Editorial Policy

Purpose

PORTFLICK exists to explain horror cinema clearly and accurately. Entries are reference material, not reviews or news, so they are written to stay correct and useful over time. The aim is that a reader who knows nothing about a film can learn where it fits in the genre, and a reader who knows it well can still find something they had not seen collected in one place.

How entries are researched

Entries are researched from published sources. For a film, that usually means reference works and archives, the pages of film institutions, serious film journalism and, where they exist, interviews or books by the people who made it. Encyclopedia articles can be a starting point, but a detail is not accepted on the strength of a single casual source if a more reliable one is available.

Each long entry lists the sources it was built from at the end of the page, so you can follow the trail. A source is listed only if it was actually consulted. Facts that could not be supported by a source are not included, even when they are widely repeated.

Original writing

All text is written for PORTFLICK. We do not copy or closely paraphrase official synopses, press materials, scripts or dialogue. Each entry describes a film's setup in our own words and focuses on context, analysis and history.

Quotations are rare and short. They are used only when the exact wording matters to the point being made, and they are attributed. Most references to what a critic or filmmaker said are given in our own words, with the source named.

Fact checking

Names, dates, countries, credits, awards and other checkable details are compared against reliable published references before they appear. When a detail is disputed or uncertain, we say so or leave it out. We prefer fewer facts that we can stand behind to many that we cannot.

Money and rankings get special care. Budgets and box office figures for older or independent films are often estimates, and sources can differ by large amounts. In those cases an entry gives a range, attributes the figure, or says that it is reported and not confirmed. The same applies to rankings and honors, which are credited to the organization that issued them.

Facts and interpretation

A reference work has to keep two things separate: what happened and what people make of it. Release dates, credits and awards are facts. Statements such as a film reflects anxiety about science, or a creature stands for fear of crowds, are interpretations. Interpretations are valuable, and the entries include them, but they are presented as readings, often with attribution, so that you can tell the difference.

The same care applies to influence. It is easy to claim that one film inspired another. When a filmmaker has said so, or a reliable source documents it, the entry says so. When the connection is only a resemblance, the entry describes it as a resemblance.

Language and tone

Entries are written in American English, in plain language, for adults. Terms a newcomer might not know are explained when they first matter. We avoid hype and ranking language, and we do not call a film the best or the scariest of anything unless a source we can name has made that claim, in which case the entry says who made it. Horror deals with violence and fear, and the entries describe disturbing material in a measured way and only as far as it helps explain a film or its place in history.

Spoilers

Entries describe the setup and the film's place in history. We do not reveal endings or major twists. If a discussion cannot avoid one, it will be clearly flagged. This rule affects how we write the whole page, and it is the reason entries focus on context, craft and influence over plot summary.

Images and artwork

We do not use posters, film stills or other protected images without permission. The artwork you see on PORTFLICK is original graphic design. If we ever add third-party images, we will credit the source and license.

Fair use and quotations

We keep quotations to the minimum needed for commentary, such as a short tagline or a title. Titles, characters and names remain the property of their owners and are used here only to identify and discuss them.

Independence

Entries are not paid placements. We do not accept payment to cover, rank or praise a film, and we do not accept free items in exchange for coverage. We are not affiliated with any studio, distributor or rights holder. If that ever changes, it will be clearly disclosed.

How subjects are chosen

A film, person or idea earns an entry by having a clear influence on how horror is made, watched or discussed, and by having enough reliable published material behind it for us to write accurately. Popularity alone is not the test. A well-known title with little reliable documentation may wait, while a smaller film with a well-documented effect on the genre may come first. We also try to build the library so that entries support each other, which is why decades, countries, creatures and techniques are covered alongside individual films.

Scope and gaps

The library does not try to be complete. It currently covers a limited number of films, filmmakers, decades and countries, and says so. Where an entry mentions a film or person that has no page, the name appears as plain text and not as a link, so a link always leads somewhere real. Periods and places that are not covered are gaps in the library, not statements that nothing happened there.

Choices about what to cover are judgment calls. We look for subjects with a clear, checkable influence on how horror is made or watched, and for enough published material to write about them accurately. Suggestions are welcome through the Contact page.

Corrections

We fix factual errors as soon as we can confirm them. To report one, email [email protected] with the page and the correction. Significant corrections will be noted on the page. Minor fixes, such as a typo or a corrected date that did not change the meaning of a passage, are made without a note.

If a reader's source contradicts ours, we compare the two and, where reliable sources genuinely disagree, change the text to reflect the range. We do not remove criticism of our work from consideration, and we are grateful for it.

Updates

Entries can change. New scholarship, restorations and re-releases can add or alter what is known about a film, and we update pages when we learn of reliable new information. Because the library is meant to be reference material, accuracy takes priority over speed, and a page may be revised after publication.