This episode contains our interview with Tina Romero, daughter of the legendary filmmaker George Romero, discussing her film Queens of the Dead at the Buried Alive Film Festival. We promise not to give away any spoilers! Instead, Becky and Diana muse about the evolution of queer and female representation in horror and other media genres. We keep our opinions brief, as there is already enough excellent content about queer symbolism and representation in horror film history out there to keep you busy until next Halloween.
Becky also interviews several independent filmmakers, who had only 13 days to produce each short horror film in the annual Sinema Challenge. We even managed to coax a spontaneous true ghost story out of Shane Morton, AKA professor Morté, horror host of Silver Scream Spook Show. Then, Becky tells Diana funny stories about being trapped on a 12-hour tour with her mom, and the awkward joy of attending the rather bawdy film festival with her teen daughter. There were so many weird and funny outtakes from this episode, which we shared on Patreon.
Listen to the full episode right here:
or watch the video of our interview with Tina Romero and other horror filmmakers on YouTube:
Want to cut straight to the interview? Here’s the short version, containing only the interview Homespun Haints did with Queens of the Dead director Tina Romero.
About the Guest: Tina Romero
It may not surprise you that someone with this last name would be in the zombie business. Yet even when her career veered into the film industry, Tina was always certain she would never make a zombie movie. That certainty suddenly imploded the day she read a headline basically asking why the queer community was devouring its own. The metaphor highlighted the insidious presence of various discriminatory -isms within a community who are united mainly by the discrimination they face themselves. What better way to make social commentary art that metaphorically screams harmful infighting than zombies?
Did our whimsical interview questions pique your curiosity about more practical matters related to the experience of making Queens of the Dead? To hear Tina answer slightly more traditional interview questions, we highly recommend watching the Q&A she did at BAFF after the screening we found on the BAFF Facebook Page. Even if only for the relatable (according to Diana) moment when she calls her partner Liz to the stage and the two decide to share a single chair.
The Buried Alive Film Festival is Alanta’s Horror Film Fest
The 18th annual BAFF screened Queens of the Dead on November 9, 2025. BAFF also awarded Tina Romero with their 2025 filmmaker of the year award.
The BAFF Sinema Challenge: Short Horror Films
Imagine you’re given an abstract topic, one random card from Cards Against Humanity, and you have only 13 days to create a short horror film based on both. This is the Sinema Challenge independent filmmakers face every spooky season at BAFF.
In this episode, Becky does on-the-spot mini-interviews with several indie filmmakers who participated in the challenge, including Marta Correa, Chad Hudson, Vicki Shaplida, Levi Morgan, and Lexi Anthony.
Plaza Theater Atlanta
The Plaza Theater, Atlanta’s hub for cult movies, is the perfect venue for a horror film fest. It’s where we go if we’re in the mood to do the Time Warp with other weirdoes.
Queens of the Dead: Where it Screened + Watch Info
Queens of the Dead (directed by Tina Romero) had its world premiere at the 2025 Tribeca Festival on June 7, 2025. It also screened at NewFest and SLASH in 2025.
Hopefully, this episode convinced you to watch the film! It really is a fun ride. The gore glittered, but the camp never overpowers the emotional tone of survival horror. We loved the way it unabashedly flips the script by having only one cis-het character, and yet they don’t kill him off at the beginning. It stays true to the nostalgic Romero zombie style and social commentary you crave.
Where to Stream Queens of the Dead
Official trailer on YouTube:
As of Jan 25, 2026, you can watch Queens of the Dead at home with a free trial of AMC+, or on Shudder, or rent it from Amazon Prime Video. Find other current streaming options at queensofthedead.com, including AppleTV, Xfinity, YouTube, and Vudu.
What did you think of Queens of the Dead? Did you catch all the cameos? Did Jack Haven really just quote Gremlins? Which character would you cosplay? What interview questions would you want to ask Tina Romero? Let us know by commenting on the YouTube video, or on our Patreon, where we’re all just trying to survive another spooky day.
