Queer writer/director Eric Rosen’s new short thriller film NETUSER all started to formulate in his mind last year after he had a nightmare.
“I had dreamed that [then candidate] Pete Buttigieg was assassinated,” says Rosen. “I woke from it really shaken. I couldn’t lose it. At the same time, I was having these conversations online with people about Buttigieg, witnessing a very loud blowback from members of the LGBT community that he wasn’t gay enough. I got into a lot of dumb Facebook fights with people about his candidacy in a way that I usually don’t.”
Netuser is the tale of of an internet provocateur (played by Denis O’Hare) who puts himself and his family at risk through a thoughtless encounter on Grindr. Rosen packs a lot of nuance about the queer rights movement into Netuser, which concludes on a note both startling and sinister.
The 15 minute film, which also stars Rosen’s real life husband/actor Claybourne Elder and the couple’s 2-and-a-half-year-old son, Bo, and was originally due to travel the Festival Circuit this summer. Now that cannot happen Rosen and his producers reconsidered their approach. Anyone who signs up by email will be sent a link to the film, which will have a limited release starting Friday, April 24, to enjoy for free in the comfort of their “stay at home” setting.
To sign up for the free Netuser release, visit www.netuserfilm.com.
