COURSES ▶ SEMINAR
Seeking Safety Through Danger: What Horror Movies Teach Us About Trauma, Recovery, and Living Well
Friday, October 23rd, 2026
3pm - 6pm PST
Live Online Seminar through Zoom
Instructors:
Jim McCollum, PhD; Trevor Ahrendt, PsyD
This interactive workshop invites participants to explore horror cinema as a rich space where trauma is represented, enacted, and, often, overcome. Far from being “mere entertainment,” horror films often depict the psychological processes of encountering, surviving, and dealing with trauma, either overcoming it or as cautionary tales to avoid it in real life. Through guided analysis, participants will examine how horror narratives map the terrain of trauma, threat, helplessness, hyper-vigilance, loss, and alienation, while also providing models (or cautionary tales) for coping, adaptation, safety, and post-traumatic growth.
We will combine Control-Mastery theory, thematic analysis, and group discussion to explore how these cinematic representations can deepen clinical insight, inform case conceptualization, and be used judiciously as metaphors or psychoeducation tools with clients.
Describe appropriate clinical use of film-based metaphor as a psychoeducation tool with clients.
This course will cover:
Describe how horror film narratives represent common features of traumatic experience, including threat, helplessness, hypervigilance, loss, and alienation.
Explain how CMT can be used to understand different scripts for responding to trauma and its aftermath
Meet the Speakers
After completing this workshop, participants will be able to:
Safety through danger! How horror movies coach us to overcome trauma.
Course Level: Introductory, Intermediate, and Advanced
CME Credits: SFPRG designates this for a maximum of 3 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
SFPRG is accredited by the California Medical Association (CMA) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
All planners and all presenters for this educational activity have no financial relationship(s) to disclose with ineligible companies whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.
CE Credits: 3 APA-approved CE hours. If you would like CEUs, you should indicate so during registration. COAs will be sent within 30 days of the class. You must arrive on time for the course and stay for the entirety of the program to receive CE credit.
Cost: $150 for General Public
$100 for SFPRG Members
$30 for Students (No CEU's or CMEs)
The Personalized Psychotherapy Institute (PPI) is the education wing of the San Francisco Psychotherapy Research Group (SFPRG)
registrations
Course Schedule: If you would like know more about the schedule for this event please contact our front office at cmt@sfprg.org or 415-561-6771
Cancellation Policy: No refunds are provided for this event. If you have questions about your registration, please contact our office at cmt@sfprg.org 415-561-6771
Co-sponsorship: There is no co-sponsor of this event.
Commercial Support: There is no known commercial support for this program.
Please note that registrations for all PPI classes are handled by the website of our parent member organization SFPRG. You will be redirected to that website to complete your registration. You need not be a member to register, however, if you are a member or have registered for one of our classes before, you will be prompted to enter your information.