To be honest, we were quite surprised when we found out that the film Badang produced by the famous local millionaire Dato Aliff Syukri had a budget of 4,93,716.32$ and what is sadder, the film’s profit collection after the end of the screening period was only 16,157.99$ more.
Where did the movie go wrong? It’s too long for us to comment on where the movie went wrong. The use of unattractive trailers, the selection of posters that are seen as a bit less careful as well as the selection of the main actor who has not yet been named as a film actor, is seen as the main obstacle for people to go to the cinema. For those who went to the cinema to watch the movie Badang, it is better that we keep what we feel about Badang until we die.
With a budget of 4,93,716.32$, the movie Badang should be able to work better. There have been many low-budget films produced that deserve to be called classic films. Here are 5 films that have a lower budget than Badang films that prove that budget is not an obstacle to making quality films.
1. Paranormal Activity
The film ‘Paranormal Activity’ started a new trend in film technique. Just by using one camera, all actions are recorded directly without camera movement. Using a relatively simple story premise, the audience of this film is taken along all kinds of disturbances that disturb the couple who have just moved into the house. Despite having very minimal filming, this film still provides a horror experience that is difficult for the audience to forget, because the visual impact remains without the need for complex visuals like other horror films.
Total budget: $15,000
Total collection: $193 million worldwide
2. The Blair Witch Project
The horror films that popularized this hand-held filmmaking technique were among the earliest pioneers of successful viral marketing strategies, in an era where the word viral itself was not yet popular. Telling the story of several individuals who enter the forest to study for themselves the legend of a witch who is said to have lived in the forest, this film ends with many question marks. Maybe this movie gimmick has been used many times by now, but for 1999, what the Blair Witch Project presented was something pretty exciting.
Total budget: $200,000–500,000
Total collection: $248.6 million
3. Napoleon Dynamite
Famous for the budget constraints that greatly limited the production, so much so that film editing had to be done using ordinary computers, the film Napoleon Dynamite exploded and was recognized as one of the films that had the greatest impact on the Hollywood film industry. To this day, its lead actor Jon Heder is associated with the film and the comedy featured in the film, often re-enacted and re-enacted. Until now the payment of only 897.67$ received by Jon Heder to act in this film is said to be a reference for new actors.
Total budget: $400,000
Total collection: $46.1 million
4. El Mariachi
Being the first film directed by the legendary director Robert Rodriguez, El Mariachi was actually made for Mexican audiences only. Because of that, the film was produced with only a budget of 6,126.57$ before being bought by Columbia Pictures for distribution in the United States. For those interested in learning about low-budget filmmaking, read about this filmmaking story. There was no camera crew appointed, the camera was moved with wheelchairs and most importantly, for lighting – they had to use table lamps instead.
Total budget: Production: $7,225 Post-production: $200,000
Total collection: $2 million
5. Bronson
This 2008 film starring Tom Hardy tells the story of a young man who is incarcerated but is often kept in solitary confinement, causing him to have another identity similar to Charles Bronson, one of Britain’s most notorious criminals. Only having a budget of 36,355.47$ for the entire production, the filmmakers had to use an old mansion as a temporary studio to display all the backgrounds of the film.
Total budget: 36,355.47$
Total collection: 19,27,737.82$
Trivia – If the production costs of these five films are added up, the cost required to produce the five films we listed above amounts to 4,71,274.67$. This is something we only realized after we finished writing this article.