Five FrightFest Facts with Alaric S. Rocha from ‘Where Is Juan Moctezuma?’

Some filmmakers become legends, others fade into obscurity, and a rare few slip into myth. Where Is Juan Moctezuma? sets out to untangle one such myth, exploring the life and work of a 1970s Mexican horror director who dreamed of Hollywood glory, luchador showdowns and impossible love stories. For writer-director Alaric S. Rocha, the project became more than a mystery; it was a way of reconnecting with his own heritage and discovering how B-movies, folklore and personal history can all collide on screen.

Part detective story, part love letter to Mexican cinema, the film blends cultural history with playful genre sensibilities. Rocha, whose career has already seen him move from music to film to teaching, brings an infectious passion for overlooked corners of movie history, from Aztec-infused horror to the camp extravagance of lucha libre cinema. Now, with its world premiere at FrightFest, Where Is Juan Moctezuma? offers audiences a chance to rediscover a filmmaker who shouldn’t be forgotten, and to celebrate the sheer imagination that fuels cinema at its most audacious.

In this Five FrightFest Facts interview, Rocha talks about the filmmakers and encounters that shaped his creative path, the retrospectives he’d most love to see at the festival, and why he believes practical effects keep the magic alive.

Alaric S. Rocha, writer-director

1. Tell us about your film

The Moctezuma story and the history of Mexican cinema have always been important to me. On the surface, the film is about a mysterious 1970s Mexican horror director who spent his life trying to make a Hollywood movie to win back the woman he loved from a masked Luchador. But it’s also my love letter to B-movies, indie filmmaking, and the wild early days of Mexican cinema. Making this film became a journey into my own identity – I discovered not only my Mexican roots but also what excites me most as a filmmaker. Now, as a professor, I get to share that obsession with the next generation of filmmakers, which makes it all the more personal.”

2. How did you get into making movies?

For as long as I can remember, my family exposed me to a wild mix of cinema – from The Godfather and 2001 to El Santo vs. The Space Martians and the original Godzilla. I studied music composition because I wanted to be John Williams, conducting an orchestra as the film played in front of me – but I quickly learned I wasn’t destined to be a great musician. While studying abroad in London, I stumbled into Club Panico, run by Bob and Julian Doyle, who worked with the Pythons and my favorite director, Terry Gilliam. That encounter rewired me. From then on, I knew I wanted to make films. Earning my MFA at DePaul in Chicago is where the Moctezuma journey truly began.”

3. What films would you love to see screened at FrightFest and why?

I’d love a Tobe Hooper retrospective. He was brilliant at pitting wholesome America against a colorful 80s nightmare, and he got his start with a low-budget classic, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre. Invaders from Mars especially captures the terror and wonder of watching your world collapse through a child’s eyes. I love it even more because the 1953 original is just as eerie – Hooper just makes it more potent. That bold, exaggerated style – melodrama pushed so far it becomes almost comedic – is exactly what excites me as a filmmaker.

4. If you could create your own award to give at FrightFest, what would it be and why?

I’d create an award for practical effects. CGI has gotten so good it can make anything look real – but I find that limiting. Films don’t have to look real; they can look bold, strange, even theatrical. Genre movies are the perfect playground for that. I’d love to see a prize that celebrates a ‘see the strings’ aesthetic – where the craft is visible and the imagination shines through.

5. If your life was made into a horror film, what would it be called and who would play the starring role?

The Twilight Zone has always been a huge influence on me, and now my career path has taken me to Ithaca College – where Rod Serling once taught. So if my life were a horror film, it would have to be a Twilight Zone episode. And who would play me? Ricardo Montalbán. He was never actually in The Twilight Zone, but as a Latino actor of the era he had the charm and intensity to make even the strangest scenarios feel profound. Plus, as a lifelong Star Trek fan, I can’t resist the idea of Khan himself representing the story of my life.

Where Is Juan Moctezuma? receives its world premiere at FrightFest on 24 August 2025.

Where Is Juan Moctezuma? trailer