SERGIO DIAZ & ZACH SEIVERS You worked on this film during the pandemic. How did that work with you, Sergio, in Mexico City, Zach in LA and Chloé in Ojai? Diaz: Without a doubt, it was challenging! But thanks to Chloé’s clear vision and precise direction, everyone made it happen. Using Evercast [HD live streaming and video conferencing platform] to collaborate remotely, Zach and I worked on a specific workflow for 20-30 minutes of film every two weeks....

Greene—joined by fellow nominees Jessica Kingdon (Ascension), Jonas Poher Rasmussen (Flee), Nanfu Wang (In the Same Breath) and Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson (Summer of Soul …Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)—cited nonfiction film pioneer, and coiner of the term “documentary”, John Grierson’s description of the medium as “a creative treatment of actuality.” A recurring theme of the panel, moderated by Shirkers director Sandi Tan, was the multitude of ways in which this year’s Best Documentary nominees have approached their medium of choice....

When: December 1 Where: DVD/VOD Director: Noah Baumbach Starring: Greta Gerwig, Lola Kirke Why We’re Excited: Since we loved Frances Ha, our interest is piqued by this follow-up collaboration from previous Film Independent Spirit Award nominees Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig. Lola Kirke stars in a breakthrough role as a New York college student who comes out of her shell when she starts running around town with her mischievous, soon-to-be step-sister (Gerwig)....

Last week, Film Independent’s Festival Visions series—our ongoing spotlight of the best programming picks from regional and specialty festivals nationwide—continued, with an online showing of the doc Finding Her Beat, directed by Dawn Mikkelson and Keri Pickett, about the emerging female presence in the historically male-dominated world of Asian drumming. Visit our events page for more details and to register for more upcoming Festival Visions screenings—which are always online and for free—and check out our Q&A with the Finding Her Beat filmmakers on our YouTube page....

Any two-bit screenwriting guru will tell you: strong characters are built from intention. A character must want something and take action to obtain it. This action can take a variety of forms, but one of them that works best onscreen is motion; people going from one place to another in search of something, or in order to reinvent themselves. And that’s certainly the case with this month’s Fiscal Spotlight projects—with two stories that rock and one that rolls....

It was April 28—the final day of the 2019 Film Independent Forum—and judging by the standing room only turnout for the Sunday panel “In Short: Getting Past the Calling Card,” there are a lot of filmmakers out there making a lot of short films. There’s no doubt: shorts are an important tool for filmmakers attempting to build a successful career—a display of one’s unique skills as a storyteller that demonstrate to gatekeepers where your interests lay as an artist....

For most of us, the height of our prep school creativity was probably achieved through some sort of papier-mâché volcano for the science fair or elaborate “promposal” flash mob. Then again, most of us aren’t Future Filmmakers. Returning again for the 2018 LA Film Festival (September 20-28!), our annual Future Filmmakers Showcase is a special, one-of-a-kind screening of short films made by talented high school students from across the globe....

*** Directing is a tricky craft to become an expert at, to gain those elusive 10,000 hours, mostly because the opportunity to hone and practice one’s craft is so rare. Writing may be the hardest thing to do in all of filmmaking. But at the very least, no one can ever stop you from opening up your laptop and logging your hours in Final Draft, writing script after script to get better....

Just two days until opening night of the 2015 Los Angeles Film Festival, and we are thrilled this year to be hosting one of the most diverse Fests yet. The line-up is a testament to our belief in the importance of diversity among artists in an overwhelmingly white and male industry. In addition to Saturday’s day-long Diversity Speaks program, which will examine issues surrounding the lack of multi-cultural voices in the film industry through panel discussions, we are proud that 28% of the films in the six competition categories (15 out of 54 films) were directed by people of color (historically marginalized communities in the US—not including international filmmakers)....

Given the “Content Revolution” theme of this past weekend’s Film Independent Forum, it’s not surprising that the indie film world was a bit shaken up by the bold calls to action by keynote speakers Ted Sarandos and Ava DuVernay. Ted Sarandos First, on Saturday, Netflix Chief Content Officer shook things up by declaring that by preventing digital releases during theatrical distribution windows, theater owners are jeopardizing the future of the film business....

Judi Levine, producer, The Sessions, on her “aha” moment It is very rare to read something that gives you an “aha” moment – that moment when you realize someone’s words have impacted you in a way you could never have imagined, perhaps expressed your own deepest feelings more articulately than you ever could. Writer/director Ben Lewin had one of those moments when he read Mark O’Brien’s essay On Seeing a Sex Surrogate....

AMERICAN RUST Guests of honor: Jeff Daniels (actor) and Maura Tierney (actor); moderated by Jenelle Riley (Editor, Variety) About the show: In an economically devastated Pennsylvania steel town, a complicated and compromised chief of police (Daniels) is forced to decide how far he’s willing to go when the son of the woman he loves (Tierney) is accused of murder. A harrowing journey into the lives of a small town with big secrets, where people are driven by loyalty, love and desperation–and bad choices come far too easy....

“It’s a revolutionary act just to walk down the street.” “And to love your sisters as well.” THIS IS ME: And My Sisters is one of the five beautifully cinematic short films in THIS IS ME, a docu-series inspired by the award-winning series Transparent, and directed by Project Involve Fellow Rhys Ernst. The films are docu-narrative hybrids—doc content, real-people subjects and cinematic aesthetics—that each take on a different theme relevant to the trans community, and all spin off specific moments and topics touched on in the show....

The capstone of Film Independent’s year-round Youth Program, the Showcase was assembled by a committee of working filmmakers and LA-area youth curators, coming amid a busy day full of networking events, mentorship sessions and an early preview screening of the new Hulu documentary Jawline. Thought called “Future” Filmmakers program celebrates creators who, as Film Education Manager Sarah Berkovich pointed out, are also current filmmakers—and they all have something important to say....

Similar to the eerie brainscape Jim Carrey’s sadsack protagonist Joel Barrish suddenly finds himself occupying, we too now find ourselves in a similarly uncertain state of being, quarantined to our homes as a global pandemic rages binge-watching Tiger King and coordinating Craigslist drops with suburban war profiteers to stock up on a few extra rolls of toilet paper. And so, even though it was only a month ago, our Film Independent Presents March 4 Live Read of Charlie Kaufman’s Eternal Sunshine screenplay onstage at the DGA Theater in Hollywood already feels, itself, like a distant memory being reluctantly wrenched further and further into the distance by Tom Wilkinson’s well-meaning mind-eraser Dr....

The cold call that started it all Jennifer Arnold I decided I wanted to meet with ESPN because they were doing interesting stuff, so I started asking around if anyone I knew, knew any one there. I found a connection through friends and once I had a phone meeting on the books, I called Senain Khesghi. We didn’t know each other well, but we had met a few times. I was under the impression she had worked at ESPN [she hadn’t], so I called her for advice....

“Just make a movie.” That was Short Term 12 producer Asher Goldstein’s advice for first-time filmmakers at the production case studies panel at the Film Independent Forum in October: Just make it, “not to make a ton of money—or make your money back, even—just making a movie, just to make it, to prove that you can.” Goldstein, his producing partner Ron Najor and Land Ho! writer-director Aaron Katz were on the panel discussing their films’ paths to the big screen....

Unaware of Mimi’s status as a minor local celebrity with ties throughout the community (including some well-known Hollywood actors), Rokah learned that his new acquaintance was actually homeless and living at the Laundromat across the street. But soon a legitimate friendship began to grow between the two, leading to the (all but accidental) creation of Rokah’s directorial debut. Now over five years later, Rokah’s heartwarming bio-doc Queen Mimi is finally in limited release, garnering acclaim from critics and delighting art house audiences....

But we’re not solely talking about those standing up in front of the classroom. Often time, teachers are themselves the students—and vice-versa (read on and you’ll see what we mean). So with that said, we’d like to show our appreciation for this hard-working community by sharing some of our favorite films exemplifying the power and influence that teachers wield. STAND AND DELIVER (1988) Directed By: Ramón Menéndez Starring: Edward James Olmos, Lou Diamond Phillips, Rosanna DeSoto Where To Watch: on DVD In Deliver, Edward James Olmos delivers an iconic performance—one worthy enough to land him a Best Actor nomination at the 61st Academy Awards....

Last year’s inaugural edition of The Portal included four documentary shorts—dizzying spectacles of immersive 360-degree storytelling. Strapping on the Oculus VR headset, I found myself instantly immersed in death-defying adventures and surrounded by dazzling landscapes. In the blink of an eye, I was transported onto the impossibly sheer rock face of El Capitan in Yosemite, watching Free Solo’s Alex Honnold make his death-defying ascent. I then boarded a helicopter with a Cal Fire crew fighting devastating wildfires raging across the dry California hillsides....