‘Donkeys’: British cinema’s ode to Dogme that almost ended in disaster

Posted On November 22, 2024November 22, 2024

Many film lovers are familiar with the Dogme 95 movement, an era of filmmaking that was founded by Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg, which called for a stripped-back approach to filmmaking that would make the craft more accessible and give more power to directors. The rules stipulated that they couldn’t use visual effects, shooting had to be done on location, the camera had to be handheld, and the sound must be diegetic. However, not many people are aware of Britain’s attempt at the Dogme movement, with filmmakers like Andrea Arnold becoming involved before it quickly died.

Donkeys was directed in 2010 by Morag McKinnon and is perhaps one of the most cursed Scottish film productions of all time. It follows a man called Alfred who is trying to make amends in his life as he nears the end of his time. But as simple as it sounds, the shoot was far from seamless, with the crew being plagued by a nasty bug, casting troubles and creative conflict over the script and edit.

The film was initially supposed to be part of a trilogy funded by Sigma Films and Zentropa Films, Lars von Trier’s production company. The first in the trilogy was Red Road, directed by Andrea Arnold, with Donkeys intended to feature the same characters and actors in order to bring a taste of the Dogme movement to the UK, which is partly why von Trier became involved in the trilogy.

However, Donkeys was an uphill battle from the start, with the director explaining the endless problems that arose through each stage of production, while Red Road seemingly breezed through the edit. The writing team constantly disagreed with each other, and the lead actor, Andy Armour, grew very sick after being diagnosed with cancer.

Eventually, the director became so concerned over his deteriorating health that they chose to recast the role, worried that the shoot would put an extra strain on his health. They recast the role with James Cosmo, and Armour tragically died a few months later. This also meant that they had broken one of the golden rules of the Dogme movement, which didn’t put them on a good track to honouring von Trier’s rules.

When shooting, their bad luck didn’t ease, and the shocking Scottish weather ate up their shoot days, with the crew also being hit by a brutal vomiting bug that nearly depleted them entirely. While shooting one scene in Glasgow, a man stood near them as they shot one scene and blasted music through a boom box, saying that he would only stop if they gave him £5,000.

The edit was no different, with battles between the director and producer over the final cut, and by the end, they had broken nearly every Dogme rule in the book. However, given the obscene challenges that they faced, the film became fairly successful and was loved in the underground film scene in Scotland. Even though they didn’t quite stick to their guns, sometimes just getting the project made is the biggest challenge and something they can be proud of regardless.  

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