Macabre Daily Interview with DEATH DROP GORGEOUS' Christopher Dalpe
Image courtesy of Dark Star Pictures.
Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to speak with Christopher Dalpe, one of the directors, writers, and stars behind the upcoming drag horror-comedy film, DEATH DROP GORGEOUS (Dark Star Pictures). We talked about the inspiration for DEATH DROP GORGEOUS, the importance of giving a platform for more unconventional LGTBQ horror, and who on the filmmaking team can actually pull off the best death drop.
SPOILER WARNING: Please be advised that there are mild spoilers in this interview for DEATH DROP GORGEOUS. You can check out the full trailer for the film below, which releases in select theaters, and OnDemand, on September 10th, 2021.
MD: So how did the film come about?
CD: DEATH DROP was just kind of this thought baby that our friend group had. We really wanted to see a ridiculously good slasher with kill scenes that revolved around the gay community, especially within the app dating world. And that's really where this kind of bubbled up. And so Brandon [Perras-Sanchez] and I were co-writers and directors, then Brandon introduced me to Mike [J. Ahern], who was really looking forward to his next writing project. So the three of us started to take this core element of wanting to see these kinds of death scenes, and really building a whole universe around it, and having it be inspired by our lives. We wanted to make the movie that we wanted to see.
MD: It really feels like the whole making of the film was like a real grassroots effort. You guys only had a few professional actors, and are shooting on weekends. How was that whole experience?
CD: The reason that the production took us so long is because we predominantly film weekends and nights. And you're also working with a lot of drag queen time. And also we're trying to make it accommodating for the spaces and places that we work. So you're right, like we all wore a ton of hats to make this project come alive. And I think our community recognized that and wanted in I think, seeing us all kind of like do the hustle to make this movie happened happen, I really think it inspired all of the local bars and local musicians and local artists and a bunch of other drag superstars that wanted to join in on the fun and mayhem. I think you're right. I truly did feel like a grassroots project as close as a movie could even be to a grassroots project.
MD: You not only wrote and directed this film along with Michael and Brandon, but you also star in the film with them. How difficult was it to handle both directing and also being in front of the camera?
CD: That's actually the most common question we get. And like, I gotta say, this is not blowing smoke up anyone's ass. I think having a core group of us five, like, there's the three of us working on the major structure projects, but a core group of five, who are able to share and responsibilities, and so if one person was doing something, we would just kind of naturally fill in the gaps. And I think the true challenge of that, but something I was still really impressed with is that we all ended up still friends by the end of it.
MD: The film is kind of described as “an ode to the wicked works of John Waters.” What is it about his films that influenced the making of this one?
CD: I think that’s a really awesome question, because I really feel like I lean into the comedy aspect of horror - that's like the part where I really thrive and those are usually the movies that I love the most, if there's a touch of sarcasm or cynicism in the movie. And I think it is John Waters overt cynicism and sarcasm towards even the communities which he loves is where I find that inspiration of like, this is a queer movie for queer audiences and the queer audiences are in on the joke, whereas like a lot of our straight audiences are having just as much fun too.
MD: Do you see the worlds of both drag and horror as kind of “bosom buddies,” so to speak?
CD: I think so. And for the past like 10 years, you've been watching these kinds of niche communities who loved horror for a while. I think the larger LGBT community and like the larger work community, there are still a lot of gaps. And I think a really intense goal for us was to really bring audiences from both who would enjoy it for their own reasons. So folks who aren't necessarily into horror, still watch the movie because they want it to support and also, it's fun, but also, we wanted the horror communities to be like, that was fucking cool and gross.
MD: Speaking of gross, how did you guys go about creating some of those more gory scenes? It looks like most of it was practical effects.
CD: Oh, yeah. All practical effects. Yeah. I mean, the most non-practical effects are, I think, like green screen magic. Even that ended up coming out as a satire.
I got to give major props to Brandon. He is like a sick, brilliant baby genius of gore. And so, I think he really LED on artistic direction for a lot of those projects. But he also identified and partnered with Victoria Elizabeth Black, who is a performer in the TV series Dragula. He really just loved her work so much from the show that he reached out. And when she found out about our project, she was really interested in coming. Her and her partner and family all drove up from Florida, and stayed with us all for a week, and really banged out some of the grossest scenes that we have in the film.
We also partnered with a local queer-identified special effects artist named Scott Miller, who was a super fun to work with. And then everything else we filled in, like I did a lot of makeup for dead bodies in this movie that I'm not necessarily qualified to do. But I was like, I'm an artist. I know what something dead looks like.
MD: This movie is really about drag performers and focuses around a particular drag club. How important was music to this film, because the soundtrack has a lot of different musical elements to it.
CD: Yeah. Oh, I think so much of - if you're really to ask our friend group - what we hear about a lot in the bars is the music. Like, gosh this is like some Top 40 stuff. Nobody's really working hard to curate a moment here. But our group - we love our tunes. We love our music. Providence has a very deep punk metal scene, but then, you know, like a lot of the more synth stuff that went on also gets introduced. We wanted to really feature local performers and local artists that were making good stuff, just asking would you like to be a part of this film? And I think it shapes it in a way that Providence is shaped. Providence has that kind of pop/dancey/metal grindcore. We're a little bit of all of it.
I think one of the great partnerships was Rod Thomas (Bright Light Bright Light), who read the script and called us up and was just like, how can I help? That is how so many songs were custom-made for this movie. For legal reasons, the song that Janet was originally performing was a Top 40 song that couldn't be used, and we're like, oh, we'll figure it out. But Rob ended up writing the lyrics to dub with her. And so the song, “Two Left Titties” came out of that.
MD: The three of you (Brandon, Michael, & Christopher) are all Providence natives, correct?
CD: We’re actually more transplants. I was born in New Hampshire, but my whole family is from Rhode Island, so, eventually, I moved down here. Brandon is originally from Vermont. And then Mike lived a little north in Massachusetts. But we've all been here for like ten plus years. Brandon met my sister in college. So that's how we became friends.
MD: What do you think sets the Providence drag/music/art scene apart from say, like the New York or the LA scenes?
CD: I think we are smaller. But in that smaller we are grittier and a little more resourceful. Our community is tight. So the idea of being able to share resources, share talent, share passions - it's a lot of networking here in general - it’s pretty magical. I work for a bunch of art nonprofits, so my entire life is like, you link people in, bring them in, to make something cooler. I think that one of my favorite parts of Rhode Island is you throw a rock, and you're gonna hit somebody who's also working on something super cool. Who also wants to participate? Where on the other hand, New York can be a little isolating.
MD: There are several icons in this film, but you actually got horror legend Linnea Quigley to make an appearance as well. How did she end up coming into this project?
CD: A lot of that was Devon Hunt, who did some of the scoring. He is a good friend and liked the movie. And he has been tight with Linnea for years through the Salem Horror Fest. So when the boys went up for Salem Horror Fest, I got to have dinner with her. And then they were basically like, do you want to? And she was like, absolutely. I think that was the fun level of the spontaneity of it, but also the passion behind her just being like, “oh, I'll do another cameo.” It was literally after they got out of dinner together. They were like, “let's film it now,” and then inserted it into a scene that was already shot.
MD: One thing that I really liked about this film was that it kind of explores the sometimes cruel nature of being a drag performer. There's obnoxious audience members, and horrible club owners, and even dealing with the personalities of fellow drag performers. Is there a dark side of drag that a lot of people don’t realize?
CD: Yeah, that’s a wonderful question. Because, again, but I mentioned that the cynicism of the movie is really important to me. And I think with how drag has transformed in the public eye over even just the past 15 years, it's really impressive. But a lot of folks who are die-hard dive bar supporters who have been seeing the same drag queens since like, mid 80s, there’s a world there that we didn’t want anyone to lose. It's rougher. It's a little grittier, it's not polished and it's not a world that we think a lot of small town bars throughout the country will find relatable. In this film, you're gonna see the drag queen you know, and you're gonna see the bar that you recognize. But also, the movie seeks to address not just what drag faces with ageism, ableism, and kind of mourning the loss of a career, but also following Dwayne's story of finding racism, and the outcast thing that happens within even marginalized subgroups. I think our movie is really about talking to those folks and having - along with the gore and the humor - a very poignant kind of message there that resonates and comes through.
MD: I think that's one thing that maybe some people might be surprised about when they watch it, is that there's an emotional resonance that's there as well.
CD: Thank you. There’s a whole there's a whole hell of a lot of heart in this project. We love stupid gore for stupid gore, and violence for stupid violence with a passion, but I think to incorporate those other details of our lives felt important as well. And really, it maybe adds a little extra to the story that you weren't expecting.
MD: What do you see for the future for the LGBTQ community and horror? Do you think the trend will be continuing where we see more representation in horror films?
CD: I definitely think there are a lot of amazing filmmakers, directors, screenwriters who are adding queer perspectives and queer dialogue within those things. Will it all be gritty? And will it all be a little more like punk rock? Who knows? I think we gotta keep that spirit alive with filmmaking and art in general. To be assimilated is different from being expanded, like letting the industry expand, you know? So, I want to see more honest, clear projects. And one of the things that we said in this movie that we were comfortable with is we want to be the heroes. But we also want to be the villains - we like being the villains a lot. It's fun to be the bad guy too. If you see our movie, we really love our bad people.
MD: One final important question. Can you do a death drop?
CD: [Laughs] I personally might be the closest of our friend group, but I was never gifted with that beauty. I've tried many times and banged up my knees a ton. But Wayne, our main character? He can death drop for days. We’re all getting older now though, so it’s not as easy as it used to be.
