How long did all this take?

 

I started writing the script in 2021. It was the first time I had worked on a traditional script - my previous short were largely free of dialogue. I watched a lot of 40s screwball comedies  for that dense fast paced dialogue and checked out a bunch of ‘how to write a mystery’ books from the library. I took some tips from the books and ignored others. I tried to write my script with the sets and objects I knew I had (dollhouses and bird cages and antiques oh my)  so working those into the plot became a fun puzzle. When I finished a version of the script I was happy with, I recorded the dialogue with friends - actors and non-actors. Next I created the entire movie in simple black and white drawings, called an animatic. This tool helps work out problems with timing and script. The drawings also become storyboards which blueprint the shots for any given scene.

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At the same time, I was building sets, transforming the upstairs loft of a barn into a crowded attic and creating puppets. Finally in the summer of 2022,I put my camera on a tripod. The first images I captured were live action sequences with child actor, Viveca Freeman, who played Lily in the movie. The first day of animation was August 22, 2022. Originally this was a day I set out to do some tests with the puppets in the barn, largely to see how the natural light was going to work, but I ended up loving the images and just plowed forward from there. I wrapped shooting December of 2024 and finished editing the movie in the fall of 2025. So that’s a long way of saying it took four years.

 

Why dolls?

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I never actually played with dolls as a kid. However, my parents took me to antique shows where I trailed after my dad looking at vintage cars and when it got too hot, headed indoors with my mom to wander the booths which were filled with treasures. It was rare for her to take time off and these excursions really brought out a different side of my mother. She loved getting into conversations with the vendors about the history of objects, and muse about whomever originally owned the things. She bought me my first antique bisque doll, A Floradora bebé, which was a great expense and I took that thing very seriously. It sat, staring, in a chair in my room, honestly a bit creepy, but I really loved her, she seemed to represent a portal to another era.

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Years later, I saw Alice, the stop-motion movie by Czech animator Jan Švankmajer, a dark, surreal fantasy where dolls, skeletons, and taxidermy come to life.  It was at Film Forum in New York, and it really did change the direction of my life. (Thanks, Film Forum!) Watching Alice for the first time, I felt such kinship with another artist’s vision. What I saw on the screen was exactly what I had sensed about the uncanny, secret lives of dolls. I became a huge fan of Švankmajer as well as Ladislas Starevich, Jiří Barta, The Brothers Quay, and other filmmakers who bring ordinary objects to life by mixing live action and stop motion.

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In my own work, I like to play against the dark, melancholic “creepy doll” trope, instead finding humor and pathos in the faces and personalities of pre-loved things. In the spellbound attic, these ‘has-beens’ form a chosen family and find joy and camaraderie.

I have collected old dolls and toys for many years and knew  one day I would write a story that gave these characters center stage. It took me many years, but I finally did just that.

 

What lured you to the mystery genre?

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Well, I would not call myself an aficionado of this genre by any means, but I do love a good whodunit. When I imagined what sort of film I might make, I thought a mystery would be fun: The setting of the attic and all the dolls and toys who dwell there could mirror the English villages and the eccentric characters often depicted in cozy mysteries. Often classic mysteries provide a satisfying solution, but I also wanted to explore the notion that in life there are mysteries of human existence that are never solved, mysteries of the human heart, of friendship, growing up, etc.

 

How did you cast Frances and Midge?

 

The doll I used for Frances has been in my collection for a very long time. I found her in a pile of doll parts at an auction almost 30 years ago and she has since been the lead in several of my films. Her inscrutable expression, her immobile glass eyes, worn off paint and hairline cracks all really resonate with me. She has had an eventful life, been well-loved and I think she presents the ideal vessel for an audience to project upon.

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I came up with wardrobe ideas for Frances with costume designer Sara E. Lotte – we took inspiration from classic detectives: The houndstooth pattern of her vest was a nod to Sherlock Holmes and her lapel pin a miniature version of one worn by Hercule Poirot. Her walking stick (a knitting needle) and her “chair” (a ball of yarn) are both inspired by Miss Marple and, finally, her trapper hat was inspired by Frances McDormand’s character in Fargo.

 

Though the doll Frances had appeared in many movies, she’s never spoken, so choosing her voice was a big deal. As for the actress who would embody this character – I met Beth Dixon, of all places, on the tennis courts in Woodstock NY. Even in this casual setting, Beth had a way of carrying herself in a slightly formal manner, she also had a great voice that seemed perfect for Frances – and she was actually a professional actress! When I first visited Beth to discuss the project, I was endeared by the stack of mystery series DVD’s and detective books in her kitchen, all checked out from the library. From the first day I recorded with Beth, her performance has provided everything I envisioned for Detective Frances Faraday.

 

When I decided to do a mystery, I was drawn to buddy teams, à la Sherlock and Holmes, Poirot and Hastings, etc. These odd couples have a playful competitiveness, but their inherent differences complement each other. I thought by contrasting dolls from two distinct eras - a Victorian porcelain doll with a more modern 60s plastic doll as her counterpart - I could achieve this dynamic.

 

I picked up the doll who would become Midge at a toy collector’s yard sale. The doll was in pristine condition — new in box, just like her character. Midge was originally a Sindy doll, a UK answer to a more teenaged Barbie. I really loved the outfit she was wearing when I bought her. The boxy turtleneck reminded me of Harriet the Spy and Velma from Scooby Doo, and both these young sleuths had provided inspiration for the character of Midge. The doll’s wild tangle of hair and playful expression were perfect. I added some roller skates, and she was ready to go.

 

I had known the actress who played Midge, Fiona Green, since she was about six and appeared in a music video I made. We remained friends and when I envisioned the voice of Midge, I immediately thought of her. Fiona was 12 when I first recorded with her and by the time I finished our last recordings, just months before the movie was finished, she was almost 17! Fiona’s youthful voice really embodies the spirit and enthusiasm of Midge to create a wonderful character the audience really roots for.

 

So, both in the dolls that I cast and the actresses who breathed life into them, I feel blessed. I got my dynamic duo and hopefully two timeless sleuths to add to the canon.

 

Will there be sequels?

 

Well, I originally thought of the project as a serial told in short 10-minute episodes.

I realized there would be a lot of world building and explaining to do if The Lure of Ponies were say, the pilot episode of the Spellbound Attic Mystery series, so I decided to create what would be considered the series finale.  At one point, I wanted to present it by saying something like: “All the episodes of this beloved series were tragically lost in a fire….except for one…the final case…” Mysterious, right?

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Throughout The Lure of Ponies, the characters often refer to previous cases because I wanted it to feel like we were dropping in on a world with neighbors who had history with each other. After Lady B asks Midge, “And you are…?” and Midge replies, “I’m new, I’m a protégé,” she becomes the character the audience can relate to. They too are ‘new’ and exploring the attic for the first time.  

 

It would be cool if people submitted fan fiction versions conjuring up previous cases involving the characters in The Lure of Ponies or introducing new ones. Who knows? Even I am tempted to indulge in some prequel scenarios.

 

So I guess whether Frances and I will retire after this remains a mystery.