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Reinventing Silent Movies

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DJII

Have you ever wondered if the format of silent films would work in today's film era? How could it? With so many movies, especially big budgeted blockbusters, filmmakers focus on every minute detail of sound effects and ADR and audiences are just bombarded with these intense, chest rattling noises, that, as awesome as they are, tend to be overwhelming, especially when it's all that noise but the movie as a whole doesn't even deliver.

I think it's time we've taking a step back, get back to basics or at least bring that old style of silent cinema back into the public eye. But I'm not just talking about making traditional styled silent movies, because we've seen that done; films that are like throwbacks, showcasing the lifestyles of the early 1920's. What I'm talking about is a modern twist on silent films, using modern filming techniques, showcasing today's culture and lifestyles, and have it backed by modern styled music. I've always felt that there was an element missing in a lot of modern films, and that's the poetic quality. It's not for everybody, but for the people who like a really good, in depth movie, it seems like a modern silent film would be what the these people were waiting for, because not only would it showcase a new style of filming not everybody is familiar with, but it would require the audiences participation in storytelling.

Now I don't know about you, but I know I feel extremely accomplished when I finish a good book. Imagine that epic feeling after delving into the story of a modern silent film. This is what I'm proposing. Right now, I'm working on funding a modern silent horror/thriller called "Oh, These Emeralds!" that follows two troubled people who fall in love in the Emerald City (Seattle). The main goal is to, as I've stated before, reinvent this long lost, or rather less appreciate, art form that is the silent movie and hopefully carve out a path for a new genre of filmmaking. We need all the help we can get to make this an awesome movie making experience. This is something that's definitely never been done before. Check out our Kickstarter campaign page and help fund this potentially groundbreaking idea!!

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/djii/oh-these-emeralds
 
Good luck with your project. An inspiration for you might be a French film called The Artist it won best Actor and Best Picture as a silent B&W Film in 2011.
 
To be honest, I'm more than a little sceptical of your idea. You talk of a missing element and suggest the cure for this would be missing another, more expected element?

I'm having difficulty appreciating how your film would be different to a music video or something like Koyaanisqatsi. While you may be able to create something visually artistic/poetic, you are going to struggle with involving the audience and struggle even more when it comes to selling/marketing your film. High quality sound is and has been for decades an accepted and expected part of the theatrical feature experience for the general public. Removing such a major part of the expected experience is hugely risky and most likely to end in disappointment (for everyone).

Obviously you're going to take what I say (as a sound guy) with a pinch of salt. I'm not saying what you're suggesting definitely won't work but you are going to need to come up with something highly innovative and very, very special and, you'll need to look extremely carefully at your potential market, if you are hoping for any sort of commercial return/success from your film.

G
 
Just for your information, so-called "silent" films were really films without audible dialog. In the major movie houses of the Teens and Twenties there were up to a dozen (sometimes more) people behind the screen performing sound effects and Foley (although it wasn't called "Foley" until the 1940's).

You may find this article to be of interest:

http://web.archive.org/web/20031008142152/http://www.windworld.com/emi/articles/soundeffects.htm

And, just for fun, an aunt of my paternal grandfather was one of those sound effects people during the silent film era. Here's her picture:

l.jpg
 
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