Author Archives: admin

Indiewood riding high in Oscar nominations

Posted on January 17, 2015 by admin

Whatever assorted rows and debates might accompany this year’s Oscar nominations, they demonstrate again the continued strength of the Indiewood and indie sectors as far as scoring well in these commercially valuable prestige stakes is concerned. The nominees can be … Continue reading →

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Happy Endings and markers of distinction

Posted on September 11, 2014 by admin

Indie films often mark their difference from the Hollywood mainstream through their resistance to the kinds of happy endings associated with studio films. That Hollywood films always have, or have had, such endings, or that they are as simplistic and/or … Continue reading →

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Hollywood Puzzle Films

Posted on June 2, 2014 by admin

This is just a shameless plug for a chapter I have in a new book just out, Hollywood Puzzle Films edited by Warren Buckland (a new AFI Film Reader from Routledge). My chapter is one of several on Inception, in which I explore … Continue reading →

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Ibsen’s gun, Llewyn Davis and White House Down

Posted on February 1, 2014 by admin

An odd mixture of elements, it might seem, but something I wanted to comment on in passing in Inside Llewyn Davis evolved somewhat after a viewing last night of White House Down. Comparing such films might seem a little spurious, … Continue reading →

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Filling the speciality gaps?

Posted on January 25, 2014 by admin

Interesting to see who is stepping in to fill some of the gaps in the speciality distribution market after the contraction of studio divisions, including the likely pull-back of Focus Features discussed in my last post. CBS Films, for example, … Continue reading →

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Focus pulled?

Posted on October 4, 2013 by admin

What, then, of the future of Indiewood, in the shape of the studio speciality divisions, now that Universal’s Focus Features has become the latest target for what looks like studio rationalisation? The news that James Schamus has been removed as … Continue reading →

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The Loneliest Planet: maximising the effect of minimalism

Posted on September 24, 2013 by admin

Low-key narrative is one of the most frequent characteristics of indie film, a tendency that sometimes veers towards the minimalist end of the scale in the kind of production in which, by conventional standards, ‘very little happens’. A good example … Continue reading →

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‘Early electronic sell-through’, as studios continue to experiment with new release windows

Posted on September 10, 2013 by admin

Interesting piece in Variety on growing studio use of digital selling of films ahead of the DVD/Blu-Ray release, as Hollywood and indies continue to try to negotiate the increasingly uncertain relationship between the various post-theatrical windows – probably the biggest issue … Continue reading →

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Spring Breakers: exploitation/art cinema

Posted on August 25, 2013 by admin

Harmony Korine’s Spring Breakers offers a fascinating combination of elements of exploitation and art cinema, two key ingredients often found in the mix that constitutes indie film but employed here in a blend that’s somewhat jarring and uncomfortable – but also … Continue reading →

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Spielberg and speculation

Posted on June 14, 2013 by admin

Far be it from me to doubt Steven Spielberg’s understanding of Hollywood, but his widely-reported prediction of a future in which we could shift to a system in which viewers pay much higher prices for blockbuster releases and pretty much … Continue reading →

Posted in Filmmakers, Industry practice | 1 Comment