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*** LOST IN LONDON (2017, dir. Woody Harrelson) Right in the midst of a week filled with a sense of history in the making, a milestone in the evolution of cinema was reached with relative quiet. The Woody Harrelson-written, directed and starring Lost in London was billed as “the world’s first live movie,” performed live in real time and simulcast from one camera to hundreds of screens for one night only on Thursday, January 19 (early morning January 20 in the UK)....

Of course, cinema is the ultimate way to peer through a window into someone else’s experiences, good or bad. Which is why there are so many compelling abortion stories being told in film across a variety of genres—from dramas, to mainstream rom-coms, to vulgar teen comedies, horror movies and beyond. Below, we’ve picked out five great indies—two dramas and three unabashed comedies—capturing just a fraction of the scope of experiences surrounding the termination of an unwanted pregnancy; great stories that deserve an audience....

A modern-day Ray Harryhausen (VFX creator on Mighty Joe Young and Clash of the Titans), Tippett embarked on Mad God’s first scenes more than 30 years ago in his free time, revisiting the project 20 years later to finish the job with the help of friends and volunteers. In 2012, he created a Kickstarter campaign to complete the film, which features an outstanding variety of hellish landscapes and environments. The film feels like the fever dreams of all the greatest horror writers in history, punctuated by the fear of John Milton’s Paradise Lost, with echoes of the Second World War....

Luckily, Film Independent’s January 6 Spirit Awards Nominee Brunch in West Hollywood offered plenty of reason to rise ‘n shine: great food, creative camaraderie and $150,000 in cash grants, awarded to five different up-and-coming and mid-career filmmakers. And as LA braced for some much-needed rain the 2018 nominees arrived, eager to interact—as both fans and colleagues—to celebrate a pretty amazing film year. But as fun as it is to watch celebs like Daniel Kaluuya, Salma Hayek Pinault and Timothée Chalamet brush shoulders over champagne flutes of neon orange mimosa, the true purpose of Saturday’s event was to award $150,000 in filmmaker grants—fully double the amount of award money given out in 2017 and featuring two brand-new grants....

First, let’s talk about Closing Night. Presumably, erstwhile big screen Superman and occasionally mustachioed Mission: Impossible antagonist Henry Cavill doesn’t have a whole lot of time in-between mega-blockbusters to make taut indie thrillers, right? So when he does, you know it must be something special. Which is precisely the case with first-time director David Raymond’s new psychological crime drama Nomis. Also starring Sir Ben Kingsley, Nathan Fillion, Minka Kelly, Alexandra Daddario and Stanley Tucci, the film’s plot is thus: when the police trap an online predator, they soon realize that the extent of his crimes goes far beyond that of his own psychological trauma....

If you somehow missed the only animated feature you absolutely needed to see in 2001, Spirited Away was written and directed by the renowned Hayao Miyazaki, and dives in to a magically meaningful world full of witches and spirits, all seen through the eyes of ten year old Chihiro, who takes a job at a mystical bath house to try and figure out how to save her parents, who have been transformed into pigs due to a curse....

Following the screening, Film Independent at LACMA curator Elvis Mitchell sat down with co-directors Dayton and Faris (Little Miss Sunshine), and actors Austin Stowell and Natalie Morales for a conversation about the making of the film. Dayton and Faris said they approached the project as a contemporary story, not wanting to judge the era or get overly bogged down with recreating 1970s aesthetic signifiers. Despite making a two-hour movie filled with events occurring over a three-year time period, the directors’ overall intention was to highlight the love story between King and Marilyn Barnett—King’s secretary and hairdresser—and how this relationship affected the athlete’s work ethic and personal life....

The adaptation comes at the end of a very long and bumpy road. After a rights struggle with Paramount, which optioned two Bosch books in 1994 but never adapted them, Connelly bought the character rights back in 2011, reportedly spending $3 million of his own money. Slated for an early 2015 release, the stories on the series will be culled from three books with a mixture of new material that Connelly says will be “true to the city of Los Angeles and the character of Harry Bosch....

DO THE RIGHT THING! (1989) Director: Spike Lee Starring: Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, John Turturro, Spike Lee Why We Love It: Early in his career just as his star was rising, iconic indie filmmaker Spike Lee made what would become one cinema’s most quintessential “summer” movies (and one of its most indispensible movies in general). On the hottest day of the year in Brooklyn, NY, tensions rise in Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood, historically populated by a majority of Italian-American families....

COOLEY HIGH (1975) Where You Can Watch: Vudu Director: Michael Schultz Starring: Glynn Turman, Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs Why We Love It: Years before the ascendancy of Spike Lee director Michael Schultz took Blaxploitation to the next level, using his work to take on heavy topics affecting the African-American community while also exploring themes that are binding on a universal human level. Glynn Turman and Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs star as Preach and Cochise, two best friends on their way to graduating from Chicago’s Cooley High....

When I first came to the US to study film, I was fascinated by how much Japanese culture has been blended into American culture. It was then that I realized why Hollywood culture is called “international culture,” because of the international market for Hollywood films. We basically familiarize ourselves with American perspectives of the world and American culture in our countries. However, there are certain aspects that I could not agree with, and that even though Japan is not a perfect country, I believe Hollywood could learn some from my country....

Joining Ross were panelists Miriam Cutler, a film composer best known for her documentary work (The Hunting Ground, Ghosts of Abu Ghraib), music producer and composer Tyler Bates (Guardians of the Galaxy films, 300), film composer Rob Simonsen (The Spectacular Now, Gifted) and music producer, film composer and current Nine Inch Nails band member Atticus Ross (The Book of Eli, The Social Network). AN UNLIKELY CAREER PATH One of the most interesting parts of the panel was learning how a group with such a diverse set of films under their belts each got set on the path of becoming composers....

Such feelings were shared, intimately and without hesitation, during the very first session of the 2022 Film Independent Directors Close-Up. Moderated by Film Independent President Josh Welsh, the annual “The Spirit of Independence” panel featured Best Director nominees Janicza Bravo (Zola), Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Lost Daughter), Lauren Hadaway (The Novice), Mike Mills (C’mon, C’mon) and—dialing in from Sweden!—Ninja Thyberg (Pleasure). Series passes for the Directors Close-Up are still on sale, with both online and in-person sessions, to be held at the Landmark Theatres in West LA....

Documentary filmmaker and Film Independent Fellow Marah Strauch (Documentary Lab 2011, Fast Track 2010) will be premiering her debut feature, Sunshine Superman, at the Toronto International Film Festival later today. We caught up with Strauch to ask her about her film, her experience in the Labs and how it feels to be taking her first feature to one of North America’s most high-profile film festivals. “We couldn’t be more excited to be premiering there,” Strauch said....

The movie—which premiered opening night of the 2016 Sundance Film Festival—is an auspicious change of pace for Kelly, best known previously as a TV comedy writer whose credits include (among others) The Onion News Network, Broad City and Saturday Night Live. In fact, Kelly (along with writing partner Sarah Scheider) will serve as Head Writer for SNL’s upcoming 42nd season, beginning later this year. But according to Kelly, Other People is a far more accurate and unmediated representation of his true creative voice—not surprising, given how closely the content of the film hews to Kelly’s own life....

In many ways, fostering the careers of emerging film directors is a lot like growing vegetables in a neighborhood garden. It takes the care and attention of an entire community with the experience and insight to know what they’re doing. Extending the farm-to-table analogy, Film Independent is proud to announce the latest “crop” (see what we did there?) of participants invited to be part of our 2016 Directing Lab, which officially launched this Tuesday, February 2....

Now in its 21st year, Fast Track seeks to inject some much-needed capital and support into a diverse range of deserving independent film projects, both fiction and nonfiction. Taking place online December 4–6, the program is an intensive four-day film-financing market; participating filmmakers are connected with established financiers, production companies, agents, managers and other pros who can move their current projects forward. “This year’s Fast Track line-up of projects reflects the current landscape’s desire for bold, innovative and entertaining films....

Tell us about Day Out of Days. What is the film about and why was it important to you to tell this story? Day Out of Days is a female-driven narrative about a 40-year old actress who fights to find meaning in her life and career in an ever-youthful world. My intent was to create a well rounded profile about someone who is going through a moment of crisis and how they get out of it....

It’s only been four short months since we first hoisted our Fiscal Sponsorship shingle high above the Film Independent storefront, offering filmmakers an exciting new way to access institutional grants and offer tax-deductible benefits to project donors. Already, 11 separate projects (learn about them here) have become our partners through the program, amplifying the fundraising potential of their own features—both narrative and documentary. Need a quick refresher about how it all works?...

But maybe you’re curious how some of those prior subjects have turned out. Well hey, you’re in luck! Once again it’s time for another FiSpo Update highlighting the recent achievements of previous Fiscal Spotlight subjects. Film Independent’s Fiscal Sponsorship program opens the door to nonprofit funding for independent filmmakers and media artists. The projects and makers participating in the program express a uniqueness of vision, celebrate diversity and advance the craft of filmmaking through the creation of these special works....