Life is busy — living through historic political sh*t on a seeming daily basis. It can be tough to stay up-to-date on all the film industry news, profiles, analysis, and advice. That’s why we’ve curated some essential reads you may have missed over the past month. So take some time to catch up with this month’s good reads!
This Month’s Good Reads (July 2024)
What’s In the New IATSE Deal? Wage Increases, AI Rules and More (via Christi Carras for Los Angeles Times)
What the crew gained after negotiations.
No One Could Rescue a Troubled Movie Like Robert Towne (via Ty Burr for The Washington Post)
Honoring the known and less-than-known credits of the late Chinatown screenwriter.
Shelley Duvall Stood Out (via Matt Zoller Seitz for Vulture)
Remembering the one-of-a-kind star of The Shining and Popeye.
Sing Sing Filmmakers Paid Everyone On Set the Same, and Now Their New Company Wants to Do It Again (via Mia Galuppo for The Hollywood Reporter)
How Greg Kwedar and Clint Bentley created a new system paying stars and PAs the same rates.
Art House Convergence’s 2024 National Audience Survey Shows Audiences Still Flock to Independent Cinemas (via Boxoffice Pro)
Give the people what they want! (Arthouse theaters.)
Integrity vs. Innovation: How AI is Redefining Documentary Filmmaking (via Rachel Elizabeth Seed for Talkhouse)
From fake photos to altered voices, AI tactics/tricks in the doc space.
Hollywood’s Mental Health Crisis: How Film & TV Workers Can Seek Support From Their Unions (via Katie Campione for Deadline)
How to turn to your union for help.
How to Build a VFX World for Your Short With a $700 Budget (via Matthew DeLisi for No Film School)
Make your mini Star Wars while saving your pennies.
A Timeline of Remembering the Past Through Coming-of-Age Movies (via Rory Doherty for The A.V. Club)
Time-travel from 1951 to 2008 through movie nostalgia.
“You Gotta Hear This One Song”: The Oral History of the Garden State Soundtrack (via Matthew Jacobs for The Ringer)
20 years of The Shins, Imogen Heap, and Millennial playlists.
Understanding the History of Director’s Cuts Through 9 Great Examples (via Austen Goslin for Polygon)
From Charlie Chaplin to Ridley Scott to Ridley Scott again, and again… the definitive directors’ cuts.
How M. Night Shyamalan Came Back from the Dead (via David Sims for The Atlantic)
The wunderkind-turned-laughing stock has the last laugh.
So You Want to Make an Independent Film. Who’s Funding Now? (via Wendy Paris for Inside Philanthropy)
Which nonprofits are shelling out to filmmakers?
In case you were ignoring us (aka blatant self-promotion)
HUSSLUP Webinar: Building a Winning Film Festival Strategy
SAGindie’s Darrien Gipson offered tips and insight for navigating the film festival landscape.
Videos worth watching
Learn more about the SAG-AFTRA video game strike (via SAG-AFTRA)
How ’bout you? Read anything good this month?
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If you’re an independent filmmaker or know of an independent film-related topic we should write about, email blogadmin@sagindie.org for consideration.