[Editor's note: This post was originally published February 8, 2010.] You know a situation is dire when Gawker puts away the snark and gets serious. And that’s just what they did Friday, in a guest post by film industry expert Edward Jay Epstein in which the author asks the question, “Can Indie Movies Survive?” His thorough, well-considered response, which cites everything from the huge profits major studios need to project to purchase a movie to the rapidly disappearing world of independent distribution, pretty much amounts to “no.”
Reading Epstein’s piece, it occurred to us that while indie film may be in the midst of a crisis, indie music has never been stronger or more vibrant. The number of new and exciting bands out there seems to increase exponentially every few years, bigger groups like Animal Collective and Vampire Weekend are all over the Billboard charts and vinyl sales are growing every year. So what gives? Why is indie film dying while indie music thrives? We’ve listed our best guesses after the jump.
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Are you someone who likes to know what’s new and fresh and happening right now in the world of indie film? If you are, you’ll be glad to hear that Filmmaker Magazine just announced this year’s 25 New Faces of Independent Film. We’ve selected 10 directors from the list who have a recently completed or just-around-the-corner project for you to get your hands and eyes on. Most directors in this year’s roundup deal with the miserable, horrific, and tragic aspects of being human, but the films themselves are never without life.
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Last Friday, the Brooklyn International Film Festival opened with a delightful film by Lawrence Michael Levine and Sophia Takal, called Gabi on the Roof in July. It’s the story of a 20-year-old art student named Gabi who leaves college for the summer to stay with her older brother in New York City. During her visit, Gabi’s academic idealism and stubborn refusal to conform clash with the mundane necessities of getting a job and paying the rent. Throughout the film, lies are told, conversations are misunderstood, and cell phones die as the characters strain to communicate with each other — a theme Levine is deeply invested in.
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Today at Flavorpill, we went inside of Michael Jackson’s closet. We enjoyed the visual irony of a cloud umbrella. We watched a festival founder and a controversial filmmaker duke it out in the ring over the state of indie film. We couldn’t wait to DVR TLC’s newly-announced reality series BBQ Pit Masters. We read Harvey Weinstein’s editorial defending Roman Polanski in The Independent. (Note: He’s not the only one.) We listened to Chris Brown’s new track “I Can Transform Ya,” which features Lil Wayne. We watched 28 Days Later in One Minute in One Take. We wondered how many overpriced Max suits we’re going to see on Halloween. And finally, we learned a new word: vendrification. Can you use it in a sentence?
A perfect choice for a Wednesday: Check out the trailer for Humpday after the jump, a smart new indie that opens at New York’s Angelika Film Center this Friday. Admittedly, the premise is a little out there (two straight guys decide to make a porno for an amateur film festival), but it’s one of the funniest (and most honest) films we’ve seen this year.
Stay tuned for an interview with director Lynn Shelton later this week. Read More »
Welcome to Grill and Chill, a new feature made possible by our friends at Weber*, who gave Flavorpill HQ one of their electric grills for the summer as long as we promised to interview interesting cultural figures and feed them free hot dogs. Read on for an interview with Dia Sokol and Lauren Veloski, the talented filmmakers behind Sorry, Thanks — a quirky film about 20-something relationships that stars Dazed and Confused‘s Wiley Wiggins and mumblecore genius Andrew Bujalski — and if you live in New York, be sure to check out the premiere at BAMcinemaFEST on June 24th. Read More »
New York’s home for offbeat film, the Pioneer Theater officially closed — fittingly enough — after a midnight screening of NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD on Halloween. Their lease was up and rent hikes were inevitable. There’s a goodbye party tomorrow night starting at 6 p.m. to celebrate the nearly 10 years that it held court on Avenue A and Third Street in the East Village.
As the Pioneer Web site promises, there will be “free movies, popcorn and reminiscences.”
While this bash is billed as a celebration, we can’t help but be in mourning. We’ve watched so many great and deliciously offbeat films at this single-screen, indie-oriented theater through the years. PRIMER, LAST RESORT, and LA CIENAGA, are among the standout films that quickly come to mind. Not to mention such high jinks as the Mormonsploitation! series or the most recent Schlocktober that unspooled the likes of big-screen rarity BLOOD SUCKING FREAKS.
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We predict that this SLATE piece making the environmental case against long distance relationships will get heavily forwarded — hopefully not in lieu of actually breaking up with someone. Our favorite part is the call to action for lauching “a robust Date Local movement.”
We have but one question for the author, Barron YoungSmith (aside from, why is your last name spelled like that). Have you seen the new release from indie filmmaker JOE SWANBERG, a low-budget movie called NIGHTS AND WEEKENDS? It’s about a couple struggling to make their miserable New York/Chicago relationship work, and helps prove your point too.
There must be something in the cultural zeitgeist — maybe LTRs are this year’s pregnancy.
