A24 and Post-Horror: A Metamodern Studio for a Metamodern Cycle?

Abstract

This paper examines A24’s hegemonic status within the post-horror cycle, exploring how the studio’s distinct metamodern sensibility has contributed to its success. Through an analysis of A24’s history, branding strategies and film content, this study argues that A24’s metamodern approach — characterized by oscillations between sincerity and irony, pragmatism and idealism — has allowed it to position itself as a generational touchstone at the forefront of cultural relevance. Though A24’s metamodern sensibility appears most evident in its marketing strategies and “mini-major” studio ethos, this research claims that it also permeates some of the recurring motifs of its post-horror catalogue — namely its treatment of the supernatural, use of jump scares and portrayal of nudity. Rather than defining metamodernism as central to post-horror however, the study suggests that it primarily shapes the “collective affect” surrounding A24’s brand identity, which in turn resonates with some of the cycle’s characteristic traits.