Description
Title of Paper: Strategic Minimalism: An Experimental Approach to Shooting a 100-Minute Feature Film in Ten DaysAdditional information
Abstract (293 words):This paper investigates an experimental approach to narrative cinema by developing and producing The Most Dangerous, a 100-minute feature film shot over an intensive ten-day schedule. The film is a case study in embracing constraints to foster creative innovation and embodies a practice-based experiment in minimalist screen storytelling and production strategy.
The Most Dangerous explores the distressing journey of Gene, a retired police inspector in his 70s, and his emotional unravelling under the weight of grief and guilt following the gruesome death of his wife and daughter. Drawing inspiration from Eastern European art-house cinema, the film adopts a minimalist aesthetic, utilizing black-and-white visuals, prolonged takes, and sparse dialogue to mirror Gene's internal turmoil. Designed as an experiment in form and method: a conscious decision to limit cinematic tools—dialogue, coverage, colour, and camera movement—while amplifying emotional and thematic resonance through performance, sound, and uninterrupted observation.
This paper interrogates how embracing constraint as a form of experimentalism fostered creative decision-making across writing, directing, and visual design. Rather than viewing production limitations as obstacles, this methodology repositions them as frameworks for experimentation that inform aesthetic and narrative choices. The film's ten-day shoot was a logistical necessity and a conceptual challenge—a provocation to explore what kind of feature-length storytelling could emerge by embracing all these constraints.
Considering the conference themes, this work invites discussion around how experimental practices can be embedded within Australian screen production education. It advocates for a model of creative risk-taking, where filmmakers and students alike are encouraged to engage in experimental processes—not only in avant-garde terms but within the practical realities of independent filmmaking. The paper positions The Most Dangerous as a case study in screen-based experimental research: a filmmaking mode where production practice becomes a site of inquiry.
| Period | 27 Nov 2025 |
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| Event type | Conference |
| Location | Wollongong, Australia, New South WalesShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |