Shot in Minnesota in the summer of 2014, Strange Nature spent several years in post-production before making its theatrical debut in September 2018, where it was met with mixed critical reviews.

[5] As Ojala progressed in his career as a filmmaker and special-effects artist and populations of deformed frogs continued to grow worldwide, he drew upon the mutations as the basis for his feature-film debut, surprised that a movie or documentary had never been made about the subject.

[5][6] Ojala wrote the screenplay for Strange Nature in the early-to-mid-2000s, and has cited William Souder's 2000 non-fiction book A Plague of Frogs as a major source of the movie's scientific facts and theories.

[5] Several producers initially showed interest in the project, though many of them voiced skepticism over Ojala's insistence on shooting in and using cast and crew from Minnesota, preferring to film in more commonly used locations such as Louisiana or Bulgaria.

Due to Ojala's reputation in the film industry as a special-effects artist, the campaign was promoted by such prominent horror publication as Fangoria and successfully met its goal, raising a total of $46,088.

[12] For the role of Mayor Paulson, Ojala extended offers to numerous high-profile actors, including Kurt Russell and John Goodman - "people we had no business talking to", he mused, "at least we tried".

[26] The Los Angeles Times was slightly more ambivalent, feeling the film lacked scares but nevertheless praised the "top-notch" creature effects and "likeable characters", complimenting the small town "slice of life" angle and giving Ojala "kudos" for "making his setting essential to his story".

[27] FanSided's Hidden Remote, titling their review with "science-fiction meets real science in perfect blend", appreciated the film's environmental messages, acknowledging Ojala for "[presenting] all these issues in an entertaining fashion" as well as noting the "phenomenal" chemistry between the ensemble cast.

[29] 28 Days Later Analysis lauded the "compelling" and "well-drawn" characters, "excellent" make-up effects and the film's use of dark humor, stating "Strange Nature offers a lot in its short, but bloody runtime" and "indie horror fans should see this production".

[31] Chloe Leeson of Screen Queen gave a similarly negative review, stating "Whilst there are some more intriguing loose ends that never come to fruition (largely wondering what happens to the people who go missing in the woods?)

in favour of a shoed-in romance and loose emotional connections between various mediocre characters, Strange Nature is ultimately the creation of a first-time director - lots of promising ideas, but not enough editing.