In a new exclusive interview on Blazing Minds, I got a chance to ask writer-director Balraj Kang a few questions about his upcoming horror film Mother Mortis, which will be released on Troma Now and Physical media May.
Q. What inspired you to get into filmmaking?
A. The first moment I realised that I wanted to make films was after watching Fritz Lang’s Metropolis (1927) at School. The first moment I actually took the step to make a film was in 2015 after my father suffered a heart attack, which inspired me to follow my passion in filmmaking and just actually try to make a film, because that was a wake-up call for me. I then spent some time self-learning the different facets of filmmaking and made my first short film, A Friend Amongst Fiends in 2018.
Q. Your new film Mother Mortis is due for release in March. Can you tell me what we can expect from the film?
A. Unfortunately, I’ve had to push the release date back to May 2022 to deal with a few finishing touches, but you can expect an exploitation splatter horror film inspired largely by 80’s/90’s slashers and works of HP Lovecraft. So yes, there are elements of Lovecraftian horror in there. Some of the early critics who have seen the first 10 minutes have compared it to the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) and The Strangers (2008). There are plenty of kills in the film which were all done using practical effects as I am a big proponent for showing the kills, blood, and gore on screen. I won’t give too much away plot wise but it’s a story of death and redemption based on the titular character Mother Mortis, a psychopathic serial killer suffering from gender dysmorphia on a murderous rampage.
Q. What were your influences when writing the script for the film?
A. The script process was complicated, the film originally started as a short film, Mother Mortis: Awakening which is used in the final cut as Part 1. The film itself is split into 6 separate parts all shown in chronological order. I didn’t have any particular film in mind when I was writing the script, but I was influenced heavily by the great slasher films that I admire including the original Halloween (1978), Scream (1996), TCM, Friday the 13th(1980). I wrote with one main thing in mind, trying to keep the story unpredictable. Trying to break the trend of me being able to sit there calling out what is going to happen when I watch conventional genre following slasher films which have become too predictable. I wanted to make something that would start as a slasher, but which descends into the madness of a full-blown cosmic horror.
Q. Did you have any actors or actresses in mind to portray any of the character when writing the script for the film?
A. No, the only actor I had in mind throughout was Jay Adamz the actor who played Mother Mortis. Jay also scored Part 1, made SFX prosthetics and helped produce the film. So, Jay was in my mind at the beginning to star as Mother Mortis, he is also 6”6 so he’s even taller than Myers and Jason. With the other actors I relied half on actors that I already trusted and knew from previous projects and then the other half were new actors who I brought in to add inject some new faces and new energy into the cast. It all worked out really well, they all did an amazing job!
Q. Did you make any changes from the original script during filming?
A. Yes! Loads actually, which is quite typical for my shoots. I don’t like to treat the script as something that’s set-in stone. The first part has no dialogue which was easy enough but with the other parts I tweaked the dialogue as we went along after watching the performances on set, but that was only occasionally. Otherwise in terms of the essence of each scene, that always remained the same, with a few adjustments to make scenes filmable. I run a very open set though so I did have actors or members of the crew making suggestions to the script and I would run with those suggestions if they were better than my ideas! So, I’m always open to ideas which can improve the script from anybody on set.
Q. What were your influences for the look and style of the film?
A. I believe my biggest influence for making Mother Mortis was reading about serial killers, the occult, witchcraft, and cosmic horror such as HP Lovecraft. I was reading Call of Cthulu during the period in which I was writing the Mother Mortis script, so I think those things all influenced me a lot. Funnily enough, I was more inspired by my favourite authors; HP Lovecraft, Stephen King, James Herbert and Clive Barker when making this film rather than taking inspiration from other slasher films.
Q. Did you experience any issues during filming?
A. It was a pretty smooth shoot overall but the one issue I did face was when we were filming at a particular location in Yorkshire which was an abandoned building. We were constantly disturbed by what can only be described as a mad max like group of feral teenagers who continually followed us around as we were filming. They were polite enough to us, but we could tell they were bad news as they were running around the building causing havoc and disrupting shots on purpose. They were also being reckless and dangerous by throwing things off the roof to the ground below. We packed up and moved on a few occasions to shake them, but they followed us (obviously having nothing else better to do!). In the end I made the decision with the cast and crew to pack up and head back to the indoor location we had ready to film there and tweak the script to suit the change. This was on Part 5 of Mortis, and I think all the above worked out well because Part 5 came out looking great.
Q. What were some of your favourite moments during filming?
A. My favourite moment during filming was when we filmed a particularly gross scene, what I call, the “birthing scene” and everybody was just working together to get that scene looking great. I won’t give too much away as I don’t want to spoil the scene, but it was a difficult SFX trick to pull off and the ingenuity of the crew got it to work even though we initially struggled trying to get it right. A funny anecdote is that during the “Birthing Scene” my DOP, Ric, who is a very meticulous guy couldn’t help but to congratulate Jay (who plays Mother Mortis) on the way the shot came out. That was my favourite moment just because we were having fun as a crew trying to solve a problem on set and it came out as one of the best scenes. Once we finished that scene a round of applause erupted because we were so happy with the way it turned out.
Q. The film is being released by the independent studio Troma Entertainment, how did that come about?
A. I have some mutual friends in the US that put me in contact with them and they decided to sign Mother Mortis up after watching Part 1 which is the first 10 minutes. Such a lovely and talented bunch at Troma! It’s a dream come true and an absolute honour to be associated with them and have Mother Mortis exclusively streaming on Troma Now. You won’t be able to stream Mother Mortis anywhere else so I would definitely recommend people to sign up to Troma Now for $4.99 per month, there’s 1000’s of Troma, independent and cult classics on Troma Now so it’s really a no brainer. Mother Mortis will also be out on DVD/Blue-Ray/VHS by Dark Hollow Home Media in North America (USA/Canada) and I’ll be releasing it on DVD under Apotheosis Productions for UK/EU/Asia.
Q. What makes Mother Mortis stand out as something different in the horror genre?
A. It’s not afraid to be different and original. I would definitely say its unpredictable which is something a lot of horror films lack. It’s bringing back that old school video nasty slasher feel to it. It’s also not one of these films that relies on jump scares, cut away shots or a tremendous slow build. It’s a rollercoaster ride and each of the six parts are differing corners on that rollercoaster. You don’t really know where its heading until it finishes and that was something I wanted to make to keep the audience at the edge of their seat and unable to easily predict what could happen. Just when you think maybe things are going left there’s a sudden drop and things change drastically.
Q. What do you hope people take away after watching the film?
A. I just want people to enjoy it. It’s an experience more than a conventional story line from A to Z. I want people to watch it to enjoy the kills, suspense, cinematography, music, acting and plot. But most of all I want them to remember the Mask of Mortis so they have nightmares! To me it’s an amazing process bringing an original idea like Mortis into reality, so I think the fact people get to see makes me and my team very satisfied.
Q. Do you have any other projects which you are currently working on?
A. Yes, I’m currently editing another feature film me and my team at Apotheosis Productions made from 2019 to 2021, it’s a Live Action Art House Fantasy Feature based on Norse mythology. The first cut is currently 3 hours long so I’m trying to cut it down to make it manageable; it will be released in early 2023 as my second feature. I’m also writing my third feature at present and I’m about halfway through the script and aiming to film later this year. Finally, I’m working on a fourth feature which will be filming in spring 2023 and out in 2024. So yes, very, very busy!
Q. If someone was looking to write and direct their own film what advice would you give them?
A. I would tell them to be original and not to follow trends. Film is all about being imaginative and creative not following in the footsteps of others or trying to imitate. Don’t be scared to be unique and bring your own voice and style to each film you make.
You can find out more about the Troma.NOw streaming service on the website here: https://watch.troma.com/
Published in various websites, Philip is a reviewer who is best known for his interviews and media coverage of independent projects including; films, books, theatre and live events. Always on the lookout for something different to cover!
