Penny Lane is Dead

BLOODY AND BRUTAL AUSTRALIAN REVENGE

In the summer of 1986 in southern Australia, 17-year-old Penny Lane celebrates getting into college with her best friends at her family's holiday cottage. Her jealous cousin Kat turns up and drugs Penny Lane with spiked cupcakes. Kat has brought along a bunch of less-than-pleasant guys, and the night spirals completely out of control into blood, violence and desperation.

During Fantasia Film Festival in Montréal in 2026, at least one audience member fainted during a particularly brutal scene involving a kitchen appliance. Mia’Kate Russell, with 20 years' experience as a make-up and special effects artist on films including Nitram and Better Man, makes a brilliant feature debut in the classic ozploitation tradition. She describes it as a queer love story mixed with punk, dark comedy and a critique of Australian “bloke culture”, inspired by John Waters, David Lynch and Pedro Almodovar, among others. The producers behind Talk to Me are behind the film, which had its “pink carpet” premiere at Adelaide Film Festival.

Don't miss Penny Lane is Dead, a raw, stylish and uncompromising queer slasher that makes no apologies!

Sections: Bad & Badass Girls

Genre: Ozploitation, Horror, Thriller, Comedy

Director: Mia Kate Russell

Country: Australia

Year: 2025

Cast: Alexandra Jensen, Sophia Wright-Mendelsohn, Tahlee Fereday, Bailey Spalding, Steve Le Marquand, Ben O’Toole

Running time: 90 min

Language: English dialogue, English subtitles