Writer-director-producer Scott Frazelle sat down to talk with me about his upcoming creature feature ‘Moggy Creatures‘, featuring mutant cats.
Frazelle has been part of the horror genre for many years. He has appeared in films such as ‘Day of the Dead 2: Contagium’, ‘Marked’ and ‘Passed the Door of Darkness’ and ‘Creepshow 3’, which he also co-wrote. He was part of the special effects team of ‘State of Desolation’ and ‘Shark Bite Beach’ that was part of ‘Shark Week’ in 2010. Frazelle has worked on many projects in the role of assistant director, in movies like ‘Blackwater Valley Exorcism’, ‘Marked’, ‘Passed the Door of Darkness’, ‘Shattered!’, ‘Rough Hustle’, and the series ‘Channel Surfing’. ‘Steampunk’d’, ‘The Devil’s Tomb’ and ‘The Reverent’ were projects Frazelle worked for in the art department. He also penned and executive produced 2013’s ‘House of Bad’.
Horror Fuel: “You have been involved with so many aspects of the film industry. acting, special effects, directing, producing, writing. Which is your favorite?
SF: “I would have to say producing. It gives you a unique look at the industry.
Horror Fuel: “What was it like to be part of the Creepshow franchise?”
SF: “It was absolutely wonderful. I’ve always been a fan of Creepshow 1 and 2. I sent in a script about the Iraq war, but they didn’t tell us that it was for Creepshow 3.”
Horror Fuel: “Can you tell us about your upcoming film, Moggy Creatures?”
SF: “I’m very excited about it. It centers on a struggling couple who thinks adopting a cat will help their situation. The wife develops a strong bond with the cat right away and it divides the house. The couple is pushed to the breaking point when the cat gives birth to mutant, hairless cats. I wrote, directed and produced the trailer, and designed the cats, but I am planning on bringing in someone to take over producing the movie so I can concentrate on the other aspects of the film.”
Horror Fuel: “Please tell us more about the creepy critters.”
SF: “They’re mutated house cats that are hairless and 30% larger than a regular cat. They are alos a bit reptilian. We are going to use mainly practical effects. While we were filming the trailer the crew would stop what they were doing and come look at the monitor, like “wow”. The most difficult part was working with the real cat. Cats can be a bit unpredictable, they are not like dogs. People have one of two reactions to hairless cats, they either love them or they are repulsed by them and I’m going to use that to my advantage. It’s a bit weird to see a hairless cat. She’s a very nice cat though. ”
Horror Fuel: “What inspired the movie?”
SF: “I was looking at pictures of hairless cats after I had talked with a friend about how we haven’t seen a lot of real creature features lately and how it would be nice to create a creature feature that would really scare people, not like a lot of the recent movies that are more campy than scary. A lot of the creature feature movies are mislabeled. If you look on Netflix you will see Bad Milo under creature features. It should be under horror-comedies. I want to make a real creature feature that will leave viewers scared, watching their cats out of the corner of their eye.”
Horror Fuel: “When will the Kickstarter campaign begin for Moggy Creatures?”
SF: “It will go live the first of the year, the second week of January I believe. The campaign will go to the special effects. Either way it is going to be made, but the campaign will help it be made and released faster. Hopefully, Moggy Creatures will be out by Halloween.”
Horror Fuel: “Do you have any other projects in the works?”
SF: “I adapted an erotic horror that I’ll be directing. I also have two other projects I am working on. One is a sci-fi thriller about consciousness being downloaded into robots. The other is a traditional claymation children’s movie with classic horror characters like Frankenstein, Dracula, the Wolf Man.
Horror Fuel: “So, what is your favorite horror movie?”
SF: “There are too many to list. Recently, I saw Dark Skys. I really enjoyed The Babadook and Goodnight Mommy, that one freaked me out. It was fantastic. You start watching it thinking that it’s one movie but turns out to be a completely different movie. It really got under my skin. As for the classics, I have to say Jaws and Creepshow.”
Horror Fuel: “Jaws is my favorite.”
SF: “Is it really considered a horror movie though? Why is it your favorite?”
Horror Fuel: “It’s definitely a horror movie. People are being killed by this giant beast lurking just under the surface of the water. Everyone on the island is living in fear. Three men set out to hunt it down, but are locked in a life or death battle with this unrelenting beast. It speaks to man’s struggle to conqueror nature, their fears and the unkown. Plus, the shark is killing kids in horrific ways. That screams horror.”
SF: “I see your point.”
For more on the film please visit the ‘Moggy Creatures’ official website, FaceBook, Twitter ,and Instagram accounts. Be sure to follow Scott Frazelle on Twitter for updates on all of his films.
