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p.1 #8 · Tree of Life and Available Light | |
dmacmillan wrote:
It's interesting that they would go against the norm and shoot this way. If you haven't seen it, you might want to check it out at least for the lighting and cinematography.
I was replying to this part of your origional quote.
There are quite a few films that have used the basic ideas of Dogma 95.
Lars Von Trier is a bit of an a-hole, and partially psychotic/neurotic in many ways. Even he hasn't followed Dogma 95 strictly - I think partly it was a joke.
But there have been many, many wonderful movies made in the past 17 years from this basic independent, anti-hollywood, anti-big-budget inspiration at it's core. And Von Trier is probably one of the most successful independent filmmakers in world cinema.
To me, ALL of Lars Von Triers movies are very good. "Breaking the Waves", "Dogville". Even "Dancer in the Dark", which is the wierdest movie I have ever seen - with Bjork - is near my top 10 list of best movies.
There are also many other films out there shot this way - "The Birthday Party", etc.
You might also be very interesting in Von Triers's "The Five Obstructions." It is an excellent, almost textbook manual for any creative in how to approach a project. (The 5 "movies" are not really Von Trier's, but rather one of his mentors, Jørgen Leth .)
Some exerpts from Wiki:
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"In 1995, Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg presented their manifesto for a new cinematic movement which they called Dogme 95. It would however take a while before the first of these films appeared, and at this point many thought of the concept mainly as a radical idea with no future.
In 1996, von Trier conducted an unusual theatrical experiment in Copenhagen involving 53 actors, which he titled Psychomobile 1: The World Clock. A documentary chronicling the project was directed by Jesper Jargil, and was released in 2000 with the title De Udstillede (The Exhibited).
Von Trier's next film, Breaking the Waves (1996), the first film in von Trier's 'Golden Heart Trilogy', won the Grand Prix at Cannes and featured Emily Watson, who was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress. Its grainy images and hand-held photography pointed towards Dogme 95. The second was The Idiots (1998), nominated for a Palme d'Or, which he presented in person at the Cannes Film Festival notwithstanding his dislike of travelling. Dancer in the Dark (2000) was the final component of the trilogy.
As originator of the Dogme 95 concept, which has led to international interest in Danish film as a whole, he has inspired filmmakers all over the world.[15] Trier and Thomas Vinterberg, who created the Dogme 95 Manifesto and the "Vow of Chastity" together with their fellow Dogme directors Kristian Levring and Søren Kragh-Jacobsen shared in 2008 the European Film Award European Achievement in World Cinema.
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The Five Obstructions (2003), made by Lars von Trier and Jørgen Leth, is a documentary, but also incorporates lengthy sections of experimental films. The premise is that Lars von Trier challenges director Jørgen Leth, his friend and mentor, to remake his old experimental film The Perfect Human (1967) five times, each time with a different 'obstruction' (or obstacle) specified by von Trier.
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In 2006, von Trier released a Danish-language comedy film, The Boss of it All. It was shot using a process that von Trier has called Automavision, which involves the director choosing the best possible fixed camera position and then allowing a computer to randomly choose when to tilt, pan or zoom.
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Cheers! Have fun. Michael
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