A veteran of 30+ feature films, Sostre has a well-honed perspective on efficient scheduling and budgeting, sometimes even taking on additional responsibilities with her partner, production manager Joel Henry, in order to stretch a budget. Sostre specializes in $1-3 million films, but much of what she talked about relates to projects of any size. What is Line Producing and Why Should I Care? I mean, how many producers do you really need?...

During the month of April, Needham (in his capacity on the Fi Board) is one of a core group of contributors making a matching gift in Fi’s fundraising campaign. Some background: with economies around the world facing immense challenges due to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, Film Independent is hurting, as are many organizations. In order to keep our virtual doors open and continue all that we do for the indie film community worldwide, Film Independent needs the help of friends like Needham, as well as yours—the campaign ends this Thursday, April 30....

So despite being rescheduled from February 6 due to an aggressive late-winter rainfall, Fi’s Filmmaker Tuesday session, The Evolution of Microbudget Filmmaking, finally happened last week on March 19, featuring a panel of four acclaimed indie producers and directors (not to mention Fi Fellows!) who have all managed to make big waves with their work despite microscopic production budgets. They were: Iram Parveen Bilal (Wakhri, I’ll Meet You There), Ron Najor (Short Term 12, I Am Not a Hipster), Gia Rigoli (Plastico, Anchorage) and Avril Speaks (African America, Jinn)....

As it turns out, on the day of the show the weather turns out to be a big question mark. My husband Jimmy and I drive through some heavy downpours as we make our way from Echo Park to Santa Monica, but when we arrive it’s clear and actually kind of warm. We walk in, pass the blue carpet and wander through the hospitality areas where we enjoy lox and pastries, mimosas and Bloody Marys....

And while we can’t take credit for Ahn’s sartorial acumen, we can claim some small amount of ownership over the upstart auteur’s proficiency as a filmmaker. After all, Ahn is a Film Independent Fellow thrice over: as a participant in 2012’s Project Involve, the 2013 Screenwriting Lab and, recently, a 2014 Directing Lab Fellow. Which, to hear more about Ahn’s Directing Lab experience, just watch the below video: Cool, eh?...

“10 Questions with LA Film Fest Filmmaker Spotlights” is a series of posts to help you get to know our Festival filmmakers and their films just a little bit better. Lucy Walker FILM: The Crash Reel / Summer Showcase With today’s sports pages now routinely covering safety and health controversies alongside athletic achievements, this up-close chronicle of snowboarder Kevin Pearce’s experience with traumatic brain injury could not be more timely....

Thus was bestowed the first three awards of Spirit Awards season: the Someone to Watch Award, Producers Award and Truer Than Fiction Award—the winners of which all received a generous $25,000 unrestricted grant, courtesy of Spirit Awards Premier Sponsor Genesis Motor North America. “As a director who won the Someone to Watch Award only a few years ago, we can’t think of a better person to serve as our Honorary Chair at this year’s Spirit Awards,” said Film Independent Josh Welsh, referring to King’s 2014 win for his debut feature Newlyweeds....

“I was really shocked by it, but then I was also like, ‘It sounds really hot,’” he said. “I felt like that was the perfect location to set a coming-of-age story about a gay Korean-American figuring out his sexuality.” Spa Night is currently in post-production and Ahn hopes to premiere the film at festivals in 2016. But in the three years between the premiere of Dol (First Birthday) and production of Spa Night, filmmaker labs—specifically the Sundance Screenwriter’s Lab and the Film Independent Screenwriting and Directing Labs—played a major role in Ahn making his first feature film....

The Stateside phase of this inaugural Global Media Makers Class of 2016 included participation in an exclusive Directing Lab (under the mentorship of Game of Thrones director Jeremy Podeswa) as well as the creation of an experimental short about the Fellows’ impressions of Los Angeles. These short films were created in close collaboration with veterans of past Film Independent Artist Development programs, and were shot entirely on the iPhone. To learn more—and to watch one of the videos—please check out Tuesday’s blog....

Heaven Knows What When: Now Where: Theaters Directors: Ben & Joshua Safdie Starring: Arielle Holmes, Caleb Landry Jones Why We’re Excited: Brothers Ben and Joshua Safdie have been making a splash in the indie film world, building a name for themselves with their innovative, low-budget films and documentaries. The Los Angeles Film Festival alums have had their shorts and features win awards at Sundance, Venice International and SXSW fests, and in 2011 the duo took home the John Cassavetes Award at the Film Independent Spirit Awards for Go Get Some Rosemary....

STRONGER When You Can Watch: September 22 Where You Can Watch: Theaters Director: David Gordon Green Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Tatiana Maslany, Miranda Richardson Why We’re Excited: Indie stalwart David Gordon Green’s latest is based on the real-life story of photographer Jeff Bauman (played by two-time Spirit Award nominee Jake Gyllehaal), who lost both legs above the knee at the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. The film is already garnering Oscar buzz for Gyllenhaal just a week after its U....

Food, of course, has played as major a role in cinema as any other basic human biological function, from the sprawling bowls of pasta in the works of Martin Scorsese, to the last decade’s trend of thoughtfully investigative health-leaning food docs such as Food Inc. and Forks Over Knives. Today, though, we’re leaving the scare-mongering at the kids’ table and indulging in some seriously calorie-dense, celebratory depictions of food on film....

It’s a rare opportunity to assemble this much talent in one place. The panelists included: Maryse Alberti, best known for her work on Happiness, The Wrester and Creed, as well as this year’s recipient of the 2016 Glory to the Filmmaker award; Joan Churchill, the first documentary filmmaker to be accepted into the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC); Amy Vincent, who shot Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, Black Snake Moan, and who given an award by the Sundance Film Festival in 2005 for her work on Hustle & Flow; and Tami Reiker, who I personally took note of for her amazing work on High Art, and who was the first woman to earn the ASC Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography Award for her work on the pilot of the original HBO series Carnivàle....

DAY FOUR It’s the weekend! Day Four of the 2017 LA Film Festival is jam-packed with good stuff. While many parts of Southern California are doing typical weekend-y things like cleaning out the garage or going to brunch, I’m going to Culver City. Saturday’s schedule is yet another array of delights, starting with a screening of Future Filmmaker shorts from our city’s ridiculously talented high school students and ending with the Festival’s flat-out terrifying Nightfall section....

January is all about resolutions, reinvention and re-focusing our goals to become that better version of ourselves we’re all determined to see staring back at us in the mirror. This month’s five Indies We Love all feature main characters transforming into braver individuals—people letting go of the past, confronting demons and getting ready to finally live life to the fullest. Let’s join them in letting is all go and living it up:...

Back in a prior century, the success of a new music video was generally measured by its MTV rotation rates and perhaps the occasional Soundscan sales tally of the generally infrequent compilation DVD or VHS. These days, though, the tangible impact of a music video is much harder to quantify—made up of some inscrutable combo of YouTube views, music service streams and social media impressions. The good news is that it’s easier than ever for fans to find their most beloved clips, whether beloved oldies (“November Rain,” anyone?...

It’s often said that whenever a door closes, a window opens up somewhere else; presenting new opportunities we all strive to recognize, appreciate and take advantage of. For example, we were disappointed when the rise of COVID-19 made our usual LA-based Film Independent Forum setup an impossibility for 2020. But, in turning this year’s #FiForum20 into a new weeklong virtual event, it immediately became clear that the pivot would enable us to reach far beyond the walls of a single campus or lecture hall—allowing our speakers to engage with working, established and would-be filmmakers worldwide....

What was the first horror film that scared the pants off you? I can’t name just one because I have such vivid memories of the first four times horror films shook me to my core. The first was Troll. And yes, I know it’s basically a kid’s movie. All I can say is that I saw it when I was very, very young and it scared the holy hell out of me....

Whether longtime movie vets or fresh-faced newcomers, we hope you’ll join us in continuing to support these fantastic artists’ work for years—and decades—to come. After all, these people are doing all of this for you: the audience member. But enough of this folderol! You came here to see who won. Here now is a complete list of 2019 Film Independent Spirit Award winners… BEST FEATURE – If Beale Street Could Talk (Producers: Dede Gardner, Barry Jenkins, Jeremy Kleiner, Sara Murphy, Adele Romanski) BEST DIRECTOR – Barry Jenkins, If Beale Street Could Talk BEST FEMALE LEAD – Glenn Close, The Wife BEST MALE LEAD – Ethan Hawke, First Reformed BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE – Regina King, If Beale Street Could Talk BEST SUPPORTING MALE – Richard E....

“The late, great New Yorker critic Pauline Kael once wrote about the moment in movie theaters when the lights go down and all our hopes are concentrated on the screen. That anticipation, that exhilaration, that hunger to dream – it’s what movies capture, no matter the venue or device, or how ubiquitous they are. And those are the feelings I want the LA Film Fest to remind audiences of—they’re the reason we seek out film,” said Film Independent Curator Elvis Mitchell....