Originally posted on otsoNY in March 2011 following the digital release of the film, “Black Swan” is now set for a revisit this springtime.

Black Swan

The psychological horror film directed by Darren Aronofsky starred Natalie Portman in the lead role, with Vincent Cassel, Mila Kunis, Barbara Hershey, and Winona Ryder in supporting roles. The plot revolved around a production of Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake by the company of New York City Ballet. The production required a ballerina to play the innocent and fragile White Swan, for which the committed dancer Nina Sayers Played by Portman was a perfect fit, as well as the dark and sensual Black Swan, which are qualified better embodied by the new rival Lily played Kunis. Nina was overwhelmed by a feeling of immense pressure when she found herself competing for the role, causing her to lose her tenuous grip on reality and descended into madness.

Scene from Black Swan

Aronofsky and Portman first discussed a ballet film in 2000, after the release of “Requiem for a Dream”, though the script had not yet been written. He told her about a love scene between competing ballet dancers, and Portman thought that was very interesting because the film was in so many ways an exploration of an artist’s ego.

The screenplay The Understudy was written by Andres Heinz; Aronofsky described it as All About Eve with a double, set in the off-Broadway world. After making “The Fountain” in 2006, Aronofsky and producer Mike Medavoy had screenwriter John McLaughlin rewrite The Understudy. When Aronofsky proposed a detailed outline of “Black Swan” to Universal Pictures, the studio decided to fast-track development of the project in January 2007, though the project was halted again as Aronofsky was making of “The Wrestler”. By June 2009, Universal had placed the project in turnaround, generating attention from other studios and specialty divisions, particularly with actress Portman attached to star. “Black Swan” began development under Protozoa Pictures and Overnight Productions, the latter financing the film. In July 2009, Kunis was cast.

Scene from Black Swan

Fox Searchlight Pictures distributed “Black Swan” and gave the film a production budget of $10–12 million. Principal photography was achieved using Super 16 mm cameras and began in New York City toward the end of 2009. Part of filming took place at the Performing Arts Center at State University of New York at Purchase. Aronofsky filmed “Black Swan” with a muted palette and a grainy style, which he intended to be similar to “The Wrestler”.

A new set of higher quality screen grabs set along with additional film locations will be posted shortly.