"Begotten" was written, produced, and directed by Merhige, with development for the film beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, although some sources list the date as 1984. Merhige had studied at New York State University, and soon developed an interest in the theater after attending several performances while in Manhattan. Merhige would later state in an interview that he had been drawn towards the use of performers creating a highly visualized form of storytelling through dramatic movement to provoke, what Merhige called, "an otherworldly response". He was particularly fascinated by a Japanese dance troupe called Sankai Juku which, the director later learned, consisted of a handful of core members that were well in tune with one another, knowing each other completely on both a professional and personal level. Wanting to accomplish a similar group dynamic, Merhige founded Theatreofmaterial, a small theater production company based in New York City.