Directed by Opendox
In 2012, we set out to the Texas high desert plains to make our first film together, a short about Marfa. Since then we’ve made three feature-length documentaries, as well as a number of short films and commissions. Our primary focus has been stories about “creative underdogs”—artists, musicians, and designers who create in order to reflect on, escape from, or change society. One thing all of our projects have in common is that they wouldn’t exist without our collaboration: beyond the sum of our individual contributions.
Over the last decade, we’ve grown increasingly frustrated with our industry’s hierarchical thinking regarding credits, particularly its unwavering focus on the Director at the expense of other crucial roles. As Opendox celebrates its tenth anniversary, we’ve decided to change how we define the director’s role in our projects. We love making films. We value all aspects of the process—the crucial research phase, connecting with collaborators, defining a theme or concept, the long days on location, the many months in the edit room, and the thrill when it all starts to come together. Rather than the standard view of filmmaking as a top-down, hierarchical endeavor, we think of filmmaking as an iterative process, where all phases and roles interact with, impact, and enhance each other, each vital to the outcome. It never feels quite right that when the film is finally done and out in the world, the singular “director” is the only person recognized by the media, festivals and venues. Not only is it reductive, it feels like a missed opportunity.
Given that our work champions creativity and challenges hegemony, so too should the way we present our work. While we can’t change the industry’s value system, we can shift the focus for ourselves and highlight the collective work that makes our films possible.
The films we make together will now be “Directed by Opendox.”
/ Opendox
(Petter Ringbom & Marquise Stillwell)