just Die and That Would Be All Right.The film follows a woman struggling with suicidal depression who offers herself to a cryptid called the Bonecat in the forests of Southern Gothic suburbia, only to wake up undead and denied the escape she sought.Kate opens up about writing the script during one of the darkest periods of her life and how making the film became a form of therapy and advocacy.We discuss the COVID shutdown that nearly ended the production, the challenge of maintaining directorial distance while depicting your own trauma, and why she felt obligated to be transparent about her mental health struggles during festival Q and A sessions.Kate also talks about her other films including The Promotion, a darkly satirical office horror co-directed with Phil Cheney, This Is Our Home, a vegan versus pragmatist horror that won the Audience Award at Brooklyn Horror Film Festival, and Laundry Night, which won a Special Jury Prize.We explore the importance of programming at festivals, how dark humor functions in horror, and why she believes everyone needs some form of artistic expression to process difficult emotions.Kate shares insights from her work as a scenic artist on productions like Stranger Things, her participation in the Sundance Horror Fellowship and Moonshot Initiative, and her philosophy on self-distribution and making films outside the traditional gatekeeping system.This conversation covers the psychology of horror, the ethics of depicting suicide on screen, and what it truly takes to make independent films that break stigma and foster genuine connection.OFFICIAL WEBSITEhttps://akespada.comSOCIAL MEDIAInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/akespada/LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/a-k-kate-espada-b24a1075FILM-SPECIFIC SOCIAL MEDIAI Could Just Die Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/i_could_just_die/STREAMING PLATFORMSShort of the Weekhttps://www.shortoftheweek.com/2025/07/17/i-could-just-die-and-that-would-be-all-right/Shudder (This Is Our Home - Etheria Showcase)https://www.shudder.com/movies/watch/etheria-film-night-2022/9bf212afcd42a5daALTERhttps://youtu.be/-GHVEeMJc0M?si=dE4MuNTNZvv3GkKoIMDB PROFILEhttps://www.imdb.com/name/nm6711544/SEED AND SPARK (Crowdfunding/Distribution)https://seedandspark.com/fund/i-could-just-dieCONTACThttps://akespada.com/contact