'Little Dead Rotting Hood': A reimagining of the Red Riding Hood story; exclusive interview with writer Gabriel Campisi

“Little Dead Rotting Hood” is a fresh take on the age old story of the little red riding hood. The story is set in a small town where residents find that there may be something wrong with the wolves in the woods. First they find dead wolves and soon people start dying too.

In an exclusive interview with International Business Times, Australia screen writer Gabriel Campisi talked about his approach to writing the script of the movie and more.

“Just about everyone has heard the fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood,” Campisi said. “Everyone is familiar with the girl in red, the grandmother, and the big, bad wolf. But no one really knows anything about these characters, their back stories or where they come from.”

The writer explained that he thought it would be interesting to explore the nature of these characters and their origins. “What if they were nothing like who we thought they were? What if there was a lot more to Little Red, to the grandmother, and to the wolf than we imagined? And what if we told the story in the present, and added a touch of the supernatural?” he said.

During the writing process Campisi realised that there would be a lot of “bloodshed and mayhem” in the movie, but it would also be “fun.” “I wanted to make sure the screenplay was fun and not taken too serious,” he said.

With that in mind, Campisi started to work on the human side of the plot. “Why should we care about any of these characters? Why should we care who lives or dies? How can the audience relate with them?” were some of the questions he asked while developing the plot of “Little Dead Rotting Hood.”

“At the heart of the movie there’s a love story between Samantha (Little Dead Rotting Hood) and her boyfriend Danny. It’s what drives all the characters’ motivations and turn of events from start to finish, why the story evolves the way it does, despite the external forces at work,” he explained.

Campisi describes writing a screenplay as his “first love.” He has also worked as a producer and director in some projects, but puts writing at the top of his list. The common thread in all his roles is that they are all a part of a “ creative process” and Campisi believes each role to be equally important for a movie.

The writer was involved in each step of the production process of “Little Dead Rotting Hood.” Watching the screenplay come to life “one step at a time” was “ truly amazing” for Campisi.

“ I think the coolest moment on set was when I saw Bianca A. Santos throw on the red cape to look like Little Dead Rotting Hood. I think I got goose bumps that day, because the character I had only previously imagined was now alive and standing in front of me!”