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MillimeterDarren Aronofsky: Director
Nov 1, 1998 12:00 PM, Michael Goldman
Indie director Darren Aronofsky won a special directing award this year at the Sundance Film Festival for his first film, (Pi), which he made on a budget of $60,000. He is currently in preproduction on his next project, Requiem for a Dream, which is based on a Hubert Selby Jr. novel.
Digital technology is changing everything and nothing when it comes to the creation of low-budget, independent films, says indie director Darren Aronofsky.
"In a sense, no matter the tools, the essential core of any film is still the story and the performance of the actors on screen," says Aronofsky, whose recent low-budget project, Pi, was a critical hit. "New technology doesn't change that truth at all. On the other hand, low-budget films can now feature major visual effects, thanks to computers. That is a big change, because it means that cutting-edge tools are no longer exclusive to the big studios and visual effects houses. They will still R&D such tools, but indie filmmakers now have a chance to re-invent themin more intelligent ways to light up low-budget films. Eventually, I expect you will see big-time effects in low-cost, indie films and possibly a greater fusion between traditional techniques and digital techniques than in the big, studio films."
In the black-and-white Pi, for instance, Aronofsky created "four or five minutes" worth of digital sequences in a film made for $60,000. "We did some very funky titles using a simple Macintosh," he points out. "We can now do extensive animation in these types of films, and that's very exciting."
Aronofsky predicts that such developments, made possible by recent technological breakthroughs, will give indie directors a powerful, new weapon in the coming decades that will allow them to push new limits and try new things. "I would not have been able to say that even a couple of years ago."
Continue the discussion on “Crosstalk” the Millimeter Forum.
