Cave of Forgotten Dreams
Encyclopedia
Cave of Forgotten Dreams is a 2010 3-D
documentary film by Werner Herzog
, about the Chauvet Cave
in southern France. The film premiered at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival
and consists of footage filmed inside the cave as well as interviews with various scientists and historians. The film also includes footage of the nearby Pont d'Arc
natural bridge.
article "First Impressions". Thurman is listed as one of the co-producers of the film.
The cave is carefully preserved and the general public is not allowed to enter. Herzog received special permission from the French Minister of Culture
to film inside the cave.
Having received permission, Herzog nonetheless had to film under heavy restrictions. All people authorized to enter must wear special suits and shoes that have had no contact with the exterior. Also, because of near-toxic levels of radon
and carbon dioxide
, nobody can stay in the cave for more than a few hours per day.
Herzog was allowed to have only three people with him in the cave: the cinematographer Peter Zeitlinger
, a sound recorder, and an assistant. Herzog himself worked the lights. The crew was allowed to use only battery-powered equipment they could carry into the cave themselves, and only lights that gave off no excess heat. The 3-D cameras were custom-built for the production, and were often assembled inside the cave itself. Herzog was allowed six shooting days of four hours each. The crew could not touch any part of the cave's wall or floor, and were confined to a 2 foot (0.6096 m) walkway.
The production encountered several technical difficulties in working with the 3-D cameras in a documentary setting. At the time of production, 3-D films were typically shot on stages with heavy use of digital manipulation. Often, foreground and background elements would be shot separately and digitally composited into the finished shot. Techniques for 3-D filmmaking in natural environments with a single camera and no compositing were largely undeveloped, and had to be worked out experimentally by the crew in post-production.
Before production of Cave of Forgotten Dreams, Herzog was skeptical of the artistic value of 3-D filmmaking, and had only seen one 3-D film (James Cameron's Avatar). Herzog still believes that 3-D is not suited for general use in cinema, but used it in Cave to help "capture the intentions of the painters", who incorporated the wall's subtle bulges and contours into their art.
The idea to use a 3-D camera for the film was first suggested by Zeitlinger, who had imagined before ever entering the cave that 3-D might be appropriate to capture the contours of the walls. Herzog dismissed the idea, believing 3-D to be (in Zeitlinger's words) "a gimmick of the commercial cinema". After visiting the cave, however, Herzog immediately decided that the film must be shot in 3-D.
After the production, Herzog stated that he had no plans to use 3-D again.
. It was finished at the last minute, with only 30 minutes of footage completed on the Wednesday before its showing. It was the first 3-D film to screen at the festival's Bell Lightbox
theatre, and the film projectors jammed only 5 minutes from the end, interrupting its debut.
Two days later, IFC Films
announced that it had secured the rights to all US distribution of the film in a "mid-six-figure deal". Television rights had already been owned by the History Channel, who partially financed the film's production.
After the film's premiere, Herzog was asked why the French Ministry of Culture, who sponsored the film, did not require its premiere to be in France. Herzog replied, "They didn’t know it was finished".
In January 2011, a trailer for Cave was released which advertised a release date of Spring 2011. It premiered in theaters in the United Kingdom on March 25, 2011. Also in March a second trailer was released for US distribution, which announced a US release date of April 29, 2011.
The film opened on April 29, 2011, shown in the US in five theaters in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. The ticket sales averaged $25,500 per theater for the opening weekend, which was Herzog's best-ever per theater opening, and the highest per theater average of any film in the US for the weekend.
As of June 12, 2011, the film had grossed $3.7 million, making it the highest-grossing independently released documentary of 2011, earning over 5 times more than the second-place film, The Last Lions
.
3-D film
A 3-D film or S3D film is a motion picture that enhances the illusion of depth perception...
documentary film by Werner Herzog
Werner Herzog
Werner Herzog Stipetić , known as Werner Herzog, is a German film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, and opera director.He is often considered as one of the greatest figures of the New German Cinema, along with Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Margarethe von Trotta, Volker Schlöndorff, Werner...
, about the Chauvet Cave
Chauvet Cave
The Chauvet-Pont-d'Arc Cave is a cave in the Ardèche department of southern France that contains the earliest known cave paintings, as well as other evidence of Upper Paleolithic life. It is located near the commune of Vallon-Pont-d'Arc on a limestone cliff above the former bed of the Ardèche River...
in southern France. The film premiered at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival
2010 Toronto International Film Festival
The 35th annual Toronto International Film Festival, was held in Toronto, Ontario, Canada between September 9 and September 19, 2010. The opening night gala presented Score: A Hockey Musical, a Canadian comedy-drama musical film. Last Night closed the festival on September 19.2010 TIFF included...
and consists of footage filmed inside the cave as well as interviews with various scientists and historians. The film also includes footage of the nearby Pont d'Arc
Pont d'Arc
The Pont d'Arc is a large natural bridge, located in the Ardèche département in the south of France, near the town of Vallon-Pont-d'Arc....
natural bridge.
Production
Herzog's interest in the Chauvet cave was prompted by Judith Thurman's New YorkerThe New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
article "First Impressions". Thurman is listed as one of the co-producers of the film.
The cave is carefully preserved and the general public is not allowed to enter. Herzog received special permission from the French Minister of Culture
Minister of Culture (France)
The Minister of Culture is, in the Government of France, the cabinet member in charge of national museums and monuments; promoting and protecting the arts in France and abroad; and managing the national archives and regional "maisons de culture"...
to film inside the cave.
Having received permission, Herzog nonetheless had to film under heavy restrictions. All people authorized to enter must wear special suits and shoes that have had no contact with the exterior. Also, because of near-toxic levels of radon
Radon
Radon is a chemical element with symbol Rn and atomic number 86. It is a radioactive, colorless, odorless, tasteless noble gas, occurring naturally as the decay product of uranium or thorium. Its most stable isotope, 222Rn, has a half-life of 3.8 days...
and carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
, nobody can stay in the cave for more than a few hours per day.
Herzog was allowed to have only three people with him in the cave: the cinematographer Peter Zeitlinger
Peter Zeitlinger
Peter Zeitlinger is an Austrian cinematographer, who has worked with the director Werner Herzog since 1995. The film Encounters at the End of the World was nominated for the Academy Award 2009. Peter Zeitlinger studied from 1980 - 1987 at the University of Music and Performing Arts, Vienna...
, a sound recorder, and an assistant. Herzog himself worked the lights. The crew was allowed to use only battery-powered equipment they could carry into the cave themselves, and only lights that gave off no excess heat. The 3-D cameras were custom-built for the production, and were often assembled inside the cave itself. Herzog was allowed six shooting days of four hours each. The crew could not touch any part of the cave's wall or floor, and were confined to a 2 foot (0.6096 m) walkway.
The production encountered several technical difficulties in working with the 3-D cameras in a documentary setting. At the time of production, 3-D films were typically shot on stages with heavy use of digital manipulation. Often, foreground and background elements would be shot separately and digitally composited into the finished shot. Techniques for 3-D filmmaking in natural environments with a single camera and no compositing were largely undeveloped, and had to be worked out experimentally by the crew in post-production.
Before production of Cave of Forgotten Dreams, Herzog was skeptical of the artistic value of 3-D filmmaking, and had only seen one 3-D film (James Cameron's Avatar). Herzog still believes that 3-D is not suited for general use in cinema, but used it in Cave to help "capture the intentions of the painters", who incorporated the wall's subtle bulges and contours into their art.
The idea to use a 3-D camera for the film was first suggested by Zeitlinger, who had imagined before ever entering the cave that 3-D might be appropriate to capture the contours of the walls. Herzog dismissed the idea, believing 3-D to be (in Zeitlinger's words) "a gimmick of the commercial cinema". After visiting the cave, however, Herzog immediately decided that the film must be shot in 3-D.
After the production, Herzog stated that he had no plans to use 3-D again.
Release
The film had its debut on September 13, 2010, at the Toronto International Film FestivalToronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
. It was finished at the last minute, with only 30 minutes of footage completed on the Wednesday before its showing. It was the first 3-D film to screen at the festival's Bell Lightbox
Bell Lightbox
The TIFF Bell Lightbox & Festival Tower is a cultural centre and skyscraper in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was developed by The Daniels Corporation and designed by Toronto-based architectural firm Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects...
theatre, and the film projectors jammed only 5 minutes from the end, interrupting its debut.
Two days later, IFC Films
IFC Films
IFC Films is an American film distribution company based in New York, owned by AMC Networks. It distributes independent films and documentaries under the IFC Films, Sundance Selects and IFC Midnight. It operates the IFC Center....
announced that it had secured the rights to all US distribution of the film in a "mid-six-figure deal". Television rights had already been owned by the History Channel, who partially financed the film's production.
After the film's premiere, Herzog was asked why the French Ministry of Culture, who sponsored the film, did not require its premiere to be in France. Herzog replied, "They didn’t know it was finished".
In January 2011, a trailer for Cave was released which advertised a release date of Spring 2011. It premiered in theaters in the United Kingdom on March 25, 2011. Also in March a second trailer was released for US distribution, which announced a US release date of April 29, 2011.
The film opened on April 29, 2011, shown in the US in five theaters in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles. The ticket sales averaged $25,500 per theater for the opening weekend, which was Herzog's best-ever per theater opening, and the highest per theater average of any film in the US for the weekend.
As of June 12, 2011, the film had grossed $3.7 million, making it the highest-grossing independently released documentary of 2011, earning over 5 times more than the second-place film, The Last Lions
The Last Lions
The Last Lions is a 2011 American documentary film by National Geographic, videotaped and directed by Dereck and Beverly Joubert. The film premiered at the Palm Springs International Film Festival in January 2011 and was released in select theaters on February 18, 2011...
.