Kaye Adelaide is a Montreal based trans lesbian filmmaker. She is an alumni of GEMS Genre Film Lab, as well as a recipient of The Diversity of Voices Initiative at the BANFF World Media Festival, and the SODEC Jeunes Createurs Development Program. Kaye has directed several award winning short films, including Don’t Text Back (2020), and MonsterDyke (2022). She just completed her first feature: The Rebrand (2024), which has been awarded Best Feature at four international film festivals in the first six months of its release. Kaye's work broadens representation for gender minorities, and challenges societal biases through a playful combination of genres including horror, speculative fiction, comedy, and camp. Kaye is definitely an artist to follow and her insights into her process, being a multi-disciplinary talent on set, and why horror and comedy work so well together made this interview a lot of fun to record.
Chapters:
(00:00) – Intro: Kaye Adelaide & The Rebrand — Award-Winning Queer Horror Comedy
(01:43) – The Rebrand Synopsis: Cancelled Influencers, Pregnancy, & Hidden Motives
(02:35) – How Kaye Got Into Filmmaking: Childhood Trauma, Horror, & the Fear That Started It All
(03:58) – Using Horror as Catharsis: Processing Fear & Personal Experiences Through Storytelling
(04:29) – The Real-Life Nightmare That Inspired The Rebrand (Film School Horror Story)
(06:50) – The Rebrand Compared to Creep: "Lesbian Creep" & Its Festival Reception
(07:33) – From Zero Expectations to Dozens of Film Festivals: The Rebrand's Surprising Success
(08:27) – Balancing Horror & Comedy: The Art of Maintaining Tension While Getting Laughs
(09:03) – Working with Actors Nancy Webb, Andi McQueen & Naomi Silver-Vézina
(10:03) – Writing The Rebrand: An 80% Improv Film Built from a 20-Page Outline
(11:21) – Don't Text Back: How Nancy Webb Became the Rebrand's Co-Writer
(12:25) – The Auteur Myth & Why Film Is a Collaborative Art Form
(15:09) – On-the-Fly Filmmaking: Rewriting the Ending the Day of the Shoot
(16:44) – Scarcity Breeds Creativity: Adapting When Budget & Time Run Out
(17:37) – Distribution Plans for The Rebrand & the Unnamed Footage Festival
(18:35) – Short Film Deep Dive: Don't Text Back — Cursed Lockets, Rod Puppets & DIY Practical FX
(19:41) – How Kaye Makes Prosthetics & Practical Effects on the Cheap
(20:54) – Why Multi-Hyphenate Filmmakers Make Better Work (Director, DP, FX Artist)
(21:17) – Curated vs. Recycled Influence: Why Horror Filmmakers Should Look Beyond Cinema
(22:08) – Monster Dyke Breakdown: Life-Size Latex Puppets & the COVID Micro Short
(23:33) – Monster Dyke Synopsis: A Sculptor, a Monster Mermaid, & Radical Queer Self-Acceptance
(25:07) – Why Filmmaking Has to Be Fun: Setting a Healthy Set Culture in Indie Horror
(26:07) – The Pressure Trap: How Indie Filmmakers Stress Themselves Out of Enjoying the Process
(27:12) – "We're Making Art Here" — On Professionalism, Respect & Keeping Perspective on Set
(29:56) – Thematic Throughlines: How Monster Dyke, Don't Text Back & The Rebrand Connect
(31:28) – Boundaries, Codependency & Toxic Relationships as Horror Metaphors Across Kay's Work
(33:01) – The Commodification of Relationships in Horror Comedy & What Makes Nancy's Characters Work
(34:38) – What's Next: Walk Me Home, a New Short Proof-of-Concept & a Feature in Development
(36:18) – Where to Follow Kay Adelaide & How to Watch The Rebrand
(37:24) – Outro, Schedule Update & In Memoriam: Sam Carroll
Learn more about Kaye's work: kayeadelaide.com
Follow Kaye on Insta: @kaye.everyday
Our theme music is by Nick Ferreri | Insta: @nick_ferreri
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