Trailer Released For Queer Horror-Comedy Departing Seniors
The trailer for Queer horror-comedy Departing Seniors has been released.
Directed by filmmaker Clare Cooney (After: A Love Story) in her directorial feature debut, and written by Jose Nateras (Struts and Frets), Departing Seniors is set for digital release on February 2.
The film stars Ignacio Diaz-Silvero (Primo) as Javier, Ireon Roach (Candyman) as Bianca.
‘Unmask A Serial Killer Before They Strike Again’
According to the official synopsis, “Mexican-American and Queer high school student Javier doesn’t exactly fit in with the popular kids. But he might be the only one who can save them.
“After an act of bullying sends Javier to the hospital, he begins experiencing visions that foresee glimpses of shocking murders at his school right before they happen. Now, in between navigating the social hierarchies and prejudices of clique culture, Javier and his best friend Bianca must try to unmask a serial killer before he strikes again.”
‘Comparable to Scream and Jennifer’s Body, and Happy Death Day’
In an interview with Cinema Femme, Cooney shared what attracted her to Nateras’s script.
I read the script and I thought it had a beautiful, interesting twist on a genre we’re all familiar with,” she said.
“I love that it showcases a variety of different voices and people who don’t often get the lead roles in films. It centers around a queer Latino kid and his best friend who is a Black woman and also queer. But their characters are not about their race or sexual orientation, it’s just them existing as human beings in the world with their hearts, their friendship and their wants. That was really exciting to me.”
Cooney added, “The film could be comparable to Scream and Jennifer’s Body, and Happy Death Day, but also there’s aspects of Mean Girls and Clueless, the classic high school films. That’s the whole world of it. But what makes it unique I think is a couple things: one, the dialogue style of the film is very quippy and fast.
“It is reminiscent of something like Mean Girls and even Gilmore Girls. It’s very fun and rapid fire and darkly, darkly, darkly comedic.”
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Departing Seniors also stars Yani Gellman (The Lizzie McGuire Movie), Cameron Scott Roberts (The Last Shift), Thatcher Jacobs (The Seeding), Maisie Merlock (Black Mold), Dale Rivera (Chicago P.D.), Lorena Diaz (Chicago Med), and Lucy Carapetyan (Fargo).