The Black Box Theory of Filmmaking
As a low/ no-budget filmmaker, I have been frustrated by the limitations of making movies with little money. I have always gravitated to bigger stories, and while I can appreciate the thirty-something-having-quirky-conversation genre (like the numerous mumblecore movies), I do not necessarily want to make these movies. I would like to make a Revolutionary War movie or a sci-fi epic, but can not achieve the production value necessary on no-budget without it looking cheap. If no-budget filmmaking is to rise beyond the living rooms and parent’s basements of no budget filmmakers, film will need to ask the audience to take the leap with them away from realism and toward The Black Box Theory of filmmaking. By adapting this Theory, we can open up the world of the Indie filmmaker. This is necessary for the democratization of movies.
Years ago, theatre creators decided they needed the freedom to create plays not bound by the limits of realism. Playwright Thornton Wilder created “Our Town”, a play which showed the history of an entire town. The town was created in the imagination of the audience. This of course, was nothing new. Early theatre began requiring the audiences imagination to fill in the blanks. Later, realism krept in and spectacle took over. Theatre moved towards an attempt to recreate experience, and then artists like Becket and Wilder showed us the way back. This is exactly the pattern filmmaking is caught in at the moment. There is an obsession with realism. Just like in theatre, The Black Box, is nothing new. In fact, it is callback to the origins of cinema where everything was shot on a studio. Take, for instance, the work of George Melies.
Melies made films on small sets using elaborately constructed backgrounds. Enjoying Melies requires an ability to accept the lack of realism in the set. The same can be said for German Expressionist masterpieces such as The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. The Black Box Theory is currently being practiced on a big level. One could argue, many movies have been made in a Green Box. Movies like Sin City, 300 or The Spirit intentionally forgo realistic backgrounds in favor of stylishly created worlds. These films were shot on greenscreen and utilize a philosophy similar to Black Box Theory. The backgrounds are made on computer and favor style over realism.
This pic from Sin City shows The Black Box Theory in full effect. The majority of this film was shot in one big green room.
Arguably the most significant and pure Black Box Movie is the film Dogville, by Lars Von Trier. Dogville plays like a demented Our Town where the town has been replaced by a large warehouse. The various places in town are represented by chalk outlines.
Dogville; The ultimate example of "Black Box Theory". This picture shows the stage which becomes the town in which all of Dogville takes place.
The effect of Dogville is powerful and Von Trier uses the device to enhance the power and intimacy of his story. No one will ever see Dogville and wish the town were real. The audience meets Von Trier’s challenge to accept the unrealistic and experimental nature of what he is doing. Theatre audiences have been doing it forever, and the original audience of film began with meeting that challenge. Now it is time for the no-budget filmmaker to get out of their parents living room (or paint it chroma-key green) and begin challenging themselves and their audiences.
If you decide to make or have made a Black Box movie, let me know. We will post about it here.
