The Mirror Box Manifesto

“That’s what great artists do. This is what great people do. They ask it. They say it. They express it. They put in words what so many other are thinking and feeling and wondering. They affirm that you aren’t the only one having this experience.” // Rob Bell

Mirror Box Films is a production company started by me (with the help of friends way more talented than me) in order to “build community around genre film that reflects humanity”. Basically, I wanted to make fun and beautiful things with fun and beautiful people in a world where fun and beauty are severely lacking. So here we are.

So, what’s with the name Mirror Box?

Well, let’s take a detour real quick into the world of SCIENCE! Once upon a time a neurologist named V.S. Ramachandran was studying the phenomenon of phantom limb pain. You know, like when someone loses a hand, except it feels like the hand is still there and in pain, but they can’t reach it to massage it or lesson it. The hand, even though it’s no longer there, is causing the amputee extreme pain. (I know what you’re thinking — “I have emotional phantom pains all the time” — we’ll get there).

Ramachandran invented something called a mirror box, which is this really simple box with two holes cut into one side and open on the top with a mirror down the middle. The idea is that you put your amputated arm into the hole on one side and your still-existing hand in the other, with it being reflected in the mirror. From the amputee’s point of view, they see that they have both hands intact. So, Ramachandran would ask them to ball their hand up into a fist, so it would look like both hands were balled up. And then release . . .

And the craziest thing would happen: The pain would go away.

This is exactly great storytelling does. This is what great films do. When people see themselves (with all their pain and struggle — their “emotional phantom pains” — told you we’d come back to it) reflected honestly in art, they are able to heal.

This is why we make movies. It’s not about finding answers: it’s about knowing that we aren’t alone. That’s all it takes to heal: community and empathy and understanding. And we believe that film does that better than any other art form.

In fact, we believe a lot of things. As I mentioned before, our goal is to “build community around genre film that reflects humanity.” Here is the why and the how and the what of all that:

BUILDING COMMUNITY

• We believe in putting people over product, that art without community is empty.
• We believe that the walls between those that create art and those that consume it should be torn down.
• We believe that film exists to bring people together, to open minds, and build empathy.

AROUND GENRE FILM

• We believe that “genre films” (horror, sci-fi, fantasy) give us a unique window into the world through allegory that traditional storytelling can’t.
• We believe that fans of genre film long for a deeper connection to — and to be challenged by — their entertainment.
• We believe that genre film is best used as an opportunity to connect to deeper, more human truths, not as an excuse to escape reality.

THAT REFLECTS HUMANITY

• We believe that movies should reflect real life—including all shapes & sizes, genders, ages, and ethnicities—both in front of and behind the camera.
• We believe that lives are changed when movies reflect honest emotions and experiences on screen.
• We believe that everyone has a story to tell.

Practically speaking, we’ll do all of the above by making fun and beautiful movies that you’ll love and want to connect with your friends over while drinking beer late at night. But we also want to give YOU an equal platform to showcase your art. Stay tuned and follow along. We’re gonna change the world together.