“I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched c-beams glitter in the dark near the Tanhauser Gate. All those … moments will be lost in time, like tears…in rain. Time to die.” - Roy Batty, Blade Runner

Many movies nowadays are accompanied by ‘Making-of’ documentaries. They are often released as part of the marketing campaign the dvd release. In some cases, however, extended making-of’s are produced years after the film, as a eulogy of sorts. They present a more objective and detailed look, and aren’t marred by marketing goals, or time constraints.

I’m the odd kind of person who can be considered a fan of this ‘Making-of’ genre. In fact, I often enjoy these documentaries more than the actual movie. For example, The ‘The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy, each movie more than three hours long, was a bit too lengthy for my tastes. I did, however, watch the 6+ hours of documentary on each disc. Repeatedly. Crazy? Definitely! I make no apologies.

With this in mind, imagine my recent excitement when I found a documentary about one of my favorite films, ‘Blade Runner’. It’s called On the Edge of Blade Runner (google video) and gives a very detailed account of how the film was made, and the difficulties the creators faced. Watching it reminded me why I’m such a ‘Making-of’ fan.

The documentary accentuates the incredible complexity that goes into making such a film, and the creative efforts of the different individuals involved. There’s the actors who worked under incredible hardship, the artists who poured hours of time into the tiniest details of the sets and special effects, the writes who had to put their vision on paper and constantly rewrite it, and finally, the director who has to bring this all together to form one cohesive whole. He has to manage not only the (often conflicting) creative input, but also some financial details, the time-frame and the oh-so-touchy creative individuals working under him.

It’s fascinating to see how Ridley Scott handles this in the course of creating Blade Runner. He spends seven months just writing the script, and is controlling to the point where he re-shoots scenes because of a shadow he doesn’t like. On the other hand, he lets go, and gives one actor the freedom to use lines he had written himself (quoted at the beginning of this article). These lines then turn out the be the most memorable of the entire film.

What fascinates me most is how art apparently can, and maybe often must be, managed, delegated, shared, and controlled. It’s a far cry from the image of the lone artist working to materialize on his vision in complete solitude. Or is it?

In the end, it is still the director, Ridley Scott who chooses the talent, controls every detail, and decides what does and doesn’t happen. In a way, the people working under him are the equivalent of a painter’s brushes, or a sculptor’s chisel. And maybe that’s why these great people, these actors, designers, and illustrators, when working under lesser directors, aren’t as impressive, and sometimes actually quite bad.

Maybe this is the main reason why I love these documentaries. I’m given a practical insight into how some kinds of art are actually created and it makes me pause and think about my vision on creativity, and art. I’m often paralyzed by the thought that anything ‘artistic’ I do should be isolated, individual, and completely unique. I forget that creativity, while often very individual, can also be a channeled, bundled, collective effort, and is always based on ‘prior art’.

And, finally, I realize that there’s a ‘director’ overseeing all my creative endeavors, and I realize the need to work with him, in some way, to fit within this huge collective, universal art project.

Links:
Google video: On the Edge of Blade Runner

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