According to director Fred Olen Ray, this film was severely re-edited without his consent by the distributor at the time of its release. Scenes were added out of context which threw off continuity and gave away major spoilers, such as the fates of most of the characters, as well as the shots of chanting Indian ghost's head, which was haphazardly overlayed over such scenes as the old man cutting his own throat. Also, all but one of the scenes showing the ghost with the lion's head were shot as test footage and were never intended to be included in the released film.
The "black trees" were actually a group of trees that had been recently charred by a brush fire on the ranch where filming was taking place, and were later worked into the script by director Fred Olen Ray.
This film was shot without permits.
The sequel promised at the end was never made.