WHITE

RDJ finds himself tossed into a strange room, facing (semi-)solitary confinement.

Influence: The Prisoner, the 1967-68 cult TV series about a former secret agent named Number Six who finds himself detained in a strange seaside community





 2015-03-18 18_43_47-Robert Downey Jr. unveils 9 color-themed short films _ EW.com  

YELLOW

Rocked by enemy fire, the hero awakens in a bunker and gets a bright idea.

Inspiration: The Tropic Thunder making-of mockumentary Rain of Madness, which purports to do the same type of exploration Hearts of Darkness did with Apocalypse Now.

2015-03-18 18_45_04-Robert Downey Jr. unveils 9 color-themed short films _ EW.com   

 

ORANGE

Unable to beat a confession out of Downey, Bunny Man lets down his ears (and guard).

Influence: 1950’s Harvey, a whimsical comedy starring James Stewart and a giant rabbit nobody else can see.

2015-03-18 18_48_13-Robert Downey Jr. unveils 9 color-themed short films _ EW.com   

 

RED

He types his way into the realm of pulp fiction.

Influence: The 1955 film noir Kiss Me Deadly, directed by Robert Aldrich. One of the Mike Hammer mysteries adapted from the work of Mickey Spillane.

2015-03-18 18_48_19-Robert Downey Jr. unveils 9 color-themed short films _ EW.com

 

GREEN

The hero cannot resist tormenting the merman as he basks in the moonlight.

Influence: Filmmaking pioneer Georges Méliès’s 1902 silent film Le Voyage dans la Lune (a.k.a. A Trip to the Moon,) which featured the Man in the Moon getting a rocket ship to the eye.)

2015-03-18 18_48_25-Robert Downey Jr. unveils 9 color-themed short films _ EW.com

 

BLUE

The merman is back for revenge, but the hero sits at a tiny piano and discovers music soothes the savage fish.

Influence: 1996’s Shine, starring Geoffrey Rush as a piano player with a troubled history who finds peace amid the black and white keys.

2015-03-18 18_48_30-Robert Downey Jr. unveils 9 color-themed short films _ EW.com

 

PURPLE

You’ve heard of Pop Art. Now combine that with baseball and a pop fly.

Influence: Andy Warhol’s portrait of Pete Rose, a 1985 four-quadrant screen print of the baseball great as he neared the record for baseball’s all-time hits record.

2015-03-18 18_48_37-Robert Downey Jr. unveils 9 color-themed short films _ EW.com    

 

GRAY

In which the hero reflects on the infinite depths …

Influence: Cinefamily’s “A Night With Robert Downey Sr.,” a series of screenings held last December as tribute to the actor’s father and his surreal films.

2015-03-18 18_48_44-Robert Downey Jr. unveils 9 color-themed short films _ EW.com 

 

BLACK
Thing get freaky…

Influence: 1977’s Eraserhead, David Lynch’s debut feature film, about a man and a mutant baby in a blighted, industrial landscape.

2015-03-18 18_48_51-Robert Downey Jr. unveils 9 color-themed short films _ EW.com   

 

WHITE II

The hero discovers the key to unlocking the loop.

Influence: 1936’s Modern Times, a comedy from Charlie Chaplin (whom Downey Jr. played in a 1992 bio-pic) about the desperation of a working man.

2015-03-18 18_48_58-Robert Downey Jr. unveils 9 color-themed short films _ EW.com