The Quiet Room

I made The Quiet Room because time and again, horror has been a space that elevates marginalized voices. From the complexities of race in Night of the Living Dead to the feminist final girls of the 1980s, horror has been notably missing an entry: queer characters. Mental health in horror is another frequent misstep, often leaving the main character no choice but to kill himself to destroy the monster, a too-easy answer to what began as an allegory for their own anguish. I set out to create the film I haven’t seen: a queer character of color with a true-to-life story about living with mental illness. My experiences as a gay survivor of suicide and of a system of neglectful institutionalization have informed the deeply personal story lurking just below the surface. Socially aware horror is proving itself to be the next big genre and The Quiet Room is important because it champions themes of inclusivity, fighting oppression, and finding the tools to overcome personal darkness. Most of all, I am grateful to have the opportunity to tell the story of a queer-identified man who doesn’t have to be the monster.