Movie making based on theme about deadly psychological disorder

R.A Productions

presents

A Rahul Aijaz film ‘Morgue’

Starring:
Muhammad Ahsan
Anthony Galli
Tayyeb Khan Sherwan
Rohel Aijaz

As a film student, I am always looking for new ideas to explore. Despising what the mainstream storytelling is all about, I try to find another way to tell stories, experimenting with narrative, dialogue and presentation.

What caused me to conceive the idea for ‘Morgue’ was my random web browsing. I have this strange fascination with rare psychological disorders that people suffer from. So I found out about the ‘Cotard’s Syndrome’, where one starts to believe he’s dead or doesn’t exist. There was this moment of inspiration and surprise that struck me and I knew I wanted to work on it.

I studied cases and reports online concerning people affected by this ‘deadly’ psychological disorder. I came to know about a variety of its symptoms, from the belief of your body organs rotting to not even existing at all. Or even believing that one has turned into a sheep after death which is a case of Cotard’s Syndrome as well as Clinical Lycanthropy (where you believe that you are an animal or can turn into one). But after studying all of it, I wanted to create something different and original.

I’m also fascinated by the concept of spaces so I limited myself to shooting in just one room. This led me to imagine a surreal atmosphere where I could convey my story by dialogue. Ironically, I’m a fan of silent films and my first short film is heavily, if not entirely, based on dialogue.

But I needed something to accompany the dialogue. Some music, I thought. And what better music could I find than ‘silence’? I let silence speak, more than dialogue itself. It’s the silent moments of deep mourning and expressions that tell the story effectively.

For me, ‘Morgue’ raises some questions and in fact, confuses. It’s more philosophical and psychological than just a story about who is dead and who’s alive. But I choose to leave it to the audience on how they interpret.

All in all, it’s an ambitious effort. And it wouldn’t be possible without the amazingly talented cast and crew I had.