20th Century Fox (Masque of the Red Death, based on the Edgar Allan Poe story), Paramount (the supernatural thriller Enoch’s Portal) and New Line Cinema (an as-yet-untitled sci-fi action movie).
Proyas’ current project is the launch this month of mysteryclock.com, which will show his own short films. "I love the format," he says of the Internet. "For many years now, I’ve been shooting a series of short films, and I hadn’t really had any idea of what I was going to do with them."
But at mysteryclock.com, "we’re creating this form called minute movies, which are basically sixty-second films. The Internet is really a fabulous place for all of this stuff—with the download situation, the shorter the better. People can get these little hits of something wonderful."
Proyas is noted for his moody atmospheres, in both his spotwork and his features. "I love cities; I love architecture, spaces and environments," he points out. "One day I want to make a film that’s just environments, and there are no people to get in the way. I think that’s going to be an art house release," he laughs. "Again, short films are a wonderful medium to explore these stupid ideas that I have—I would certainly never imagine a feature film with that concept. I guess, for me, cities are a big thing. I don’t know why I’m obsessed with cities at night; I just am."
For Proyas, postproduction is an integral part of any project. In adidas’ "Microchip" via Leagas Delaney, San Francisco, post techniques create a menacing vision of futuristic urban life. "I’ve never really been able to shoot something and hand it over," he notes. "I love post, and I tend to play with a lot of very simple little techniques in post that most people wouldn’t even know were postproduction techniques." Proyas is mum about what techniques he uses, but he does say, "I’ve always been someone who tried to do as much in post as possible … I love those toys."
But Proyas’ postproduction expertise has made him aware of a serious technology lag between spots and features. "I’ve been pushing to have the technology get to the point where we can scan an entire movie and treat it the way we do commercials," he states. "For many years now in commercials we’ve been able to color and grade films very specifically; you have almost infinite control in the telecine suite these days.
"That just does not exist on the film side of things," he continues, "and it’s enormously frustrating. I mean, you go through this highly technical process, and at the end you’re sitting there with a guy with bits of colored gel, looking at the original negative of the film to try to get the color right. I think that’s kind of absurd. Commercials are way ahead of films in that respect. Films are catching up, but it’s taking a long time."
In dealing with recalcitrant technology, Proyas maintains his tena-city. "I just think you’ve got to keep pushing as far as you can go," he says, "and keep wanting something that’s impossible. And then eventually someone will work out a way of giving it to you."µ
