Lactasia
Queer feminist B-movie
-
Val PhoenixDirectorLove/Sick, Totally Girl Powered
-
Val PhoenixWriter
-
Alexandra GravesWriter
-
Val PhoenixProducer
-
Kaleya BaxeKey Cast"Jen"
-
Helen WrightKey Cast"Michelle"
-
Sue Gives a FuckKey Cast"Imelda"
-
Ledy LeyssenKey Cast"Dr. Petra Rojas"
-
Anca Badita, DOPKey Crew
-
Aram Morera Mesa, sound mixerKey Crew
-
Ida Thomasdotter, editorPost-production
-
Taos Djouhri, VFX/gradePost-production
-
Spike, musicPost-production
-
Project Type:Feature, Short, Other
-
Genres:comedy, horror, sci-fi, LGBT
-
Runtime:46 minutes 8 seconds
-
Completion Date:September 27, 2022
-
Production Budget:0 GBP
-
Country of Origin:United Kingdom
-
Country of Filming:United Kingdom
-
Language:English
-
Shooting Format:digital, 16mm
-
Aspect Ratio:16:9
-
Film Color:Color
-
First-time Filmmaker:No
-
Student Project:No
-
Horror-on-SeaSouthend-on-Sea
United Kingdom
January 14, 2024
Official Selection -
Independent StarfestFreising
Germany
October 13, 2023
German Premiere
SIlver Award LGBTQ+ -
Fringe! Queer Film and Arts FestivalLondon
United Kingdom
September 23, 2023
UK Premiere -
Her Vision Film FestivalNew York
United States
June 30, 2023
World Premiere
Distribution Information
-
Val Phoenix
Val Phoenix has been making films since 2006, working in the no-budget DIY realm. Ranging from music videos to non-linear experimentation, her short films have played at festivals and film nights such as Fringe!, LaDIYfest Berlin, Bildwechsel and Whirlygig Cinema. In 2015 she was the recipient of a retrospective at Wotever DIY Film Festival and she completed Love/Sick as part of the BFI-no.w.here co-production, Queering Love, Queering Hormones. Her most recent project, Lactasia, completed in 2022. Photo credit: Jude Long
Lactasia came to life in February 2015 as a result of conversations between co-writers Val Phoenix and Alex Graves on feminism and horror, with diversions into Sara Ahmed's figure of the willful arm, exploding body parts and zombie drag queens. Over time, the film evolved into more of a bad taste farce until it reached its present form as a DIY queer feminist B-movie.
Cinematic reference points include Lizzie Borden, Vivienne Dick and John Waters. Development of the film gathered pace over 2015 and it started shooting in spring 2016 and concluded in January 2019.
The project is totally independent and DIY, which means nobody is being paid and there is no company behind it.
DIY forever!
The story:
Jen is a bratty but strong funeral parlour employee. Her job is to make the dead seem less dead by pilling on tones of make up on their faces and bodies. It all goes downhill when her boss and bargain enthusiast, Michelle, hands her a batch of suspiciously cheap liquid foundation to use. Unbeknownst to them, the make up comes from a stupid but also evil cosmetics company with an agenda against beauty, confidence and...fun. Jen shares the make up with her sassy drag queen roommate Imelda, who then shares it with all her drag queen friends. As it spreads across the queens, even reaching innocent goth party-goers, our heroines team up with a radical toxicologist and three undead drag artistes who walk the earth with the sole purpose to turn those stupid corporate drones into useless slime (and have a walk-off while doing so).