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We Are All Auteurs: YouTube’s Channels of Reality
In his prescient 1967 essay “The Death of the Author,” theorist Roland Barthes celebrated the birth of the reader at the expense of the death of the author: “Once the Author is removed, the claim to decipher a text becomes quite futile. To give a text an Author is to impose a limit . . . to close the writing.” Coming during the expressive, anti-authoritarian energy of the counterculture, Barthes’ essay served as a manifesto for a democratic impulse that would transform the readers, in fact, into the creators of the text. This was also an era of radical experiments […]
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Five Questions with Girls Creator Lena Dunham
Is Lena Dunham about to change television? Recent years have seen big-screen critical darlings like Michael Mann, Martin Scorsese and Diablo Cody make the pilgrimage over to the small screen. But last year’s announcement that the 25-year-old Tiny Furniture director would be masterminding a new series for HBO seemed a more direct link between the indie film and TV industries than had been attempted previously. Audiences are in for a treat, as Dunham’s wit has only grown more acute over time. A continuation of the 20-something angst that Tiny Furniture mined so hilariously, Girls re-teams Dunham with her Furniture co-star […]
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Calling the Shots
TV FOR FILM Original characters. Unlikely relationships. Undiscovered locations. The purview of independent filmmakers is increasingly the stuff of television, and filmmakers are making the small screen a bigger part of their careers. Creative crossover is not breaking news, of course; shows like Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Boardwalk Empire, In Treatment, Enlightened and dozens more regularly hire directors from independent film and have for a long time. But now more and more independent film writers and writer/directors are making the leap — pitching, developing and producing original series. Meanwhile, reliable outlets like Netflix and IFC/Sundance Channel have slowed down their […]
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Crowded Marketplace: How the JOBS Act Will Transform Film Financing
How the JOBS Act will transform independent film financing. By Matthew Savare, Esq. and Richard Jaycobs
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The Art of First Impressions: How to Cut a Movie Trailer
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Strategic Planning
With conventional theatrical distribution deals harder to come by, independent filmmakers are increasingly looking towards DIY, or do-it-yourself, releasing strategies for their movies. But the truth is that there is no one, sure-fire way to distribute a movie. Certain platforms accessible to self-distributing filmmakers work beautifully for some movies while being terrible for others. Each film possesses its own specific DNA, and to determine its most appropriate strategy requires an analysis of a film’s goals, assets and realistic potential. For some, a goal will be to recoup investments. For others it will be to get a modicum of renown, and […]
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Don’t Do This!: 12 Mistakes Commonly Made on Independent Film Productions
The mixture of risk-taking, cost-cutting and pure enthusiasm that is independent film production can lead to great movies but also, all too frequently, poorly thought-out productions. Here, from producer Maureen A. Ryan (Man on Wire), is a list of 12 mistakes often made by new filmmakers and their producers as well as many who should know better. It originally appeared in our Winter, 2012 issue. 1. Decide to shoot before you have the best script possible. You’re dying to shoot your first feature but don’t start prepping until your script is ready to be shot. It doesn’t matter if your […]
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Rewind
One year ago in this spot I cautiously heralded “signs of life” in the independent film world, citing, among other things, all the independently financed features (Black Swan, Winter’s Bone, The Kids Are All Right) headed for the Oscars. A month after I wrote my piece, Sundance 2011 concluded with a record number of acquisitions, which included films like the tough, defiantly independent Martha Marcy May Marlene and the no-budget Another Earth by none other than Fox Searchlight. And while American independents didn’t sweep the Oscars, they did figure prominently, with a Best Actress win for Natalie Portman. But, as […]
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Reboot: On the Future of Film Schools
Holly Willis explains what film schools need to explore to stay relevant in the future.
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Why Filmmaking Cannot Be A Hobby
Blast! director Paul Devlin on the IRS’s battle with documentary filmmakers.
