Private Project

THE CAVE by Sylvia Toy

THE CAVE by Sylvia Toy is a performance art movie movie about a small group of Paleolithic hunter-gatherers facing dying out because of its low birth rate and high child mortality rate.

In using The Method to create character and story, I have walked in my characters’ footsteps. My projects have 3 phases: 1) story and character development through acting improvisation; 2) scene rehearsal and production design; 3) production with continuity.

Original sound by Sylvia Toy.

  • Sylvia Toy St. Louis
    Director
  • Sylvia Toy St. Louis
    Sound Design
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Short, Other
  • Genres:
    Arthouse, Performance Art
  • Runtime:
    39 minutes 16 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    September 17, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    3,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director - Sylvia Toy St. Louis
Director Statement

THE CAVE is a silent movie. After exploring its characters and their stories for a year; after researching human social evolution and Theory of Mind; and after learning so well how to light my apartment covered floor to ceiling in black felt that for months I often felt like I was living with my characters in their cave home – after all that it was clear to me that Paleolithic humans were human like we are human. I realized that if I was true to my acting training and experience as well as my basic empathy, THE CAVE characters didn't need dialogue any more than Lon Chaney or Louise Brooks needed to be heard aloud in order to be perfectly understood.