Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014)

Timing: 2:0 (120 min)

7.444/10
13501

7.664/10
242176

7.7/10
696000

All about film

Video 14

Photo 137

Actors and characters

Release date

2014-10-17

Country

United States

Production

TSG Entertainment, New Regency Pictures, M Productions, Le Grisbi Productions, Worldview Entertainment

Genre

Drama, Comedy

Budget

$18 000 000

Revenue

$103 215 094

Website

https://www.searchlightpictures.com/birdman

Director

Alejandro González Iñárritu

Actors

Michael Keaton, Emma Stone, Zach Galifianakis, Edward Norton, Andrea Riseborough, Naomi Watts, Amy Ryan, Lindsay Duncan, Merritt Wever, Jeremy Shamos
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Alejandro González Iñárritu, Armando Bo

Producer

Alejandro González Iñárritu, Arnon Milchan, James W. Skotchdopole, John Lesher, Molly Conners, Christopher Woodrow, Sarah E. Johnson

Operator

Emmanuel Lubezki

Composer

Antonio Sánchez

Artist

Chris Shriver, David Meyer

Audition

Francine Maisler

Editing

Stephen Mirrione, Douglas Crise
All team (164)

• In the scene where Michael Keaton's character is standing on the roof, a poster for Zack Snyder's "Man of Steel" (2013) can be seen in the distance.
• The film was shot in less than a month.
• Most of the filming took place in the St. James Theatre on Broadway – Michael Keaton and the other actors had to adapt to Alejandro González Iñárritu's strict filming style, as they were required to memorize up to 15 pages of dialogue for scenes that were shot in one take.
• The film's score by composer Antonio Sánchez, performed almost entirely on percussion instruments, was disqualified from Oscar consideration.
• The book Mike Shiner (Edward Norton) is reading in the tanning booth when he encounters Riggan Thomson (Michael Keaton) is a collection of stories, "Labyrinths," by Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges.
• Emma Stone filmed "Birdman" (2014) during a break from filming "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" (2014), which was also being shot in New York.
• During an interview in the dressing room with Riggan (Michael Keaton), he states that he hasn't played Birdman since 1992. That same year, "Batman Returns" (1992) was released – the last Batman film in which Michael Keaton starred.
• The scene where Riggan walks through Times Square in his underwear was shot in four takes, beginning at 8:30 PM. Earlier was poorly lit, and later the crowd would have begun to disperse. The crew was kept minimal to avoid attracting attention. Keaton's movement was accompanied only by four people: cinematographer Lubezki, the focus puller, the boom operator, and a digital imaging technician. Eight production assistants worked on crowd control. Iñárritu was nearby; for the first two takes, he filmed Keaton on his smartphone. The footage he captured was used in the following scene, when Emma Stone watches the incident on a smartphone via YouTube. To divert attention from the camera, Iñárritu hired a group of street drummers who danced and played, attracting the attention of tourists in the square.
• At 00:20:16 of the film, when Riggan says "great" and smiles, Jake says "stop grinning, you're scaring me" – this is a reference to the movie "Beetlejuice" (1988), which starred Michael Keaton.
• The same girl appears multiple times in the shot before the premiere: the first time she is walking with her friend, and the second time - with a guy.
• In the first scene on the roof, Mike Shiner is smoking an endless cigarette: throughout the entire scene, the ember doesn't advance even a millimeter.
• In the scene where Michael Keaton's character stands on the roof, a poster for Zack Snyder's “Man of Steel” (2013) can be seen in the distance.
• Before filming began, Alejandro González Iñárritu sent the actors a photo of Philippe Petit walking a tightrope between the Twin Towers. He told them, “Guys, this is the movie we’re making. If we fall, we’re finished.”
• The book Mike Shiner (Edward Norton) is reading in the tanning salon when he encounters Riggan Thomson (Michael Keaton) is a collection of stories, "Labyrinths," by Argentinian writer Jorge Luis Borges.
• Emma Stone filmed "Birdman" (2014) during a break from filming "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" (2014), which was also taking place in New York.
• During an interview in Riggan's (Michael Keaton) dressing room, he states that he hasn't played Birdman since 1992. The same year saw the release of "Batman Returns" (1992) – the last Batman film in which Michael Keaton starred.
• At 00:20:16 of the film, when Riggan says “great” and smiles, Jake says “stop grinning, you’re scaring me” – this is a reference to the film “Beetlejuice” (1988), which starred Michael Keaton.