PopHorror Let's Get Scared
One of my goals for 2021 is to listen to more podcasts and share them with the horror community. I discovered several new podcasts that are amazing over the past year and it made me realize that I’m missing out on quality entertainment that’s not only convenient but quite creative and unique. One of the podcasts is called The Shadow Diaries and what a fucking blast this one has been. It’s right up my alley and perfect for any horror fan, especially those who love murder and mystery. I had the privilege of talking with co-writer and director, K. Asher Levin, about the inspiration behind The Shadow Diaries, details about the characters, and much more!
PopHorror – Thanks for talking with me! You have a new podcast called The Shadow Diaries, which you directed and co-wrote. Where did the inspiration for this podcast come about?
K. Asher Levin – Hey! First off, I love this fucking site. I follow it. I use your recommendations and I consider everything I do within the realm of “pop horror,” so thanks for talking to me. As far as inspo, this concept was insanely personal. From 19-25, I was the lead singer of a moderately successful LA rock band. There was all the usual sex, drugs, and mayhem… of which I had very little to do with as I’m massively neurotic and left the party half the time before it even started. But of course, as we toured I witnessed all the bad and good sides of the lifestyle – the way the world breeds a soul-sucking cycle where everyone ultimately feeds off of creativity, and thus there are Faustian bargains ablaze. Along with my own experiences, my wife’s godmother is the high priestess of rock and roll, Stevie Nicks. Stevie told me this incredible story about meeting the woman who transcribed the Welsh fable that inspired “Rhiannon” and it instantly got my mind running in director mode off this concept. When I had a chance to explore the themes of music, demons and spirits, I placed a Stevie sort of character at the center of it and a surrogate for me with a young journalist, because even though I was in the band I always felt a little outside. I called Zack Imbrogno, a longtime writing partner of mine, and we started working on the show. He’s really into secret societies and cults and shit, so he elevated all the woo woo mythology shit, and voila – THE SHADOW DIARIES!
PopHorror – First, let me just say THANK YOU SO MUCH for the kind words. That means so much to me and thanks for being a fan of the site. Second… Stevie Nicks is everything!!! That’s fucking awesome. Let’s be best friends, haha. Third, can you tell the readers what the podcast is about?
K. Asher Levin – I can tell you a little, but I don’t wanna give away too much. In short, the story is about a badass young journalist, Shana Secco, who gets the chance to cover her teenage pop idol, Eliza Gold (Miley by way of Stevie), and soon discovers her newfound reassurance as a hot pop star is due to a deal she made with a demonic Illuminati tied to the music industry. SHIT. DID I TELL TOO MUCH? Just fucking listen!!!
PopHorror – Haha maybe a little. How did the casting come about for the characters in this podcast? I think they are perfect for this story.
K. Asher Levin – Thanks. As a director, I am super fortunate to have access to awesome talent. But the talent only really comes if the product is great and Zack and our friend Matt, who wrote a few episodes too, helped craft this amazing season with me. Our producer Gayle Gilman, a rockstar in her own right, and the team at Studio71, really allowed me to bring on the folks I thought would be best for the roles. Kara, who plays Shana, is my rock. She’s starring in the vampire movie I just directed and although she’s mostly known for her work as a teenager in Moonrise Kingdom, she’s one of the best actors I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with and understands my dialogue and direction uniquely. Madelaine was my one and only idea for the role of Eliza, she’s someone I’ve known and wanted to work with forever and she over-delivered for me. Constance is a longtime friend of mine and there’s nothing I can say about her that critics and folks who hand out awards haven’t already said. She fucking crushed everything. And then it was fun to have a guy like Clint, who’s an icon, come and help and I would say the same about Lydia, who also co-starred in my vampire flick… she’s already a horror legend. The rest of the cast are character actors who you may not know but are fantastic and you should check out other shit they’ve done. So big shout outs to all of them.
PopHorror – They were all great. I think I was especially excited about Madelaine as I’ve loved her ever since the beginning of Riverdale. She was perfect for this type of role. So, you play Chuck. Can you tell us about him? Can you relate to him at all?
K. Asher Levin – FUCK. Look I’m slightly embarrassed about casting myself. I kept trying to find people and my writing partner, Zack, and my producer, Gayle, kept saying “you’re Chuck. Just do it.” So on a whim, I said ok. And then I realized I was in every episode and now suddenly I’m Ed Asner in The Mary Tyler Moore Show in this goddamn podcast. So I don’t know If you guys think I’m shit, then I apologize for being a narcissistic asshole who cast myself in my own show. If you liked my work, I’m available for a price. You can contact my team at Untitled. But this voice ain’t cheap!!!
PopHorror – You’re hilarious. How many episodes are there thus far?
K. Asher Levin – We have 12 in the can. If you all scream loud enough we will do more.
PopHorror – “In the midnight hour, she cried more more more!” But seriously, give us more! How many episodes do you plan on having altogether?
K. Asher Levin – Well, this show is like a book. The first season is the first book and if people dig it enough, maybe we can do more. I love Shana and Eliza, so I’d like to find more mysteries to put them in the center of. I only sort of hate myself, so I wouldn’t mind coming back too.
PopHorror – You better. I personally love this podcast and looked forward to each episode. So far, have you received positive feedback and what are some of the listeners saying?
K. Asher Levin – I have no idea how feedback works for podcasts. Everyone seems to like it who listens and we have a lot of really nice reviews on Apple and Spotify.
PopHorror – That’s great to hear. If someone was leaning on the fence about checking out this podcast, what would you say do get them to try it out?
K. Asher Levin – It’s Covid, what else are you doing?
PopHorror – I can’t argue with that. Well, this has been a fantastic and hilarious interview and my first one of 2021… so I guess you can say I’m starting the year off right. Thank you again so much for chatting with me and supporting PopHorror. To everyone reading, be sure to check out The Shadow Diaries on whatever app you use for podcasts. Here’s a link to get you started – HERE.
