When aspiring singer-songwriter Frankie Ramirez finally snaps, it isn’t because of some supernatural curse or masked stranger in the woods. It’s the weight of childhood trauma, the daily grind of internalized misogyny, and the brutal fat-shaming machine of the Los Angeles music business that pushes her over the edge—with spectacularly bloody results.
That’s the raw heart of Frankie Maniac Woman, the scrappy, unapologetic slasher written by, starring, and co-produced by Dina Silva alongside longtime creative partner Pierre Tsigaridi. In a wide-ranging conversation with AMFM Magazine’s Paul Salfen, Silva opened up about the decade-long journey that brought her deeply personal horror-comedy to theaters, the wild stories from set, and why this “pizza and beer movie” is exactly the kind of messy, fun ride genre fans have been craving.
“I like to preface it as like it’s a pizza and beer movie,” Silva laughs during the call. “Have a couple beers or a pizza, have friends over and just have a good time.” She’s quick to add that it plays even better with a packed theater crowd: “Some of those scenes, you may not want to see while you’re eating a pizza, right?”
The film was born nearly a decade ago from late-night conversations between Silva and Tsigaridi—two horror obsessives who bonded over slasher icons and “unhinged female characters.” Silva drew directly from her own experiences as a bigger woman navigating the entertainment and music industries. “Beauty can open doors that talent alone often can’t,” she explains in her writer’s statement, “and how that imbalance twists people’s perceptions, relationships, and opportunities.” Frankie Ramirez isn’t just a killer; she’s a perverse rebellion against a world that judges, reduces, and commodifies women. The result is a character who is both terrifying and strangely relatable—equal parts envy, vanity, and raw, cathartic rage.
Filming was every bit as DIY and joyful as the final product suggests. Silva’s family and friends filled the cast and crew, turning long days into something closer to a reunion than a traditional shoot. “My dad was on set, my brother was on set, his mom was on set… a lot of our friends are in the film,” she recalls. To keep costs down she doubled as craft services: “Craft is expensive… I would be on set and then go and cook for everybody and then go back.”
One day in particular stands out. The pivotal desert breakdown scene—shot with her brother under a real incoming storm—forced a last-minute scramble when they were kicked off their first location. “I have like a bloody Tampax glued to my stomach, I’m all battered up,” Silva remembers. They ended up on a random dirt road in Lancaster, filming in 37-degree weather while she stripped down for the shot. “It was freezing… but it was just like one of those movie days where you capture something amazing. This is what it’s all about.”
The entire production was a masterclass in indie hustle. Silva learned special effects makeup on the fly, juggled writing, producing, acting, and music, and embraced the chaos. “I think I’ve lost a few years of life,” she jokes. “Totally fine. I’m cool with it.” But the scrappiness paid off: the film wears its imperfections proudly as an homage to Grindhouse cinema. “It’s not the kind of movie that people nowadays are programmed to want,” Silva notes. “But it’s a movie that they’re going to see and be like, ‘Wait, I kind of dig this.’ We all like a little bit of a mess every now and then.”
That messiness extends to the themes. While many horror films pit victims against supernatural monsters, Frankie Maniac Woman reminds us that the scariest threats are often human—and disarmingly charming. “People are terrifying,” Silva says. “Sociopaths… you don’t know that they’re sociopaths and they’re so charming.” Yet Frankie offers something the classics sometimes don’t: a sliver of hope that you might fight back. “There’s a chance to kind of succeed, right? You can fight back in a way.”
Horror has been in Silva’s blood since childhood, thanks to her Mexican-American father who introduced her to the classics while her mom looked the other way. “Every night… I would sneak up and watch all the classics,” she says with a grin. That passion now fuels not just Frankie but an entire community she’s built over ten hard years in Los Angeles. Her advice to anyone chasing the same dream is simple and fierce: “Don’t stop… It takes time. You have to build a community… find people that you can trust.” There is no Plan B. “This is it. Full speed ahead.”
The Hail Mary has paid off. Frankie Maniac Woman is finally hitting theaters, and Silva is already thinking ahead—possibly more Frankie, definitely more collaborations with her brother and Pierre Tsigaridi. For now, she has one last request for audiences: “Get a hot dog. Spike your soda. Sit back and relax. You’re in for a hell of a ride.”
If you like your horror bold, bloody, funny, and fiercely human, Frankie Maniac Woman delivers exactly that—and then some. Just maybe skip the pizza for the really gory parts.
