Ryan Stevens Harris’s film Moon Garden is a sumptuous visual feast that tells the tale of a young girl on a dangerous journey through an unknown land. Sure, we’ve heard that story before, but we’ve never seen it told like this. Harris takes a hero’s journey, a tale as old as time, and covers it with his own unique, twisted, and deeply beautiful aesthetic. Think Pan’s Labyrinth or Mad God.
Read the full synopsis below:
Five-year-old Emma’s life teeters between happy moments and intense parental conflict. Comatose after an accident at home, Emma is propelled into a journey through an industrial wonderland, encountering various strange and visually intriguing figures and situations inspired by her imagination, on her way back to consciousness. Shot on expired 35mm film stock with vintage lenses, and utilizing stop motion animation, practical effects, and miniatures, Moon Garden is a meticulously constructed, lush, dark, fantasy odyssey.
Get a small taste for the terrifying fantasy that awaits you in the film’s official trailer:
When it was first announced that Oscilloscope acquired Moon Garden last year, Harris said, “[this film] is a unique project, years in the making—a dark fantasy dashed with bittersweet drama, filtered through the dark lens of a midnight movie.”
In her review from the 2022 edition of FilmQuest, Dread Central’s Sharai Bohannon wrote, “Moon Garden is a fun ride that makes it easy to love. It’s equal parts rockabilly, heart, and wonder. It’s a feast for the eyes.”
Haven Lee Harris, Augie Duke, Brionne Davis, Maria Olsen, Timothy Lee DePriest, Philip E. Walker, and Margana Ignis star in the film.
Moon Garden comes to theaters later this year.
