'birth/rebirth' is a psychological horror film about motherhood and creation, inspired by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. The film is centered around a single mother and a childless morgue technician who are bound together by their relationship to a re-animated little girl.

Interview with Writer/Director Laura Moss

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

Thank you! This film has been bubbling in me in some form or other for over 20 years, since I first picked up Mary Shelley's Frankenstein as a kid. Reading about the losses in her life, her miscarriages in particular, I started imagining Victor Frankenstein as a creator of life with a uterus, and this naturally led me to wonder how her relationship with her body would play into her scientific process.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

In light of COVID, and coming out of a time of worldwide loss and change, I hope a lot of people find catharsis in this film, which is, among other things, about the perils of failing to process grief and the denial of death.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

This film is about motherhood and creation, and features two very different types of mothers. Celie has found meaning in her life both nurturing her daughter and advocating for her pregnant patients in her vocation as a maternity nurse. Rose's 'child', on the other hand, is her legacy, and she would prefer to divorce her intellect from her body, uncomfortable with its workings.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?

The script, in my mind, started as a novel. It was taking the form of letters, written from prison by Rose, my Frankenstein, to the mother of a little girl she had re-animated. Visual motifs kept coming up though, and it soon became clear to me that this needed to be a visual story.

I developed the script with my writing partner, Brendan J. O'Brien, and in 2020 we were lucky enough to participate as fellows at the Sundance Screenwriting labs. Working with the advisors and other fellows at the labs was instrumental in getting the script to the next level, and shortly after that, we partnered with SHUDDER on the film.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

We've only had a few test screenings of the film so far, but we've been encouraged by the film's reception. The movie is really character-based, and so it's important that you're really with the two women at the center of the film, that you're really on board for the journey. So our audiences have been really drawn into their worlds.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

The sessions we had were before we locked the cut, as we were entering the home stretch of our editing process. It's always helpful to have outside feedback, especially from folks who don't know anything about the film going in. We had discussions after the screenings that resulted in us changing the structure and feel of some scenes, and I think the movie is much stronger for it.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

The reason I make films is to find my people. People who are grappling with the same issues I am and who look to the horror genre for catharsis. Basically, I just want to find those people and rock their boats.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

We are so fortunate to have partnered with SHUDDER and IFC Films in this endeavor, and to have that aspect of our distribution set going into Sundance. Right now we just want to get the word out about this film so it reaches people who will appreciate it.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

I think this film manifests some anxieties I personally have at my current stage of life, late 30s/early 40s. About if choosing to have a child will unrecognizably transform my identity. About delaying that choice and having my body make it for me. I hope there are people out there that haven't seen their experiences explored this way on film before, and that they connect with the film.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

What does it mean to 'mother', and what makes a good one?

What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?

My writing partner, Brendan, and I have written a screenplay called Gordon, about a young man trying to be good in a sociopathic world. Really it's about toxic masculinity and its effect on the male psyche. I'm hoping that's next, and would like to dive into that world as soon as possible.

Interview: January 2023

We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

birth/rebirth

Length: 1:37:00

Director: Laura Moss

Producer: Mali Elfman

Writer: Laura Moss & Brendan J. O'Brien

About the writer, director and producer:

LAURA MOSS is a filmmaker born and raised in NYC. Their short film Fry Day, about a young girl coming of age in the shadow of Ted Bundy's execution, is featured on the Criterion Channel. They directed the sci-fi/comedy pilot eureka, which won Best Director, Comedy Pilot at Seriesfest. They were a 2020 Sundance Screenwriters/Directors Labs fellow. Their award-winning screenplay, Gordon, co-written with Brendan J. O’Brien, is currently in development.

LAURA MOSS and BRENDAN J. O'BRIEN have been making movies together since 2009. Their work has been written about in Vulture, Deadline and Filmmaker Magazine, and has been cited in both the Zombie Movie Encyclopedia and the London Review of Books.

MALI ELFMAN is a BAFTA-nominated Producer, who began her career with her micro-budget feature film Do Not Disturb (Warner Brothers, 2010). Since then, she has produced many films, including Karen Gillan’s directorial debut The Party Is Just Beginning and Mike Flanagan’s Before I Wake. Mali and director Laura Moss were selected for the Tribeca and Chanel’s "Through Her Lens" Grant and the Cannes Film Festival’s “Breaking Through the Lens” Program.

Key cast: Marin Ireland (Rose), Judy Reyes (Celie), AJ Lister (Lila) Breeda Wool (Emily)

Looking for: journalists

Facebook: Retrospecter

Instagram: @mxlauramoss

Hashtags used: #birthrebirth #retrospecters

Website: www.retrospecterfilms.com

Other: IMDb

Made in association with: SHUDDER Films and Retrospecter Films

Funders: SHUDDER

Where can I watch it next and in the coming month?

Sundance/Park City - January 2023