Sinister Magazine sat down with Ani White, a debut filmmaker with a profound interest in horror and queer cinema. Growing up in Wellington, the capital city of Aotearoa/New Zealand, Ani developed a passion for storytelling that transitioned from writing about film to making it. With a background in cinematography, a BA in Film, and a Doctorate in Media & Communication, their work bridges media theory and cinematic practice. In this interview, Ani delves into their latest project, The Anti-Exorcist, a bold and subversive take on the exorcism genre, and discusses the inspirations, challenges, and societal themes behind it.

The Inspiration Behind The Anti-Exorcist
The Anti-Exorcist is a queer parody of exorcism films, in which a gender-bending spirit turns the tables against a Catholic priest.

The film responds to the justification of exorcism in cinema. Although it may seem an antiquated practice, exorcism is actually on the rise.

In fact, exorcism first gained renewed popularity with the release of The Exorcist (1973), after the practice had faded into obscurity. We seek to challenge both a practice that has claimed lives and a genre that has advertised it. Yet we also take inspiration from exorcism films, both celebrating and critiquing them. We have watched numerous exorcism films as references for the project.

Lessons Learned from Illuminati Castrati
Firstly, there are stylistic influences we are carrying over. I draw strong visual inspiration from Italian horror cinema, and in particular the saturated colours we used in Illuminati Castrati will be carried over, as well as the willingness to go to stylistic extremes.

Secondly, we shot the first film in multiple locations, and this turned shooting into a race to the finish. It also meant we didn’t get as much coverage as we’d like, although I’m very happy with the footage we got. Learning from this, the second film is shot entirely on one location, to give us more time to get things right.

There are also a couple of roles we didn’t recruit for the first film, which helped me realise how essential they are. So there’s definitely a learning experience.

The Crowdfunding Campaign
We are crowdfunding for our minimum budget of 3,000 NZD (and also applying for grants toward our maximum budget of 8,000 NZD). This is necessary principally for cast and crew stipends, as well as various essentials such as special effects and production design. It’s still a limited budget, but is the minimum necessary.

We appreciate any support to help this independent horror project get on the ground. We understand funds are limited, so shares are also appreciated. If you can only donate a small amount, those numbers also add up. The crowdfunding campaign is available here. The campaign will wrap up on the 31st of January.

Themes and Societal Issues Explored
We link exorcism and conservative anti-queerness. Queers are outcast, driven out, made demons. In our story, a priest seeks to exorcise a demon, but is confronted with a gender-bending entity that will not be driven out.

We live in a period where LGBT rights, especially trans rights, are under attack. Now is a time for art that celebrates queer resistance.

The cast and crew largely comprises members of queer film collective The New New, so the project will help to develop skills among queer artists.

Setting the Tone and Style
In part, we are subverting the conservatism common in domestic supernatural horror. Too often these films accept conservative Christian theology uncritically, or promote hucksters like Ed and Lorraine Warren (as in the Conjuringfranchise). We are clearly positioning this as a horror film that embraces the genre, while challenging political conservatism.

We are also combining exorcism cinema with distinct genre influences: the experimentation of radical queer cinema, and the aesthetics of Italian genre cinema. Both of these influences bring a strong dose of camp, although we aren’t aiming for outright winking comedy.

Overcoming Challenges
Right now, the biggest challenge is raising money.

Early on, after writing the film, it was difficult to find collaborators. Although the cast and crew on my first film were wonderful, this will be shot in a different city, so it felt like starting from scratch. However, I was thrilled to be introduced to the New New film collective, a talented group of young filmmakers who embraced the concept.

Where to Find Us
You can find the campaign on instagram @boosted.nz.
The film is co-produced by the New New and my company, the No Fate Project. You can find the No Fate Project on YouTube @wheresmyjetpack, and on Facebook and Twitter @jetpack1917.