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As one of Hollywood’s most highly regarded diversity and inclusion initiatives, the launch of each year’s new cohort is always an occasion for liberal overuse of the party-popper emoji. Today, the PI ranks add 30 new faces as the program—a free, nine-month program for writers, directors, producers, editors, cinematographers, animators, programmers and entertainment execs from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds—announces its Class of 2023. Project Involve alumni include Andrew Ahn (Fire Island), Lulu Wang (The Farewell), Linda Yvette Chávez, Marvin Lemus and Aaliyah Williams (Gentefied), Effie T....

Dry those tears, Mad Men fans. Before we slip into full-on mourning mode, we’re throwing a goodbye party! Those of us who can’t imagine life without Don Draper and his shenanigans can celebrate the end of an era together. On Sunday, May 17 at The Theatre at Ace Hotel DTLA, Film Independent is hosting a Live Read of a classic Mad Men script (The Wheel!) directed by Jason Reitman, followed by a screening of the series finale—with the most special guests you could ever hope for: Matthew Weiner, Jon Hamm, January Jones, Elisabeth Moss, John Slattery and Kiernan Shipka....

Even if you don’t know much about “minimalism” as a genre of music, you’ve certainly already been swept away in its hypnotically churning repetitions in film scores like American Beauty, The Hours, The Piano or even, a long time ago, in Psycho. Minimalism began in the early 1960s as a rejection by modern composers of complexity and a search for spirituality in music. Minimalism incorporated endlessly repeating phrases and non-instrumental sounds (either produced or found recordings), including small snippets of spoken dialogue....

If you’ve watched the trailer for Season 2 you know it’s filled with an impressive roster of comedian cameos, much like Season 1 was, including Key and Peele’s Jordan Peele, Amy Poehler, Seth Rogen, Lizzy Caplan and Laura Dern, among so many others. The first episode got off to a bizarre and hilarious start with “Cake Train,” a sketch in which different women, including comedian Chelsea Peretti, drop everything when they hear the sound of a train approaching....

Look, no one wants to pull you away from those all-important editing sessions, ADR recordings or last-minute appeals to the wealthy dentists in your life for finishing funds. We just want a quick moment of your time to share some important LA Film Festival statistics. The numbers don’t lie. The LA Film Festival is an amazing platform for the next generation of diverse, innovative filmmakers—the perfect venue for you to share your work with an enthusiastic audience of film lovers and industry professionals....

In this special guest post, Vurma talks about what it was like to release a film during this very weird, very challenging pandemic year—and how Fi’s Sloan Distribution Grant helped. Learn more about Alfred P. Sloan grants here. Based on Stanislaw M. Ulam’s autobiography of the same name, Adventures of a Mathematician is the thought-provoking story of a Jewish-Polish mathematician who, in the 1930s, flees to the US, where he helps to build the world’s first nuclear bombs in an attempt to save his family back home in Europe....

After the heartfelt opening, Jason Bateman, Mae Whitman, Stephen Tobolowsky, Jeffrey Ross and Elizabeth Reaser joined Reitman onstage to kick off the reading. The night was special not only due to the significance of the film and Ramis’ legacy, but because Reitman chose an earlier version of the script, one that included noticeable differences from the film’s theatrical release. In this version, as Phil Connors (Bateman, expertly channeling Bill Murray’s classic deadpan delivery) begins to enjoy the perks of not having to worry about the consequences of his actions, Phil goes all out and robs a bank at gun point, even introducing himself to the tellers he assaults....

But that’s okay, because for most of the decade LA has boasted at least one marquee cultural event all it’s own: Jason Reitman and Film Independent’s Live Read series, which re-casts some of cinema’s most celebrated screenplays with top talent for a raw, one-off, one-of-a-kind read-through event—never to be repeated or re-staged. But much to the chagrin of territorial West Coast culture vultures, the event known as Live Reads are officially expanding their presence to the Eastern seaboard....

They all raised a portion of their budgets through Indiegogo, the global web-based crowdfunding website headquartered in San Francisco. Ten years ago, financing a project through crowdfunding was just a budding concept; now it’s a ten billion dollar industry. For many young, up-and-coming independent filmmakers, crowdfunding is proving to be a viable option. “It’s not just about raising money,” says Marc Hofstatter, Head of Film for Indiegogo. “If that’s all you’re looking for, not to insult you, but you’re being shortsighted....

To that end, now that the final yards of canvas tent have been rolled up on the Santa Monica Pier and returned to storage for yet another year, Film Independent now focuses on the work that is at the core of our mission: to champion creative independence in visual storytelling in all its forms and to foster a culture of inclusion. This support of a global community of artists and audiences who embody diversity, innovation, curiosity and uniqueness of vision is ever-present in our robust Artist Development Labs and Programs, proudly celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2023....

On March 8, Lean on Pete screened early for Film Independent Members at LACMA’s Bing Theater, followed by conversation between Haigh (Weekend, 45 Years, HBO’s Looking) and Film Independent at LACMA curator Elvis Mitchell. Based on a book by novelist Willy Vautin, the film will be released in theaters April 6. Lean on Pete is somewhat unconventional in structure, something Haigh said he’s fond of using. The main character Charley (18-year-old rising star Charlie Plummer) is a passive character, content to sit back and react to the supporting cast rather than drive much of the action himself....

Following the afternoon’s networking events – the Industry Connect meetings and the Forum Welcome Reception – we’re excited to bring you the Filmmaker Keynote from dynamic writer/director duo Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert – aka Daniels, the filmmakers behind this year’s indie smash, Everything Everywhere All At Once – and finally, ending the evening with a screening of A24’s The Inspection, followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers. For the first time in the Forum’s history, we are offering a hybrid format, with the rest of the jam-packed week filled to the brim with virtual and livestreamed panels, case studies, and workshops!...

Maybe you’ve walked past the Treasure Mountain Inn at the top of Park City’s Main Street during the last week in January and wondered: What’s going on in there? For 21 years the Slamdance Film Festival has been offering a laid-back alternative to the frenzy of Sundance. It’s billed as the only film festival run entirely by filmmakers, with alumni from each year returning to program the festival the following year....

Diversity programs can undoubtedly be a great way for writers, directors, performers, producers and other talent hailing from underrepresented backgrounds to get their foot in the door. But how do participants prepare to navigate these programs in order to maximize their chances of future success? And just what happens to these fellows, exactly, once their programs are over? This was the subject of Film Independent’s We The People panel “Mind the Gap: Life Beyond Diversity Program” at the 2018 LA Film Festival, September 23....

With these hits has come a shift in Hollywood’s conventional wisdom: that films with diverse casts and creators are succeeding not despite inclusive representation and themes but because of them. Such was the subject of the September 23 We The People Inclusion Summit panel “We Got Receipts: Black Panther and Beyond,” appearing at the 2018 LA Film Festival. Moderated by Kate Hagen, writer and Director of Community at The Black List, the panel featured Black List Founder Franklin Leonard, The Big Sick co-writers (and Film Independent Spirit Award winners) Emily V....

The chosen filmmakers will jump into an intensive seven-week program designed to provide creative feedback and help them strategize marketing and distribution of their films. Currently in post-production, the projects drill down into such interesting subject matter as: American carnivals and their Mexican migrant workforce, a legendary Rolling Stone journalist and a woman who becomes the world’s first armless pilot. The Fellows will be mentored by an impressive group of filmmakers: Doug Blush (editor, Twenty Feet from Stardom), Laura Gabbert (No Impact Man), Caroline Libresco (Sunset Story), Linda Goldstein-Knowlton (Somewhere Between), Jeff Malmberg (Marwencol) and Chris Shellen (Marwencol)....

But looking forward necessarily means looking back. And 2015 was a banner year for Film Independent, with the continued success of the Spirit Awards and LA Film Festival, not to mention numerous Programs like Artist Development, the Film Independent Forum, Directors Close-Up and a continued expansion of our resources and support for independent filmmakers. Here’s a snapshot of our 2015 Year-in-Review… Pretty cool, huh? What’s more, these figures represent increases in virtually every category over 2014....

Today, the duo shares with us what went into crafting Cassie’s unforgettable look for the final sequence of the film (which, SPOILERS!) and why she sports a mismatched pastel manicure throughout the film. ANGIE WELLS & DANIEL CURET One of the most lighthearted and hilarious scenes is when Cassie and Ryan (Bo Burnham) lip-synch to Paris Hilton’s “Stars Are Blind” in that scene in the pharmacy. Curet: Originally, I wanted to have low pigtail braids on Cassie for that scene....

But let’s be honest. Being annoyed by your fellow moviegoers is a two-way street. Annoyance requires the participation of at least two parties: the person being annoying and the person listening who consents to being annoyed. Luckily, there’s one thing that, in my anecdotal experience, is all but guaranteed to quiet down a rowdy theater—a good movie. Movies that really work have the remarkable ability to capture the attention of both parties along the Annoyance Spectrum....

Alumni of the program have included Effie T. Brown (producer, Dear White People), Film Independent Spirit Award winner Andrew Ahn (writer/director, Spa Night), Cherien Dabis (director, Amreeka), Rhys Ernst (director, Transparent) and many more. 2017 even saw a Project Involve produced film, Emergency (directed by Carey Williams, written by Kristen Davila, produced by Joenique Rose and shot by Jomo Fray) play at the Sundance Film Festival in January, where it won a Special Jury Award....