In post-Civil War Arkansas, a young doctor is mysteriously summoned to a remote town in the Ozarks, only to discover that the utopian paradise is filled with secrets and surrounded by a menacing, supernatural presence.

The horror-thriller was co-directed by Matt Glass (The Party’s Just Beginning) and Jordan Wayne Long (12 Hour Shift), who also co-wrote the film with Sean Anthony Davis (Think Brilliance) and Tara Perry (Proxy). 

The joint-effort project began with a proof of concept by Glass and Long that became the short film.

"I was cast as Annie," says Perry. "After we shot [it] in September 2016, Jordan started writing the feature script. He shared the new pages with me and asked for any notes or ideas. After many emails back and forth, he eventually asked, “Do you want to write this with me?” I jumped on board immediately! I guess I had pretty good ideas."

"We used Final Draft collaboration a lot," says Long, and then jokes, "Is this an ad now?"

“It should be!” chimes in Perry.

"We were on opposite coasts for the first month we were writing," continues Long. "The rest was spent in coffee shops. When we’re writing, we try to immerse our whole day in that world. We won’t be writing that whole time, but we’ll be discussing ideas and all the lives of the characters that aren’t necessarily in the scene."

Since horror-westerns are rare, the rules of the world were up for grabs by the filmmakers.

"We had a whole list of rules that didn’t make it in the final draft," admits Perry. "We also toyed with the idea of how often we should mention the rules and if we should have them displayed in the town. We took rules that we’d hate to live under and forced our characters to, instead. The red smoke initially started as an injected serum which our characters always thought were bug bites. That changed early on, and I’m so glad because the mechanics of the smoke on screen look really great.

A lot of the folklore came from the vigilante group the Bald Knobbers from the 1860s in the Ozarks," Perry continues. "They initially set out to put an end to marauding gangs. Eventually, the group imploded and ended up committing criminal activities, completely negating their cause. That inspired Jordan for the original proof-of-concept. Once we started writing the feature, we took that idea and combined it with 'what if a demagogue gaslit an entire town?' and it grew from there."

Without giving away any spoilers a vicious, cringe-in-your-seat attack in act three. The tension is incredible and manifested the way it did, differently than originally laid out on the page, because of on-set, in-the-moment decisions that had to be made.

"It was totally different on the page! I think at one point it all happened outside in the rain with someone almost drowning in a puddle. Logistically, we had to change a few things. As the writer, I may have been disappointed, but as the actor in the scene, I was very happy with where it ended up," says Perry.

"That scene was a hard one for me," admits Long. "It was drawn from an emotional place where I was channeling past traumatic experiences. While it was cathartic, it did have its disadvantages, too. Switching into the director chair really allowed me to step back and see what needed to change, something I wasn’t able to do when I was so close to it as a writer."

When it comes to directing, adjustments such as that one feel par for the course of filming due to obstacles you sometimes just can't control. Ghosts of the Ozarks did benefit from having the writers on set, however.

"Sometimes, things work perfectly on the page, but once you get real actors and start blocking, issues can pop up," says Glass. "Because one of our directors and one of our lead actors were the writers, we could quickly make script adjustments when needed.

"We have a scene early on in a bar that introduces five of our main characters for the film. For several reasons, including Covid restrictions and scheduling, we had to shoot sections of that introductory scene once a week for six weeks — but had to make it look seamless. That certainly was a challenge, but we’re really happy with how it plays out," says Long.

As for Ghosts' ghost, the design was thought out very carefully.

"We knew they would be loosely based on the designs of a handful of vigilante groups in the Ozark mountains at the time. We reinterpreted them through the lens of nature and a variety of mythical creatures of the era," explains Glass. "We used vines and tree textures to give the silhouettes depth. The creatures looked great, but as production went on, we ended up cutting more and more of the close-ups, realizing that it was better to keep the creature veiled and mysterious, and let the audience fill in the blanks."

There's an 'everything is not what it seems' theme to this film that blows up in the third act; very Agatha Christie-like. 

"What I think is important about movies like this is to keep it entertaining and compelling whether or not you’re one step ahead of the main character or not," Glass advises horror filmmakers who are aiming to keep their audience from being one step ahead of the main character (in this case, James).

"There are certainly films that are so reliant on twists, that the rest of the film is just a setup. If the audience figures out the twist early, the film can feel empty. Jordan and Tara did a good job of filling the script with a lot of character and atmosphere, so whether or not you know what's coming, it's still a great ride," he adds.

Glass, Perry and Long all had definitive advice for their younger writer selves that's prudent for any screenwriter of any genre:

"Finish things. Finish good things. Finish bad things. But just finish them. If you never move on, you’ll never learn or grow. Keep writing and keep growing," says Glass.

"Get your ideas on paper," adds Perry. "Type it all out, all of it. Continue to write and work with those who are excited about collaborating and keep putting yourself out there. And read it out loud with friends; you need to hear your words from someone else sometimes to get a new and better perspective."

"Be ok with being judged. Everyone’s opinion matters, just not in the same way. Trust yourself," finishes Long.

Ghosts of the Ozarks stars Thomas Hobson (That Girl Lay Lay), Phil Morris (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock), Tara Perry (Proxy), Tim Blake Nelson (Old Henry), Angela Bettis (Girl Interrupted), and David Arquette (the Scream franchise), and is now available on Digital and Demand.