Confessions of a Box Man

Inspired by Kobo Abe's novel The Box Man, Confessions of a Box Man tells the story of Thomas Zielinski: a journalist researching a group of men who leave society behind for life inside a cardboard box. Mistaken for common street trash, the Box Men move about almost invisibly, wearing only boxes and rubber boots and observing the world through small, mail slot-like openings on their cardboard homes. After landing an interview with a former Box Man, Thomas learns about their obsessions with womens’ legs, which Box Men see as objects of erotic and spiritual worship. Seduced by the man’s strange tales, Thomas soon finds himself possessed by urges he can no longer repress - all mirrored in the film by micro-documentaries that interrupt and comment on the Box Men. Subjects include the invention of cardboard, the erotic nature of legs, boxes and Box Men in history. By mixing fiction and reality, Confessions of a Box Man presents an imaginative world where perverse forms of male desire can only lead to tragedy or transformation.

  • Mika Johnson
    Director
  • Mika Johnson
    Writer
  • Marek Zelinka
    Key Cast
    "Thomas"
  • Ozcar Burfitt
    Key Cast
    "A"
  • Mantas Ceskauskas
    Key Cast
    "Box Man"
  • Lucie Končková
    Key Cast
    "Nurse"
  • David Woodard
    Key Cast
    "Dr. Albert Woodard"
  • Eva Larvoire
    Key Cast
    "Editor"
  • Nicholas Bernard
    Key Cast
    "Publisher"
  • Ondřej Penička
    Key Cast
    "Father Andy"
  • Pathomwat Wansukprasert
    Key Cast
    "Box Man in "The Case of A""
  • Peter Hosking
    Key Cast
    "Psychotherapist"
  • Julie Josephson
    Key Cast
    "Narrator"
  • Julian M. Grünthal
    Director of Photography
  • Xoaher Musavvir
    Additional Photography
  • Ryan Lester
    Origianl Score
  • Eli Stine
    Sound Design
  • Mika Johnson
    Editor
  • Inge Kempe
    Editor
  • Martin Schumet
    Editor
  • Sunny Kurapati
    Colorist
  • Mena Assad
    Title Design
  • David Woodard
    Additional Concepts, Stories, and Texts
  • Elvar Már Theodórsson
    Sound
  • Yiannis Lamprou
    Sound
  • Martin Schumet
    Sound
  • Mika Johnson
    Art Director
  • Karoline Vielemeyer
    Art Director
  • Emily Rogers
    Post Supervisor
  • Martin Raiman
    Post-Production Mastering
  • Steve Reverand
    Post-Production Mastering
  • Lukasz Krawczyk
    Post-Production Mastering
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Feature
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 24 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    August 29, 2019
  • Production Budget:
    30,000 EUR
  • Country of Origin:
    Czech Republic
  • Country of Filming:
    Czech Republic
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Ursa, Blackmagic pocket, super 8
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.35
  • Film Color:
    Black & White and Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Mika Johnson

Mika Johnson is a multimedia artist who directs XR projects,
fiction and documentary films, music videos, and commercials. His most recent projects include Ilios - a VR point cloud poem about Covid-19 made in collaboration with Marcel Karnapke - and The Republic of Dreams, which uses sonic experiences to adapt the literary works of Bruno Schulz. Other projects include The Infinite Library, a VR piece based on expanding definitions of the world's libraries, and VRwandlung: a VR adaptation of Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis. Long-term projects include The Amerikans—a web series featuring 15 short documentaries—and his recently completed debut feature: Confessions of a Box Man, the first part in a trilogy. Along with exhibiting his work internationally, Johnson presents, lectures, and teaches workshops worldwide. He is the cofounder of the Prague based-production company Daisy with Rider and a member of the New York City based trio MomenTech.

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