From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

In 1994, a series of classic works such as "Pulp Fiction", "Forrest Gump", "The Shawshank Redemption", and "True Lies" exploded onto the scene. Hollywood movies reached a new peak, sparking heated discussions worldwide and beginning to transform the film industries of other countries and regions.

As everyone knows, Hollywood's fixed narrative formulas and production models have turned filmmaking into an assembly line operation, with genre films lining up for continuous output. At the same time, Hollywood relies on advanced computer technology to completely change the lens language and expression methods of film.

On the other hand, with the popularization of cameras, more and more people are shouldering cameras and becoming directors. However, experimental shooting methods remain superficial formalisms. As movies become more popular, they gradually lose their function as art to convey thought and value, and gradually degenerate into mediocrity.

In the eyes of four Danish directors, the dazzling use of new technologies is the culprit for the superficiality of film expression.

In March 1995, Lars von Trier, Kristian Levring, Thomas Vinterberg, and Soren Kragh-Jacobsen launched the Dogme 95 movement.

They formulated ten rules for making films, and called them the "Vow of Chastity."

First, filming must be done on location. Sets cannot be built or props used.

Second, the sound must never be produced apart from the images or vice versa.

Third, the camera must be hand-held. Any filmic movement or immobility derives from the human hand. The film must take place here and now.

Fourth, the film must be in colour. Special lighting is not acceptable.

Fifth, optical work and filters are forbidden.

Sixth, the film must not contain superficial action. Murders, weapons, etc. must not occur.

Seventh, temporal and geographical alienation are forbidden.

Eighth, genre movies are not acceptable.

Ninth, the film format must be Academy 35 mm.

Tenth, the director must not be credited.

The four Danish directors believe that in a film world already dominated by money, superficial performances and superficial films are becoming more and more mainstream, which will lead to the disappearance, even the demise, of film artistry. Therefore, filmmaking needs a kind of discipline.

These ten vows can be regarded as a qualitative definition of artistry from the perspective of film production. They attempt to strip away the expressive and sensational shell of film, and express the soul of artistic creation solely through film language and lens language.

After the "Dogme 95" manifesto was announced, it was met with ridicule.

Many people believed that it was not only naive but also foolish. Their actions made the films rough and clumsy, stripped away the charm of light and shadow, and returned to the primitive, which could lead to shoddy productions, which would be a real damage to the film.

In 1998, at the Cannes Film Festival, Dogme No. 1 and No. 2 films were screened, namely Thomas Vinterberg's "The Celebration" and Lars von Trier's "The Idiots."

Among them, "The Celebration" was a hit, winning rave reviews and the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival that year.

The handheld photography and unadorned dim light in the two films became a new technique for expressing conflict, adding a lot of color to the film on an artistic level. The simple performances, rough editing, and real and impactful scenes sparked many controversies.

The brilliant debut of these two films made people realize a new method of artistic exploration. Natural light and handheld photography collided to create completely different chemical reactions, and more and more directors joined their ranks.

The original intention of Dogme 95 was to get rid of the influence of technology and return to the story, characters, and the work of the director, stripping away those fancy gimmicks and returning to the essence of film. But at the same time, this also caused many controversies. Are shaky shots, rough pictures, and chaotic editing the so-called "artistry"? Should the audiovisual language of film become empty talk because it abandons technology?

The answer is no.

"If the development of the film is hindered in order to follow the vow, it is not worth the loss."

Like refusing to eat for fear of choking.

In fact, even the four founding directors have broken their vows to varying degrees, and no one has been able to 100% abide by the original agreement.

According to the official Dogme website, the last Dogme film was shot in 2004.

Lars von Trier is undoubtedly the director who has explored the most in this area. In 2000, with "Dancer in the Dark", he separated the music from the picture. In 2003, with "Dogville", he virtualized the scene. These works were all different creative inspirations produced under the Dogme vows.

Later, no one completely followed the ten vows to shoot Dogme films, but this movement still left its far-reaching influence in the field of film production—

Handheld photography, natural lighting effects, and synchronous sound and picture, these non-technical means of expression have never disappeared, and have even become the means of application for countless commercial films. Dogme 95's thinking and pursuit of art have been integrated into contemporary films in another way.

"Elephant" obviously does not 100% abide by the ten vows and is not considered a Dogme film.

However, it is undeniable that Gus drew inspiration from it, trying to get rid of the influence of technology as much as possible, and using the simplest and most primitive way to capture, record, and present, truly breaking the boundary between reality and fiction, and restoring the scene profile of a tragic event.

At this time, in the roughest and most primitive picture, all expressions are left to the plot and actors, without the need for visual stimulation or dramatic impact.

The point is that when the plot also strips away all fiction and collision, the actors will bear the full responsibility for the film's language and artistic expression.

Difficult, difficult, more difficult than ascending to heaven.

This is also the reason why Gus used real students as actors.

Anson is the only exception.

But now it seems that Gus's adventure has paid off. The primitive shooting method like Dogme 95 has instead refined the simplest and most real side of Anson:

Naturally perfect and unique.

Just look at the reaction on the set to know. These children are all students, real seventeen-year-olds, real teenagers, without any acting experience, all the same age as the victims in Columbine High School. What they see in their eyes is what Gus wants the audience to see.

Perhaps Dogme 95 ultimately failed to change film history like the French New Wave, but there is no doubt that their ideas became an inspiration, some sparks, bringing a new perspective to filmmaking and evolving different sparks in the worlds of different directors.

Gus likes the direction in which filmmaking has developed so far.

Context, very good.

Sure enough, Gus was not disappointed in the next long shot.

"Action!"