Happy Mother’s Day weekend! Show Mom how much you care – and how your Liberal Arts or Film School education wasn’t a waste of money – by wowing her with facts and insight from the independent film world! (It was a busy week, after all, with LA Film Fest, Sundance Institute, and IFP all making big programming announcements). More good reads below!
This Week’s Good Reads (Week of May 8, 2017)
How A24 is Disrupting Hollywood (via Zach Baron for GQ)
An oral history of the studio behind Spring Breakers, Room, and Moonlight.
How to Make Sure Film Festivals Actually Watch Your Movie – And Hold Them Accountable (via Chris Suchorsky for No Film School)
This time, make the festivals submit to you!
I Was an Extra in David Lynch’s Weirdest Movie (via Rick Paulas for Vice)
Behind-the-scenes stories from Inland Empire.
Maximize Viewer Engagement In Your Film: Resolving Filmmakers’ Blind Spots (via Keith Bound for Stage 32)
Scientific research on how to keep your audience at the edge of their seats.
Indie Film Legends Gather to Celebrate the Return of John Pierson’s Split Screen (via Jason Bailey for Flavorwire)
Reminiscing on the ’90s indie film scene with Richard Linklater, Kevin Smith, Miranda July, and more.
The Scarily Profitable Hits of Jason Blum (via Ryan Bradley for The New York Times Magazine)
With this year’s mega-hit Get Out under Blumhouse’s belt, how the low-budget horror studio is expanding its empire.
Fandor Is Moving Toward the Mainstream, and Bracing for the Backlash (via Anthony Kaufman for IndieWire)
RIP Keyframe.
FBI Gives Hollywood Hacking Victims Surprising Advice: “Pay the Ransom” (via Tatiana Siegel for The Hollywood Reporter)
The FBI is everywhere else in the news this week – why not the film industry too?
UPDATED include:
The Importance of Data Transparency (via Liz Manashil for Medium)
A filmmaker gives real numbers on budget, distribution deals, and profits.
New Releases
Movies from our May Movie Picks out this week:
- Folk Hero & Funny Guy (Gravitas Ventures)
- Harold and Lillian: A Hollywood Love Story (Zeitgeist Films)
- The Wall (Amazon Studios/Roadside Attractions)
- Whisky Galore! (Arrow Films)
A video worth watching
Happy Mothers Day to all the effed up – and non – moms out there (via Tribeca Outtake)
How ’bout you? Read anything good this week?
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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.