Queer.Horror.Movies

The curated portfolio of film journalist Joe Lipsett

Queer Horror Director Showcase: Christopher Landon, Two Johns and Misunderstood Characters

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Name: Christopher Landon

Age: 44

Birth Place: Los Angeles, CA

Sexuality: Gay

Notable films: Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones (2014), Scout’s Guide to the Apocalypse (2015), Happy Death Day 2U (2017), Happy Death Day 2U (2019)

When did you know you were queer? When did you come out?

Christopher Landon: I knew I was different from an early age. Like a lot of queer little boys, I loved my sister’s Barbie dolls, I loved movies like Mommie Dearest and Big Business. I had boy-crushes in high school but I dismissed them as “a phase.” I finally came out when I was 22 after meeting my first boyfriend. I didn’t want to lead a double-life so I just did a big-ass coming out tour and told everyone in my orbit within about a week’s time. LOL.

How did you get into filmmaking?

CL: I have always been obsessed with movies. Especially horror. I made short films as a kid and studied film in college. I took an internship at Disney when I was about 18 and that’s where I really began to see a path to becoming a filmmaker.

Why do you make horror films?

CL:  Horror has always been a genre that intrigues me. It’s so versatile. You can Trojan-horse so many themes and ideas in a horror movie. I love the genre’s renegade status no matter how mainstream it seems to be now. It’s still punk rock and dangerous.

What films (queer or not) have made a significant impact on you and your work? In what way?

CL: If I had to choose two filmmakers that have influenced me the most I would say John Carpenter and John Hughes. They’re totally different Johns but each made an equal and profound impact on my childhood and my creative sensibilities. Carpenter is the master of suspense. I have seen The Thing and Halloween a million times and they never stop educating me. John Hughes captured something so few filmmakers ever can – the pain and awkwardness of adolescence. But even in a movie like Trains, Planes, and Automobiles he could make you laugh and cry – often within seconds of each other. I love the quirk and heart he brought to his work.

You’ve worked on two high profile projects with Blumhouse (the Happy Death Day films). What is it like to helm a franchise for a major studio? How progressive or welcoming is the industry for queer creators right now?

CL:  I’ve been in this business for a minute now and I would say we’re living in a good moment as far as change and diversity go. My sexuality hasn’t played too great a role in my work, in terms of being marginalized, but I have always strived to bring a queer perspective to my movies. That’s not to say I haven’t encountered resistance in the past, but I think people in general are just looking for good stories no matter where (or who) they come from.

That said, we still need more diversity. When I was growing up, I didn’t see people like me in movies unless they were the brunt of a joke. That’s changing, but it can change a lot more.

Do you believe that your sexuality informs your films? If yes, in what way? If no, is that a conscious decision?

CL: OH FUCK YES. Hahahahaha. I mean, I made a studio zombie movie with a Britney sing-along and a horror set-piece while Dolly Parton’s 9-5 blared. My shit is G-A-Y. But I also think growing up queer and feeling like I didn’t quite belong really reinforced a strong sense of empathy in me. My characters are often misunderstood and stand a little outside of the world around them.

When Trace Thurman and I covered Happy Death Day for the Horror Queers podcast, we found a really sweet story about a gay fan thanking you for including the character of Tim because it normalized gay people. Have you interacted with many other queer horror fans of your films? What has that experience been like? 

CL: Absolutely. I love interacting with queer horror fans. There are SO many of us out there. I feel a kinship to them. It’s so important to be seen.

With Happy Death Day 2U now out on VOD and Blu, what’s next for you? 

CL: I have a really fun movie I’m about to go shoot. I can’t say what it is yet, but it has the best gay character ever. He is out, proud and fucking badass. I can’t wait to make this one.

Follow Christopher on social media:

Queer Horror Director Showcase: Parker Brennon, ‘Carnival of Souls’ and “…Can Kill” Horror

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Name: Parker Brennon

Age: 26

Birth Place: Gahanna, OH

Sexuality: Gay

Notable films: Haunt Me (2017), Elise’s Nightmare (2017), Below the Trees (2018)

When did you know you were queer? When did you come out?

Parker Brennon: In elementary school, I started hanging out with girls instead of boys. These opposite-sex friendships prompted some boys to call me a fag, long before I had an understanding of my own sexuality. Around age 11, I realized I was gay, and it was extremely difficult to accept. I didn’t want to be the thing I was accused of being. Finally at age 15, I told my sister I was bisexual. It wasn’t true, but it was easier than saying “gay.” I found an online boyfriend living in New York and eventually told my mom about him. She was very kind and hugged me while I cried. That was a turning point. I started coming out to my friends and being more open.

How did you get into filmmaking?

PB:  My best friend, my siblings, and I started a series of terrible shorts back in 2007. We would basically pick a noun and add “Can Kill.” Camp Can Kill. Looks Can Kill. Musicals Can Kill. The movie’s title determined its plot. I did all the video recording and editing, and it was ridiculous fun. I wouldn’t willingly share those movies with anyone today, but that’s how I began.

Why do you make horror films?

PB:  Every genre has films I enjoy, but to write and direct something myself, I need some ardent energy. Horror is what best fuels my fire. I love an eerie atmosphere. I love a sense of adventure. I love seeing women on screen who are compelling villains or survivors overcoming terrifying obstacles. Stories that contain these elements are easily born in the horror genre.

What films (queer or not) have made a significant impact on you and your work? In what way?

PB:  Carnival of Souls (1962) is my number one. I adore Candace Hilligoss’ bizarre performance. Her cold, detached character is so fascinating and weirdly relatable. Best of all, she’s plunged into an eerie, supernatural story. It’s not at all a “perfect” film, but that’s part of its charm. I also love Silent Hill (2006), largely because the video games hold an extremely special place in my heart. The nightmarish world is an ideal horror sandbox and evokes wonderfully dark adventures.

How progressive or welcoming is the industry for queer creators right now?

PB:  It’s much better than it was in the past. Although, I spend more time thinking about inequality on screen. I recently watched The Town That Dreaded Sundown (2014). I liked it, but I couldn’t help noticing that three hetero couples have sex scenes, and a gay couple is murdered before doing anything. It was a reminder that American culture relishes seeing sexual straight people, but “gay stuff” (especially between men) is always a sore subject. I can almost hear Aunt Sassy shouting “I don’t need to see that!”

Do you believe that your sexuality informs your films? If yes, in what way? If no, is that a conscious decision?

PB: Yes, my sexuality hugely impacts my work. I’ve never written a scene with heterosexual sex or kissing. My life contains an interminable amount of these displays, and if I’m in charge of a story, I’ll leave that out every time. So far, the films I’ve directed have a mix of sexually ambiguous and straight characters, but I’ll include more obviously queer people in my future work.

Do you subscribe to queer readings of your films?

PB: Hell yes! Haunt Me has more gay energy than my other shorts, but I hesitate to recommend it because my directorial skills were weaker then. Although, it was lucky enough to get over 120,000 views on YouTube, so I guess things worked out for that one.

Have you interacted with many queer horror fans of your films? What has that experience been like?

PB: Mostly online, but yes! I love it when queer people write encouraging comments or connect with me on Twitter. It’s great to be part of that community. On Twitter and Letterboxd, I often interact with queer horror fans who would otherwise be absent from my day-to-day life.

You’ve been putting out horror shorts with some regularity over the last few years. Do you plan to make the leap into horror features in the future?

PB: Absolutely. After Winter’s Blood is finished, my next project will be a feature. I wrote a feature-length version of Below the Trees, but it requires more financing than I can provide alone. Rather than dwell on that roadblock, I decided to come up with a lower budget idea. In January, I visited LA and met with a writer/producer I love. I pitched the low budget idea to her, and she’s excited about it. We’re developing that screenplay this year, and hopefully, it’ll end up being my feature directorial debut.

Follow Parker on social media:

[Cinepocalypse] 4 Films to Flag in the Cinepocalypse 2019 Film Festival Line-Up

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Satanic Panic

“Cinepocalypse, Chicago’s premiere festival for electrifying and provocative genre cinema, returns to the Music Box Theatre June 13th for eight days of features, shorts, events and surprises, including eight fantastic break-out world premieres!”

Cinepocalypse is one of the hottest genre festivals in North America, so it’s always a delight when the screening schedule comes out. This year’s fest is already off to a great start with the announcement of a wide diversity of films, including a very welcome number of high profile projects from female directors including Gigi Saul Guerrer, Chelsea Stardust, Caryn Waecther, Veronika Franz & Severin Fiala and Pollyanna McIntosh. The buzz surrounding both Stardust’s Satanic Panic (a product of Fangoria Magazine’s film production wing) and The Lodge (a high profile Sundance acquisition from the directors behind cult classic Goodnight, Mommy) has been steadily building for several months.

Villains

The opening night feature is Verotika, the directorial debut from Misfits founder and punk/metal legend Glenn Danzig. Featuring a plot shrouded in secrecy, a soundtrack of new Danzig music, and based on the output of his comic book publishing company Verotik—a compound of “violence” and “erotic”—the feature film anthology is a realization of his lifelong love of comics and the dark arts that promises to “melt your face off” <gulp>.

Finally, in addition to new films from Lucky McKee and Joe Begos, one final film to keep an eye out for is Dan Berk and Robert Olsen’s buzzy SXSW film Villains (which my partner-in-crime Trace Thurman raved about in his festival review). The film, which stars Bill Skarsgård and Maika Monroe, finds the tables turned on two wannabe criminals when thievery runs a foul and the prowlers soon become the prey.

Festival badges are available now, and individual tickets go on sale Friday at noon CT at cinepocalypsegenrefest.com

Here’s the full festival program:

Achoura, dir. Talal Selhami

  • Morocco, North American Premiere
  • Four childhood friends are reunited when one of them re-surfaces after 20 years, forcing them to confront a creature straight out of a spine-chilling Moroccan legend.

Attack of the Demons, dir. Eric Power

  • USA, World Premiere – Filmmaker in attendance!
  • Three friends must use every skill their minds can fathom to stave off a legion of mutating demons overtaking their community. Move over SOUTH PARK, this gore-soaked film is done entirely in hand cut-paper animation.

Belzebuth, dir. Emilio Portes

  • Mexico, North American Premiere
  • After losing his family in a most horrific way, a special border agent must investigate a series of deaths involving young children, possession, and an ancient demon named Belzebuth.

Bliss, dir. Joe Begos

  • USA, Midwest Premiere
  • A brilliant macabre painter facing the worst creative block of her life turns to every vice she can to complete her masterpiece, spiraling into a hallucinatory hellscape of drugs, sex, and a whole lotta murder.

Culture Shock

Hulu’s Into The Dark: Culture Shock, dir. Gigi Saul Guerrero

  • USA, Special Presentation – Filmmaker in attendance!
  • This thriller follows a young woman in pursuit of the American Dream, who crosses illegally into the United States, only to find herself in an American nightmare.

Darlin’, dir. Pollyanna McIntosh

  • USA, Midwest Premiere – Filmmaker in attendance!
  • A direct sequel to 2011’s cult classic THE WOMAN, star Pollyanna McIntosh takes over the director’s chair in this coming-of-age shocker with a horror-tinged twist.

Deadcon, dir. Caryn Waechter

  • USA, World Premiere
  • The horrors and isolation of being a social media influencer run rampant in DEADCON, when a collection of Youtube and Instagram stars soon discover there are things scarier than thousands of teenagers armed with phones asking for selfies.

Falling Down, dir. Joel Schumacher

  • USA, Retrospective – Filmmaker in attendance!
  • An unemployed defense worker, frustrated with the various flaws he sees in society, begins to psychotically and violently lash out against them. Presented in 35mm.

Flatliners, dir. Joel Schumacher

  • USA, Retrospective – Filmmaker in attendance!
  • Five medical students experiment with “near-death” experiences until the dark consequences of past tragedies begin to jeopardize their lives. Presented in 70mm

Ghost Killers Vs. Bloody Mary, dir. Fabrício Bittar

  • Brazil, North American Premiere
  • In this horror-comedy bloodbath, four Youtubers with expertise in supernatural events seek recognition from their viewers while solving the urban legend of Bloody Mary. Prepare yourselves for gut-busting hilarity and gore-soaked chaos.

GWAR Showcase

  • USA, Special screening – Guests in attendance!
  • A retrospective of GWAR’s blood-splattered iconic heavy metal career, including the Grammy nominated PHALLUS IN WONDERLAND, followed by a Q&A!

Hot Dog… The Movie, dir. Peter Markle

  • USA, 35th Anniversary 4K Producer’s Cut Restoration World Premiere

Kindred Spirits, dir. Lucky McKee

  • USA, World Premiere – Filmmaker in attendance!
  • In the latest twisted work from the director of MAY and THE WOMAN, stars Thora Birch, Macon Blair, and Caitlin Stasey shine in this unapologetically dark thriller about a deeply disturbed young woman with a sinister agenda.

The Lodge

The Lodge, dirs. Veronika Franz & Severin Fiala

  • UK/U.S.A, Midwest Premiere
  • In this psychologically unsettling slowburn, a young woman and her soon-to-be new stepchildren find themselves snowed in at a remote winter cabin. Of course, strange and frightening events take place concluding in a final act that will leave you shaken.

The Lurker, dir. Eric Liberacki

  • USA, World Premiere – Filmmaker in attendance!
  • A group of high school theatre students (led by Scout Taylor-Compton), celebrate their final performance of Romeo & Juliet by dying at the hands of a savage killer, in this Chicago-set slasher that gives new meaning to the expression “the show must go on!”

Mope, dir. Lucas Heyne

  • USA, Midwest Premiere – Filmmaker in attendance!
  • The tragic and very icky true story of two best friends and low-end Mopes (slang for wannabe porn stars) who sought fame but gained infamy in a 2010 murder at a San Fernando valley porn company’s warehouse.

The Mute, dir. Bartosz Konopka

  • Poland, North American Premiere
  • Two knights set off to christen a small pagan village hidden deep within the mountains, using vile methods to take control of the foreigners minds and souls. THE MUTE is a spectacle made of visuals and atmosphere combined to create a thrilling, savage, and mystical epic.

Punta Muerto (Dead End), dir. Daniel de la Vega

  • Argentina, North American Premiere
  • A mystery writer is suspected of murder when a colleague turns up dead in the exact way that is laid out in his latest, highly praised book. To prove his innocence, he must find the real killer, in this stunning B&W throwback to ’40s mysteries and film noir.

Rock N’ Roll Nightmare, dir. John Fasano

  • Canada, Special live movie riff event with members of GWAR
  • At a farmhouse in the middle of nowhere, a hopeful hair-metal band seeking inspiration to record their new LP will soon find themselves in a furious confrontation with the Prince of Darkness himself, as well as GWAR!

Satanic Panic, dir. Chelsea Stardust

  • USA, Midwest Premiere
  • A pizza delivery girl at the end of her financial rope has to fight for her life – and her tips – when her last order of the night turns out to be to a group of high-society Satanists in need of a virgin sacrifice.

The Swerve, dir. Dean Kapsalis

  • USA, World Premiere – Filmmaker in attendance!
  • Holly seems to have it all, but there are troubling signs that all is not right as her life begins to spiral out of control. Both a stellar portrait of depression and a horrific drama, this haunting update on a classic tragedy comes from a new writer/director raised on the films of Bergman, Polanski, and Hitchcock.

Tammy & the T-Rex, dir. Stewart Raffill

  • USA, Original R-rated ‘Gore-Cut’ 35mm World Premiere
  • From the director of MAC AND ME, comes a love story like no other. Starring DEnise Richards and the late great Paul Walker. Oh, and of course a T-Rex.

Total Recall, dir. Paul Verhoeven

  • USA, Retrospective – Film Guest in attendance!
  • Presented in 70mm.
  • “See you at the party Richter”. Villain extraordinaire Michael Ironside in attendance for one of the greatest sci-fi action films of all time! From filmmaker Paul Verhoeven and starring Arnold Schwarzenneger. You know this one!

Verotika

Verotika, dir. Glenn Danzig

  • USA, World Premiere – Filmmaker in attendance!
  • Featuring a plot shrouded in secrecy, a soundtrack composed entirely of new Danzig music, and based on the output of his long-running, mature comic book publishing company Verotik—a compound of “violence” and “erotic”—this feature film anthology is Glenn Danzig’s directorial debut!

Villains, dirs. Dan Berk & Robert Olsen

  • USA, Midwest Premiere
  • When a pair of painfully amateurish criminals break into a suburban home, they stumble upon a dark secret in the basement that two sadistic homeowners will do anything to keep from getting out in this black-comic thriller.

Why Don’t You Just Die, dir. Kirill Sokolov

  • Russia, Midwest Premiere – Presented by L’Étrange Festival
  • A detective brings together a terrible group of people in his apartment, each one of whom has a reason to want revenge. With plenty of dark Russian humor, this rip-roaring rampage of violence and gore plays more as an evil Looney tunes than your basic gross-out experience. Presented by L’Etrange Festival in Paris.

What do you think of the line-up? What films are you most excited for?

Exclusive Pics of Queer Horror Short ‘The Office is Mine’ Reveals Workplace Politics Can Be Killer

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Office politics are about to take a deadly turn.

Making its debut at film festivals this summer is The Office is Mine, a biting and darkly comedic tale of workplace horror that reveals something about the competitive nature within us all.

The result of a creative collaboration between filmmaker & queer horror advocate Michael Varrati (Tales of Poe, He Drinks) and celebrated actor & filmmaker Ben Baur (Hunting Season, #Adulting), The Office is Mine is a searing, satirical, and blood-soaked portrait of what happens when we allow our perceptions of our social standing dictate our self-worth.

Written and directed by Varrati and based on a story concept by Baur, The Office is Mine stars Ben Baur, Chris Salvatore (the Eating Out franchise, The Quiet Room), and Navaris Darson (The Other Two, American Horror Story), with supporting cast that features Sarah Nicklin (Nun of That, The Haunting of Alice D), Phylicia Wissa (It Hits You When You Know It, Santa Clarita Diet), and Chris Baker (Baker Daily).

Synopsis: Despite the corporate monotony of his job, Zac (Baur) feels like he’s got it all figured out. As the “only gay in the office,” his penchant for hot gossip and “in the know” recommendations have assured his place as the most fabulous employee in another wise dull landscape. Or so he thinks. With the arrival of a new hire, the ultra-chic Tristan (Salvatore), Zac suddenly feels like the very thing that makes him stand out is in jeopardy. What’s more, Zac finds himself increasingly convinced that Tristan is intentionally trying to replace him. Despite the assurance of his boyfriend, Owen (Darson), that all is fine…Zac can’t help but slipping further into a world of paranoia and self-doubt. As Zac’s world begins to unravel, it sets him on a collision course with Tristan…who may or may not be all that he seems. As the two men propel toward a violent and unpredictable confrontation, only one thing is certain: The office isn’t big enough for the both of them.

The Office is Mine is set to debut on the film festival circuit this summer, with a premiere date to be announced. Check out the promotional stills below, including several exclusive pictures unavailable else!

[Review] Rush IFC Midnight’s ‘Pledge’…If You Dare

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Zachery Bryd in Pledge

There’s plenty of horror to be wrung out of the idea that something is “too good to be true.” In director Daniel Robbins’ latest film, Pledge, the phrase is put to the test when a trio of College freshmen discover a social club whose seemingly perfect facade proves to be a front for something far more malicious and sadistic. [Read more…]