Friday, November 13, 2009

Turmoil in Indie Film World

Indie film is in flames. Or more accurately, the "Hollywood goes indie" film studios that have been ever popular in the mid nineties and for the past decade are disappearing. Peter Bart from Variety has an interesting take on it. You can see it at Variety.com or you can keep reading my 2 cents about it.

Basically he says that a lot of the major studios are only interested in franchises and that small budget movies are not as profitable as the over inflated big budget ones that keep getting pumped out. I don't see how this makes sense. Isn't there a saying, "don't keep all your eggs in one basket?" To add to it, I love the bit about how the Krispie Creme donut guy who turned around that franchise has been trying to turn around MGM, but to no avail. Yeah, that's because making movies ain't like glazing your donut hole num nuts!

Peter Bart is right though. The state of the industry is just bizarre. And to boot, the wrong choices keep getting made over and over with the same results. When is something going to give? A lot of the problem is with the studios themselves, but to a large extent they've always had the same problems. What's troubling is that when a studio can't make money and begins going under, then what does that mean for the rest of us. Is there a new film revolution around the corner or is the whole thing going in the toilet?

Whatever the answer is, it's way above my pay grade. With that said, I'm going to go pick up trash and serve coffee.

1 comment:

  1. I do agree that the film industry is in turmoil. It's frustrating to see studios making the same stupid types of films that they have for the most part always made, but alas this is how things are. At the current moment the independent film industry is probably the most impacted aspect of this current economic crisis. Perhaps when it turns around this new film revolution might occur. I'm not sure. But money isn't what creates a revolution, talent still typically wins out in the end, just look at the '70s.

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