• 11 months ago
Departing Seniors is a comedy horror film distributed by Dark Sky Films. Mexican-American and queer, high school student Javier doesn’t exactly fit in with the popular kids. But he might be the only one who can save them. After an act of bullying sends Javier to the hospital, he begins experiencing visions that foresee glimpses of shocking murders at his school right before they happen. Now, in between navigating the social hierarchies and prejudices of clique culture, Javier (Primo’s Ignacio Diaz-Silverio) and his best friend Bianca (Candyman’s Ireon Roach) must try to unmask a serial killer before he strikes again.

Departing Seniors puts a fresh spin on teen slasher movies like Scream and Freaky, updating them by putting its queer protagonist and characters of color front and center. It’s a horror-comedy with a sarcastic, whip-smart edge and appealingly complex characters.

The film stars Ignacio Diaz-Silvero, Ireon Roach, Yani Gellman, Maisie Merlock, Cameron Roberts, Sasha Kuznetsov, and more. Departing Seniors is directed by Clare Cooney and written by Jose Nateras. Clare Cooney, Jose Nateras, Kelly Ann Parker, and Dashawna Wright are producers for Departing Seniors.

Departing Seniors is releasing in select theaters and on VOD/PVOD on February 2, 2024.
Transcript
00:00 [MUSIC]
00:03 >> Happy Thursday, Springhurst Barons.
00:05 As your class president and valedictorian, it is my honor to officially
00:11 invite all departing seniors to bid farewell to what is soon to be our alma mater.
00:17 >> You must be really glad to be getting out of here, huh?
00:19 >> I guess, yeah.
00:20 >> Javier is such a tool just because he's this gay Mexican,
00:23 affirmative actioning his way to all my scholarship money.
00:26 >> Dude does have a 4.0.
00:28 High school can really suck sometimes, especially if you don't quite fit in.
00:31 >> You guys can't leave me alone for an hour?
00:34 [MUSIC]
00:35 >> My God, are you guys serious?
00:38 [MUSIC]
00:47 >> Where am I?
00:49 >> Javier, you're awake.
00:51 Just relax.
00:51 >> I'm fine.
00:52 >> Just relax.
00:52 >> No, no I'm not.
00:54 >> Who did this to you, Javier?
00:55 [MUSIC]
00:57 >> What the?
00:57 >> Do we have a history of mental illness in the family?
01:00 >> No.
01:01 >> Yesterday, I practically bashed my brains and
01:03 fallen down the stairs, and then I start having hallucinations or visions.
01:07 >> Haven't you ever seen The Dead Zone?
01:08 >> No.
01:09 >> Charm?
01:09 >> No. >> Rose Red?
01:11 >> No. >> It's called psychometry.
01:12 You touch people or things and then have visions about the past or future.
01:17 >> I just feel like everything's partly out of control.
01:19 [MUSIC]
01:24 >> So who's doing this, Bianca?
01:26 >> Someone's killing our friends.
01:28 >> And do we really call those guys our friends?
01:30 >> Bianca.
01:30 >> Thanks to the universe, you're having these visions, right?
01:35 We can use them.
01:36 >> No!
01:37 [MUSIC]
01:39 >> We can backtrack from there, gather any evidence we need, and then bam!
01:44 >> So we can get to him before it's too late.
01:46 [MUSIC]
01:56 [SCREAM]
02:00 >> We can't just let him die.
02:02 >> Actually, we could.
02:03 >> Bianca!
02:04 >> Attention departing seniors.
02:06 Counseling staff is available throughout the day for all of your emotional needs.
02:10 >> What?
02:10 [MUSIC PLAYING]