By MICHAEL GINGOLD

Troma vets and one of the Adams Family are part of the film aiming to bring home the bacon for horror/comedy fans.

SLAUGHTER AT CAMP SWINELAKE, currently in postproduction, was written and directed by David J. Green and stars (first photo below, left to right) THE TOXIC AVENGER and CLASS OF NUKE ’EM HIGH’s Robert Prichard in his first major role in nearly 40 years; Babette Bombshell, from RETURN TO NUKE ’EM HIGH VOL I and II; and Debbie Rochon, whose many credits include TROMEO & JULIET and TERROR FIRMER. Also in the cast are Zelda Adams (HELLBENDER, WHERE THE DEVIL ROAMS), who performs the movie’s theme song as well, Timothy Waldron, Katie Freimann, Max the Impaler, Zac Amico, Bill Weeden and Troma topper Lloyd Kaufman; Ashley K. Thomas and Shannon Rae Mulligan created the makeup effects. The synopsis: “When a meat-delivery mix-up forces a pork-themed fat camp to kill and serve its longtime pig mascot for dinner, a swine-zombie outbreak emerges. An insecure camper must team up with her CIT bestie, her cruel, thin head counselor, her hunky crush, and her foul-mouthed little sister to escape so they won’t be bacon by breakfast.”

“At its core,” Green says, “CAMP SWINELAKE is a story of self-acceptance and body positivity. Breaking the longstanding trend of non-thin characters being depicted as walking, talking punchlines, played by thin actors in fat suits, or both at the same time, CAMP SWINELAKE lets the plus-sized leads be three-dimensional cinematic heroes who don’t die first.”

“It was such a pleasure to go through the trenches of SWINELAKE with David,” Rochon tells RUE MORGUE. “The script is funny, intense and has something to say about body image. The entire cast and crew were real troupers working long hours in cold temperatures, especially when fitted with the elaborate pig-zombie makeup and appliances. It’s funny how in a movie the ‘monsters’ look so fierce, and yet in real life, when you’re in all that plastic and paint and have hooves, you are quite vulnerable! Need a drink? You’ll need help with that. Need to go to the bathroom? You’ll need help with that too. You’d better check your ego at the door, and have patience, if you’re going to play a creature.

“The shots were challenging for DP John Valle and his crew,” she continues, “as some of the locations were in small quarters, or outside in the middle of the night, which both demanded a lot of work to set up. They killed it! Working with special makeup artists Ashley Thomas and Alex Solorzano reminded me of working with the old-school effects folks; they were always within earshot if you needed anything. They had to be your hands once the hooves were glued on. Once the pig snout was placed, and say your nose was itchy, they were right there with Q-Tips to insert through the appliance and scratch! When you have complete trust in your team, it really frees you up to do your job, and I appreciated that a lot! Robert Prichard, who plays my husband, was so creative and a joy to act with. I always knew him simply as the guy with the blond wig from the classic NUKE ’EM HIGH art, and now he’s my evil cohort!” Stay tuned for news on SLAUGHTER AT CAMP SWINELAKE’s release.