1997. A clear starlit night, an isolated motel and a very nervous policeman who wants to check if there’s any truth to the creepy rumors about Motel Melati. He won’t be disappointed. Once inside, he’s immediately beset by moving paintings, a scary doll and a ghost at the end of the hallway. Before he can run away screaming, he gets stabbed to death by Madam Melati, the owner of the motel. Something tells us this isn’t her first time wielding a knife in such a fashion. And then she starts to tell her story. We witness what happens to the people who dare to check in. Take this couple with a son for example, spending a night looking for shelter from the rain. Out of courtesy, they drink tea with Madam Melati, but after their little chitchat the son gets possessed and stabs the father to death, while the woman is chased out of a window by the ghost of her mother. The corpses at Motel Melati have a tendency to pile up…

Ghosts and monsters are part of everyday life in the immense Indonesian archipelago. Just to illustrate this, directors Mike Wiluan and Billy Christian had put aside a part of their budget for a “pawang hujan”, a rain shaman, because filming took place during the rainy season. And apparently he was very effective! MOTEL MELATI, a very generous mix of PSYCHO and AMERICAN HORROR STORY, is the kickoff for what is to become a horror fest in seven parts. Wiluan and Christian didn’t exactly hold back when it came to shock moments, gory scenes and tons of spilt blood!