New parents Lilly and Leon say on their website, Cardboard Box Office, that the idea for a family project was the result of accumulating two things: many cardboard boxes ("due to moving") and one small baby named Orson ("due to giving birth").
Please allow us to add a few more items to that list: inspiration, a wicked sense of humor and an apparently exceptional DVD collection.
As Lilly explained over e-mail, the boxes were collected over the course of two big moves -- one from Wellington, New Zealand to Melbourne, Australia in 2012 and another from Melbourne to Sydney, two months ago. Inspiration struck the couple, who both held day jobs in book publishing, during the challenging early days of parenthood. "We wanted to create a one-off family photo depicting our new messy and sleep-deprived lives," she said. The result was "The Life Domestic," a scene from The Life Aquatic.
The Life Domestic; Film: The Life Aquatic
It was so well-received that the couple decided to keep at it. "Knowing that we had a lot of weekends at home and a stockpile of supplies we thought, why not," Lilly said, explaining that each scene takes around four to five hours to create on a Saturday afternoon.
"Leon 'builds' a rough idea of the set in his head during the week but sometimes things don't quite work out... Temple of Doom was a bit of nightmare as we had to disassemble Orson's cot, place it in the hallway, and then reassemble it. Then vice-versa."
Cradle of Doom; Film: Temple of Doom
As for Orson, he finds the whole thing quite fascinating. Lilly says, "He loves crawling through the sets, yabbering away to himself while ripping the side off a makeshift vehicle or whatever he can get his hands on."
'Papa La Vista, Baby'; Film: Terminator
Now, Lilly, Leon and Orson are getting into the holiday spirit with a scene from one of the best holiday movies of all time.
Homemade Alone; Film: Home Alone
They plan to keep posting scenes on the blog every week, but are hoping to get suggestions from the littlest member of their creative team. "We're wanting to include [Orson's] input a lot more when he gets a bit older. We think he'd have some really funny ideas," Lilly said.
'Houston, We Have A Poopy'; Film: Apollo 13
'Yippee Kay-Aye Mama 'N Papa'; Film: Die Hard
Wah Wars; Film: Star Wars
The family also wants to get input from fans for their next scenes. Lilly especially wants to add a romantic comedy to the mix, but doesn't know which one to do. Clearly, they have horror covered...
Bubbalien; Film: Alien
What scene do you think Lilly, Leon and Orson should set up next? Post your suggestions in the comments -- and follow @our_boxoffice on Twitter or Cardboard Box Office on Facebook to see what they do next!
Related
Before You Go
