Trans horror’s fiercest voice returns with her most personal and spellbinding film yet

Australian filmmaker Alice Maio Mackay returns to the Fantasia International Film Festival with the Canadian premiere of her latest genre-defying feature, The Serpent’s Skin, screening July 23 and 25. Already hailed as her most emotionally resonant and stylistically bold film to date, The Serpent’s Skin fuses supernatural romance with visceral horror, balancing the grotesque and the intimate in true Mackay fashion.

With nods to The Craft, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Charmed, Mackay’s newest film conjures millennial teen nostalgia while grounding its witchy terror in the urgent realities of Gen-Z identity, trans survival, and queer resilience. The Serpent’s Skin follows Anna, a trans girl who escapes her stifling, bigoted hometown only to find both romance and horror in a new city—where she falls for goth tattoo artist Gen and accidentally unleashes a demon that begins feeding on their chosen family. What follows is a chilling exploration of trust, self-doubt, and love under supernatural pressure.

Mackay’s voice is unmistakable—raw, punk, defiantly queer—and in The Serpent’s Skin, she harnesses everything she’s learned across her rising career.

From her debut So Vam (2021), Mackay immediately caught the attention of the indie horror world. Described as “a perfect metaphor for transitions and change” and “crafted with a learned voice,” the film positioned Mackay as a filmmaker to watch. Her follow-up, Bad Girl Boogey (2023), was no less impactful—“gritty and raw,” it revealed a sharpened focus and a stronger command of message-driven horror, showing that Mackay could “resonate” beyond just subculture circles.

With T-Blockers (2024), she made perhaps her most personal statement yet. Reviewers called it “fresh,” “unifying,” and “awakening,” applauding how Mackay used her own lived experience to channel communal anger and hope, all while clearly “having a ball” pushing genre boundaries. Her rapid creative output continued with Satranic Panic, another bold and timely entry praised for placing “real characters dealing with real issues in surreal circumstances.”

Produced by Dark Star Pictures, the company that has stood behind each of Mackay’s last five films, The Serpent’s Skin stars Alexandra McVicker (Vice Principals), Scott Major (Heartbreak High), Charlotte Chimes (Neighbours), and Jordan Dulieu (Before Dawn). It also features Fantasia alumni cameos from Avalon Fast (Honeycomb), Joe Lynch (Suitable Flesh), and Betsey Brown (Assholes), with Emmy-nominated Vera Drew (The People’s Joker) returning as editor and Louise Weard (Castration Movie) joining as producer.

Premiering earlier this year at Frameline and heading next to FrightFest this August, The Serpent’s Skin is more than just a new chapter in Mackay’s filmography—it’s a culmination of her growth as a director, writer, and creative force. She’s built a canon that pulses with identity, rage, humour, and style, always speaking directly to those who need it most.

As she returns to Fantasia—a festival that helped champion her earliest work—it’s clear Alice Maio Mackay is no longer just a promising talent. She’s a defining voice in trans cinema and genre storytelling. And with The Serpent’s Skin, she reminds us that transformation, no matter how painful, can be power.

• Saul Muerte