Film Name: Huesera
Director: Michelle Garza Cervera
Writer: Michelle Garza Cervera, Abia Castillo
Starring: Natalia Solian, Alfonso Dosal, Mayra Batalla, Mercedes Hernandez
Valeria has prayed to be a mother. She and her husband, Raul, finally see one of their longtime dreams come true. But the day she finds out she’s pregnant she is cursed by a sinister spirit. Alone, with her family turned against her, Valeria finds herself lost in a world of folk horror and chilling, urban landscapes that could be of her own making. It’s there she finds that a group of local witches are either her only hope of confronting her innermost demons or the evil behind a supernatural entity known as La Huesera.
In a new exclusive interview on Blazing Minds, I got a chance to ask co-writer/director Michelle Garza Cervera a few questions about the film Huesera which will be making its UK Premiere at Arrow FrightFest on Monday 29th August at 11:00hrs
Q. Your film Huesera has been selected to play at the Arrow FrightFest Film Festival. Can you tell us what we can expect from the film?
A. Huesera is a film that speaks about the process of confronting deep truths about ourselves that many times we don’t want to look at. It is a psychological horror film that uses its genre to accompany the main character through the painful process of breaking herself down in order to find a reconstruction.
Q. You co-wrote the script with Abia Castillo. What was the process for you writing the script together and what were some of your influences?
A. We rewrote the script many times, around 13 drafts during three years. Each one of us keeps the script for some time, then we have meetings to discuss the advances and the other one takes it from there. It’s a very rich process with a lot of investigation involved. We try to stay away from attachments and always keep in mind the main theme we want to explore. Our biggest influence which actually brought us to writing together is the comics series Love and Rockets by the Hernández Brothers and another big influence for writing Huesera was the essay King Kong Theory by Virginie Despentes.
Q. What were some of your influences for the look and style of the film?
I love the work of the Mexican photographer Graciela Iturbide and the Spanish photographer Cristina de Middel, both were big influences for the cinematographer and myself during development. Some of our cinematic influences were the works of Lynne Ramsay and Lucrecia Martel and specifically films like Possession, Jacob’s Ladder, Don’t Look Now and of course Rosemary’s Baby.
Q. Did you make any changes from the original script during filming?
A. Of course, I keep on listening to my cast and crew on every stage, they will come up with amazing ideas sometimes on set and in the last minute. I try to keep on open to be able to catch the magic things that can happen while filming, which many times can change preconceptions or rigid ideas on paper. I work hard in preproduction with my team so we can be able to be as relaxed as possible on set and be able to see and catch those moments that can happen without planning during the shooting.
Q. What were some of your favourite moments during filming?
A. There’s a punk show in the film where many of my friends came to the shooting. We filmed during covid so there had been a long time since any of us had a chance to go to a show or a concert. We were all tested and had the chance to feel we were back at a venue with friends dancing to the music we like. There’s also a scene in the film that involves a ritual, that was an amazing experience to film. There was really strong energy on set, it felt magic in many ways, especially thanks to the work of the actresses involved in the scene – at a very algid moment in the scene, a huge table fell down covering a big light source and leaving all us in darkness, we really felt like we had liberated something at that moment! Hopefully nothing evil!
Q. Did you experience any issues during filming?
A. Of course, many issues every day as I suppose it happens in every film. Filming during a pandemic comes with a lot of challenges but we had an amazing cast and crew and we were able to film everything planned and had fun at the same time.
Q. What makes Huesera stand out as something different in the horror genre?
A. I don’t think I’m the one to name that, that is something the audience needs to decide. I just tried to always have as a priority the character and her path while using the amazing tools the horror genre offers to serve that.
Q. What do you hope people take away after watching the film?
A. A question, a discussion. To give light to an uncomfortable theme that mostly remains hidden or hard to speak about. Many times thanks to cinema, I’ve felt less lonely while going through difficult phases and if this film manages to accompany someone who is having a hard time, that’s more than enough for me and gives all the reasons for having made this film.
Q. Do you have any other projects which you are currently working on?
A. Yes, I am working on the development of my next couple of films as well as some upcoming TV shows. One of the films is an adaptation of a short story by the Argentinian horror writer Mariana Enríquez.
Q. If someone was looking to write and direct their own film what advice would you give them?
A. There are many moments while writing your script when it becomes difficult and you will want to escape and start other new projects, but I think if you’ve found something you really want to tell and that moves you, you gotta stick to it and keep on going. Better to have a strong script with many rewrites than to have many unfinished ones. For filming, find the right cast and crew! Look for them until you’ve found the right ones, the ones that are passionate and dying to tell that particular story as much as you.
You can find out more about the Festival and purchase tickets here: https://www.frightfest.co.uk/
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!
