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By Ally Sinyard · March 15, 2012
Big budget movies are generally always visually impressive, I’ll admit. However, sometimes you cannot beat the raw blood, sweat and tears of a struggling filmmaker’s first low-budget feature.
But first, it’s important for me to specify what I mean by “low budget” in this list. I will be looking at films that were made for under $1 million. The reason that I have chosen to do this is because, otherwise, my selection of films would be endless. Rocky was only made for $1 million and yet won Best Picture, Moon was made for just $5 million and Juno was made for $7 million. In relation to other films in the same genre, all three would be considered low-budget, so a line had to be drawn. The highest budget on this list is $500,000 and the lowest is a mere $6,000.
What the filmmakers below achieved with such small budgets is astounding, and every single one of them could hold their own against the summer blockbusters! Read and be inspired!
10. Super Size Me (2004)
Budget: $65,000
Gross: $29.5 million
Some of you will disagree with the place of this film on the list, and I’m aware that it is certainly not the best documentary ever made. However, documentaries these days are generally made for no less than $1 million and what Morgan Spurlock achieved with this film gives it every right to a position on here! It brought documentaries to the forefront, as they should be! It also brought to the forefront the issues of obesity and the dangers of a fast food and poor nutrition; not just in the US but Worldwide. I was astounded to see a mother and daughter bemoan the fact that obesity “ran in their family” and I wanted to shout at the screen when an overweight teenage girl found the inclusion of skinny girls in magazines “unfair” (when in reality it’s a bit immoral and unrealistic!) But then that’s the former fat girl in my crying out and wanting to drag people off of their sofas and away from the cake. Morgan Spurlock himself is the highlight of Super Size Me. He is a fantastic host throughout, despite the serious hardship he put his body through. He packs in “good information, witty visual aids and expert testimonials” into the 96 minutes, which made it as entertaining a ride as any blockbuster (Manohla Dargis, “Los Angeles Times.)
9. Halloween (1978)
Budget: $320,000
Gross: $60 million
Halloween was not only the film that brought the amazing Jamie Lee Curtis to the public’s attention but also the first of the slasher films of the 70 through 90s (whether or not that’s a good thing is irrelevant!) Filmed in just 21 days in South Pasadena, California, it utilizes little gore, an incredible and yet simple score composed by the director himself and clever lighting to create its atmosphere. To keep costs low, Carpenter used a very sparse crew who took on multiple roles, used few sets and even got local children involved as extras for the trick or treat scenes. Michael Myer’s trademark mask was actually made from a Captain Kirk mask purchased for $1.98! Over 30 years after its release, it remains a classic and a hugely influential film in the world of horror, alongside Romero’s Night of the Living Dead (which was also made for a small budget of $114,000.) It introduced many popular tropes such as a female heroine, killing off wayward teens that abuse sex and drugs early on in the film, and having an original theme song for the killer. If this list proves anything, it is that a good horror does not require a high budget; it just requires skill and intelligence, which Carpenter has endless amounts!
8. Paranormal Activity (2007)
Budget: $15,000
Gross: $193 million
No matter how scared you were by this film, there is no denying the facts. Paranormal Activity is the most profitable film of all time in relation to its budget. Shot in just 7 days in director Oren Peli’s own house, Paranormal Activity is one of the best of the “found footage” horrors. The idea is simple, the execution is simple and yet the psychological thrillers runneth over! One of the reasons it was perhaps so popular in 2007 was because it was so refreshing to see something low-budget after the release of blockbusters such as Pirates of the Caribbean 3, Spiderman 3 and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. We were given two actors and one camera alone in a house. It reminds us of the power of simplicity: “silence and waiting can be more entertaining than frantic fast-cutting and berserk f/x” (RogerEbert.)
7. Once (2006)
Budget: $160,000
Gross: $20 million
Once is often described as a modern day musical. It is the story of two struggling musicians living in Dublin that come together and charm the pants off of us. It’s a beautiful love story that is hugely complimented by its “lo-fi ramshackle nature” (Den of Geek.) Shot in just 17 days, director John Carney kept the budget low by using natural light, recording on the streets without permits, using friends and family in small roles and using long lens cameras to help the untrained actors relax and give more natural performances. Carney also utilizes lengthy tracking shots to add to the realism. This is real Dublin that we are seeing, with actors that have only their natural talent and their own histories to bring to the performance. Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová even became a real couple once they were on the road, promoting the movie. Love stories rarely get more authentic and down-to-earth than that. Michael Philips of the Chicago Tribune appropriately titled Once the “Brief Encounter of the 21stcentury.”
6. The Blair Witch Project (1999)
Budget: $60,000
Gross: $249 million
Despite being the subject of much criticism and many parodies, The Blair Witch Project is the first widely-released film that was marketed mostly on the internet and the first in a now-long line of “found footage” horror movies. However, the main reason this film makes the list is because it is a great example of “how to make something out of nothing” (Janet Maslin, “New York Times.) Virtually all of its power comes from leaving everything to the audience’s imagination. Suspense is a powerful thing! Yes, there is the occasional bit of gore but, for me, the scariest parts of the film are at night; the screen is pretty much pitch black and both the on-screen characters and the audience are bracing themselves for the inevitable torment of the night. Knowing the reality of the films production certainly takes the fear out of it though! Once the actors had been sent off alone into the woods with clues and cues scattered about in different locations and a small script to go by, the filmmakers then came back at night to torment them. Scares don’t come more naturally than that!
5. Clerks (1994)
Budget: $15,000
Gross: $3 million
Clerks has got to be not just one of the greatest low-budget films but also one of the most important films of the 1990s. We are being given a brand new look at a new generation: the “over educated under motivated TV saturated nation of ne’er do wells and never weres.” (Brad Laidman, “Film Threat”) Yes, the majority of the movie is just two guys talking, but it is incredibly engaging and “written to perfection” with observations and a kind of quotability that could match Tarantino (Andrew Scholz, “Room 101”). The naturalism of the film also has the advantage of allowing the audience to come closer and relate more easily. In terms of production, Kevin Smith raised the money by selling a large proportion of his comic book collection, maxing out credit cards and dipping into his college education fund. He also shot the film in the Quick Stop convenience store that he actually worked in, and was only allowed to film out-of-hours (hence the running jokes about the shutters being down etc.) Working by day and shooting by night meant that he was often running on an hour’s sleep, which is perhaps why he decided to be Silent Bob. The acting might be a little iffy all round, but you just cannot fault that writing!
4. Primer (2004)
Budget: $7,000
Gross: $400,000
When I asked a friend about Primer, they informed me that the plot is often explained by diagram, so I knew from the start that it was going to be something pretty special! To this day I’m still not 100% sure what went on, but for $7,000 I was blown away. Primer was filmed in 5 weeks and took over 2 years to post-produce. To save money, director Shane Carruth not only took on a crew of just 4 other people but also acted as writer, producer, cinematographer, editor and score composer. Oh and he also stars as Aaron. Oh and he’s a math graduate and a former engineer. A man of many talents! He even shot the film using a 1:1 shooting ratio, so every single bit of film in the shot ends up being in the final cut. Tense! Primer is so successful because it is a film that you cannot leave alone. It positively demands repeat viewings. However, where the plot is so incredibly spectacular, the production itself is relatively simple and neat. It never looks cheap “because every shot looks as it must look” (Roger Ebert.)
3. Monsters (2010)
Budget: $500,000
Gross: $4 million
The most recently made movie on the list, Monsters is one of the most important UK films to have come out in recent years. It’s a very refreshing change from the gritty crime films and social commentaries of the last few decades! Proving that, like horror, sci-fi does not necessarily require a large budget, of its $500,000, only $15,000 of that was actually used on filming equipment. Director Gareth Edwards created all the special effects himself using simple off-the-shelf software like Adobe, ZBrush and Autodesk 3ds Max…and he did this in his bedroom! Using simple shooting techniques like swapping a dolly for sticking the camera out of a moving van, Edwards gives the film an almost documentary-like feel, all the while creating a genre mash of sci-fi, road movie, love story and monster movie! “An amazing achievement for a ‘first-time’ filmmaker” (Dan Jolin, “Empire Magazine.”)
2. Eraserhead (1977)
Budget: $10,000
Gross: $7 million at the box office
Trying to fund a film yourself is hard, hard work, but in the case of Eraserhead, having absolutely zero outside influence from Producer and Studio heads meant that Lynch could create such an untouched, sublime and unique vision, rich in textures of damp, dust, metal, wood and ooooooze. With a script of only 21 pages and Lynch’s very minimal experience as a director, it wasn’t really surprising that no-one was willing to back him! However, he eventually received funding from an AFI grant and with a little help from family and friends. Eraserhead was filmed intermittently from 1971 through to 1976, so what you get is no half-hearted piece of work! And hard work does not often go without reward! The film became a legacy. Incredibly, Lynch was not even 30 yet! Whether you love the film or are absolutely nauseated by it, you cannot deny the early genius being displayed here!
1. Following (1998)
Budget: $6,000
Gross: $48,000
Christopher Nolan’s neo-noir debut is the film with the smallest budget on the list. Like some of the other debuts on this list, it contains promises of things to come, such as the use of non-linear storytelling. Even at this time, Nolan showed a “natural talent for a fluent handheld aesthetic” (David Thompson, “Sight and Sound.”) Set on the streets of London, Following is about a young man who finds himself drawn into a criminal underworld after he develops an interest for following strangers around. The little geek within me was also excited to discover that one of the lead characters is called Cobb! (Dicaprio’s character in Inception, for the not-so-geeky.) The reason I have placed this film at the top of the list is because it is not entirely incongruous to his more recent work. Of course, the difference in production quality is evident but the calibre of the film that comes from such a small budget is astounding! To keep costs down, Nolan made sure that scenes were heavily rehearsed so that only one or two takes were needed, thus economizing the film stock, which was the movie’s greatest expense. He used no professional lighting equipment and also acted as photographer, editor and producer! Long Live the Nolan!