'I'm doing something bigger than just making films': Jeff Barnaby on mining Indigenous trauma for horror

When you think about the best horror films, they often offer more than blood, guts and bad decisions. The best examples of the genre have a deeper and much more frightening meaning behind the suspense and scares. 

The new film Blood Quantum digs deeper. It's a zombie movie with a twist. Set on a fictional First Nations reserve, the only people immune to the zombie virus are those with Indigenous blood.

Jeff Barnaby is the director of Blood Quantum. His film is set to open the Toronto International Film Festival's Midnight Madness program. 

Ahead of the film's premiere, Jeff Barnaby joins q host Tom Power to discuss mining Canadian history for terror and subverting the expectations placed on Indigenous cinema. He talks about where he got the idea for the film and why he thinks the horror genre is a vehicle for subversive social commentary. 

— Produced by Frank Lockyer Palmer

*Click 'Listen' near the top of the page to hear the full conversation.