Aged just 18, Alice Maio Mackay has just released her third feature film, T Blockers, at FrightFest. So join us as we take a look at T Blockers and where the journey began with So Vam, in our Fearless at FrightFest look at Mackay’s work.
This year, Frighfest brought us films from two exciting new talents. Eighteen-year-old George Baron introduced the world to The Blue Rose, while Alice Maio Mackay, also eighteen, brought us her third feature film, T Blockers, following hot on the heels of Bad Girl Boogey and So Vam. Once again, T Blockers places the trans and queer experience centre stage in a film, demonstrating how Mackay’s craft, storytelling, and cinematic vision evolve with each new release. While T-Blockers remains rough around the edges, the resulting picture is impressive, as it combines defiant messages on trans inclusion and equality with the classic B-movie body invasion horror.
Sophie (Lauren Last) is a struggling young filmmaker working on a horror movie while trying to make ends meet. As the film opens, Sophie has a date, and this guy seems to tick all the boxes, unlike many who have come before. Adam (Stanley Browning) is sweet, caring and, on the surface, accepting of trans identity. But Sophie is about to be disappointed again! Little does she know that Adam is about to go through his own transition as he is recruited into a cult built on bigotry and parasites that infest the body. Meanwhile, a recently discovered film from the 90s hints at the action that must be taken as T Blockers delves into meta territory. As the town falls, its only hope is that the trans and queer people will stand up against the parasite-infested residents.
Wrapped in discussion on the current trans experience, Mackay isn’t afraid to fully explore how hate breeds hate and how isolation and oppression create a need to fight that cannot be suppressed. There are swipes at political opportunism in appealing to far-right voters through anti-trans laws and discussions on freedom versus social and political control, all of which are timely given the fight trans people currently face. At the same time, Mackay joyfully tears through the damaging stereotypes that continue to haunt trans communities within a film that pays homage to classic science fiction while embracing real-world horror. There’s a lot to love in Mackay’s third feature, and she is already working on her fourth, so we won’t have to wait too long for another proudly trans horror creation.
So Vam marked Alice Maio Mackay’s feature debut, following a string of short films, at age 16. And given her age at the time, So Vam is a remarkable achievement, even if the final movie occasionally lacks focus. So Vam was created by queer people for queer people, and therefore, every scene and line embodies the queer experience, from feelings of isolation to bullying and the need to find one’s tribe. So Vam celebrates queer identity while never shying away from the darkness that can surround the journey to self, community and family acceptance.
Kurt (Xai) is an aspiring drag artist struggling to make a living in conservative small-town Australia. Kurt is constantly the subject of abuse and bullying, with his dad (Brendan Cooney) more interested in his damaged older brother. But at least Kurt has Katie (Erin Paterson), his only real friend and confidant, until, that is, Kurt meets Landon (Asimos), April (Hyland) and Harley (McErlean), a group of queer vigilante bloodsuckers who target the town bigots.
There is more than a fleeting nod to The Lost Boys in the unfolding story, as MacKay explores themes of peer group, identity, and belonging at a price. However, as with many low-budget productions, there are problems, including a clunky screenplay, occasionally stilted performances, and a slightly rough final edit. But for a debut feature from someone so young, So Vam showed enormous potential and wasn’t afraid to bare its teeth.
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