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.

The post Homespun Haints Buried Alive with Tina Romero appeared first on Homespun Haints.

AI-generated transcript of this episode available upon request.

About the Guest: Renee Huff

For the first time in its history, Renee is bringing the Haunted House FearFest to the US. Per the HHFF website, “Haunted House FearFest is an independent horror film festival celebrating our passion for bone-chilling horror presented by cutting-edge independent filmmakers and game developers worldwide. Our goal is to share our love of horror and its sub-genres such as giallo, monsters, slasher, zombie, gore, supernatural, psycho, and more!”

If you’re a horror film maker or game developer and you think you’ve got what it takes to give Renee nightmares and win the coveted Grim Reaper Award, submit your project here. If you’re a horror movie fan who’s ready to brave the nightmares yourself, follow on Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter for updates on the venue and more. You might just see Becky and Diana there, October 5-8th, 2023.

Episode Show Notes about Horror Movies and Nightmares

Why do we feel more haunted when we’re alone?

Renee never really felt too frightened of the entities in her space while there were other living souls around. It wasn’t until she was living on her own that the presences really started to take a toll on her nerves. Fortunately, her cat Bette Davis found her at just the right time.

Are cats good companions for those of us living alone? Or should we say, those of us who are the only living person in our home? What do cats and other pets do to shield us from the paranormal? Becky says her cats are worthless as ghost catchers, and they should stick to mice. Diana’s dog refuses to even consider going down into the haunted basement, although she’s just fine going down all other staircases. Still, even a scaredy cat makes us feel more at ease when spooky things start happening. Is it just the presence of another beating heart, or is there something supernatural about pets?

Are You Afraid of the Dark?

This spooky teen show from Nickelodeon recently rebooted. The nostalgia was surely enough to get a lot of Gen Xers to tune in for the new version. But in today’s saturated teen vampire, teen werewolf, teen ghost, and teen witch television landscape, the reboot mainly seems to highlight just how few horror-centric paranormal TV options there were for us spooky teens in the early 90’s.

If you’re feeling nostalgic for some childhood horror content that probably won’t cause any nightmares beyond reminding you of your 90’s wardrobe, you can watch the original show here.

Can Horror Movies Cause Nightmares?

Renee insists her nightmares have nothing to do with her affinity for horror movies. However, for the rest of us, our dreams tend to focus on what we experienced within the last 48 hours. Therefore, it’s not uncommon for your dreams to turn scary after watching something terrifying.

Horror movies, full of their uncomfortable themes and jump-scares, can cause spikes in stress. If you’re anxious already, this increase in stress and all those chemicals that go with them can invade your dreams, causing nightmares. Your dreams are a way for your mind to work through and process what you recently experienced, so if you found a film particularly troubling, your brain is going to want to try to figure it out while you sleep. Which can, of course, cause a less than restful night.

Some of us weirdos actually enjoy these nightmares. But if you’re the type of person who just wants to have dreams that mimic a romcom, be sure you work out your emotions about the movie you watched before you hit the hay. Journaling about your emotions and discussing the film with someone else long before you go to bed can help.

What is it like being an empath in New York City?

Becky and Diana hope to make it to NYC to see the HHFF in person this October! But this interview raised some concerns we need to address. When Renee described her situation as an empath living in one of the most populous areas of the US, Diana got a little intimidated.

Becky and Diana both have empathic tendencies, which they both have trouble switching off. After years of living in sprawling neighborhoods, in relative isolation, what will it feel like sleeping sandwiched between hundreds of other people on the same city block? Will the population density of the living attack our senses? Is that a bad thing? How should we protect ourselves?

Let us know on our Facebook group at facebook.com/groups/homespunhaints, or I’m very afraid we’ll have a spooky day!

The post Will You Share Your Nightmares? appeared first on Homespun Haints.

Listen here.

Kerry’s Haunted Apartment

Hey, you’re into the paranormal, right? Did you happen to read the NYT article “Quarantining with a Ghost? It’s Scary“? Yeah, this is THAT Kerry, sharing his real haunted apartment stories with us. Oh, and remember our last guest, Sarah? Yeah, this is THAT apartment! Kerry goes even more in-depth about his own encounter with the same ghost in Sarah’s creepy Queens apartment. But this time, it’s from Kerry’s own unique point of view. He has no regrets about living in a haunted apartment during quarantine, except maybe wishing he’d tried harder to befriend the ghost he met there.

Along with his true haunted apartment stories, Kerry shares some sage advice about sharing space with—and getting along with—spirits. Also, he muses about why some spirits remain behind, and the mysteries of spirit-human communication.

Partners and Promos

Today’s episode podcast promo by Hollyweird Paranormal. They are awesome. Stay tuned for our interview with them coming in Season 4!

Ectogasm discount

Looking to purchase some artsy and spooky enamel pins and masks, and support this podcast in the process? Check out the wares at ectogasm.net, and use code HAINTS to save 10% off every order of $20 or more.

Episode Show Notes

About Kerry Blu

Kerry is a songwriter and “rapclectic soul” musician who crafts and performs poignant songs about equality, COVID lockdown stress, and more. His new single, “Think,” already has over 62,000 downloads as of this interview, and not just because it features a cute cat in the lyric video. He founded and curates a music festival in NYC—the Empire State Music and Arts Festival—and in Charlotte, NC–the Queen City Empire Music Festival. You can listen to his music on Spotify @kblumusic, read more about him on his website at kblumusic.org, and explore his different projects through Linktr.ee. Keep up with his announcements on Twitter and Facebook.

We met Kerry through Alexandra Cohl of POD.DRALAND and The Pod Broads. Thanks, Alexandra!

Does a green glow represent anything important?

Both Kerry and Sarah emphasized the greenness of the spirit they both encountered…but what does that mean? According to everydayknow.com, green orbs represent actual humans that have lived and died, visiting with the intent of bringing love and/or happiness, or medicine and/or healing. That does kind of fit with Kerry’s encounter, don’t you think?

Can a poltergeist encounter affect one’s memory?

Well, Wikipedia blames purported poltergeist activity on memory lapses, so perhaps sometimes it’s the other way around. And, we’ve heard stories from both our former guests Sapphire and Erin about people having no memory of supernatural encounters, even though everyone around them saw the effects of the ghosts themselves. What do you think?

Until next time, have a spooky day!

The post Quarantined with a Ghost appeared first on Homespun Haints.