‘I made this movie for the stolen mob’: A horror about historic wrongs

From Rabbit-Proof Fence to Australia, filmmakers have long been grappling with the harrowing subject of the Stolen Generations – Aboriginal families torn apart by government policies between 1910 and 1970. More often than not, these stories have been told predominantly by non-Indigenous filmmakers.

Now, Jon Bell, a Wiradjuri, Bundjalung and Yaegl director, has created The Moogai, a supernatural horror steeped in Indigenous history, written, directed and produced by a First Nations team.

Adapted from Bell’s award-winning short film of the same name, it follows an Aboriginal couple who have just had their second baby. Upon returning home, the mother (Shari Sebbens) begins to suspect an evil entity is after her children, sending her on a desperate journey to protect them.

The creature haunting the family is the “moogai”, a Bundjalung colloquialism for boogeyman, or stealer of children. Though the boogeyman is far from new – it has appeared in other horrors such as Sinister and The Nightmare Before Christmas – it’s an iteration never seen before, one that’s irrevocably woven into a traumatic collective history.

Jon Bell created The Moogai, the first film about the Stolen Generations that was written, directed and produced by a First Nations team.Credit: Nick Moir

“The moogai shows how trauma moves through generations and families, and metastasises into the way you see the world,” Bell says. “There’s a natural fit between horror and societal, or even personal, fears. Modern audiences are looking for stories that grab them emotionally and intellectually.”

As a First Nations director, it was impossible for Bell not to consider his ancestors and family when making the film. In fact, his wife and grandchildren even appear in certain scenes.

“I made this movie for the stolen mob, to say, ‘you will always belong with us. That can never be broken, as much as it may feel like it has’.”

It’s also a love letter to the Aboriginal women in and around Bell’s life, those who collectively keep everyone together. “I can see Aboriginal men struggling to find our place in this new world. But as much as I see that, I feel the love from my great-grandmothers, my grandmothers, my mother, my wife, my sisters, my daughters, my granddaughters. I feel encompassed by female Aboriginal warmth, power and strength.”

While most films about the Stolen Generations have been rooted securely in the past, The Moogai constantly weaves the past in with the present. It’s predominantly set in 2024, and examines more contemporary issues such as police injustice and western medicine vs traditional healing practices, but every scene still recalls the horrors of the Stolen Generations.

This was vital for Bell, who wanted to demonstrate how Aboriginal families today are still grappling with the effects of past genocidal practices, to the point that it feels as if the “past is smashing into the present”. These two things, Bell says, are not separated in Indigenous culture. In fact, his mother’s language, Bundjalung, doesn’t even have a tense for time.

The moogai, along with all it represents, lends itself perfectly to supernatural horror, says Wiradjuri man and producer of The Moogai Mitch Stanley. “It’s based on some horrible, but significant, truths of Australian Indigenous history … We weren’t making a horror film and then weaving culture into it. We were writing a cultural film that lent itself to the horror genre.”

Shari Sebbens in The Moogai, one of the first supernatural horrors directed by a First Nations director.Credit: Elise Lockwood

Yet interestingly, First Nations supernatural horror productions are rare, Stanley says. Though many Aboriginal creatives have been writing and developing these kinds of stories – many of which are inspired by ancient Aboriginal fables – he says they have struggled to receive funding.

There have been a few, such as The Darkside – a documentary-style collection of Indigenous-themed tales about otherworldly experiences – and Bedevil, another supernatural anthology. However, these are both series of horror stories rather than one stand-alone narrative.

“When we screened The Moogai at MIFF, a blackfella in the audience said ‘it’s about time we had something like this’,” Stanley says. “Jon’s always been a bit ahead of his time … I think we’re just getting started with this medium of film.”

The Moogai will hopefully prove there is appetite for First Nations stories told through a horror lens, Stanley says, especially given the awards it has already won, including the audience award for best feature at the Sydney Film Festival and the 2024 CinefestOZ film prize award.

“This movie comes at a time when we couldn’t even get a Voice in Parliament,” Stanley says. “You watch the moogai taking the children and that’s the experience of our grandparents, our parents, and those before them. That’s what it felt like when having their families ripped apart. There’s a lot of apathy for our people in Australia. Watching this, you get to understand what it feels like.”

The Moogai will be in cinemas from October 31.

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