MetaFilter posts tagged with independentfilm

Carnival of Souls

Iridic — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 12:44:42 -0800

Harold "Herk" Harvey, a director of educational and industrial films for the Centron Corporation, was driving through Utah when he spotted the derelict Saltair Resort squatting on a mudded lakebed. The sight charged him with ideas, and when he returned home he recruited his Centron colleages and an unknown method actress to make a psychological horror movie. The atmospheric result, shot over three weeks at locations in Kansas and Utah, was 1962's Carnival of Souls. Partially annotated YouTube version. Archived Crit erion essays. Criterion Contraption essay. Some of Harvey's Centron shorts: "Speech: Using Your Voice" (1950) "Cheating" (1952) "Why Study Industrial Arts?" (1956) "Shake Hands With Danger" (1980)

Not in the turning into a cockroach type way

zabuni — Sun, 02 Dec 2007 12:20:42 -0800

Independent Filmaking: Kafkaesque Nightmare? Tom DiCillo's new film Delirious stars Steve Buscemi, is currently rated at 85% at Rotten Tomatoes, and yet, it only made $200,000. DiCillo asks Roger Ebert why.

Killer Bean Forever

ducksauce — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 12:57:04 -0800

Jeff Lew, the lead animator on Matrix Reloaded, has after 4 long years of 14 hour days and 7 day work weeks finally completed his masterpiece: Killer Bean Forever. This is a momumental follow-up to the previous two short films, which were impressive projects on their own.

"Really? Worst film you ever saw. Well, my next one will be better."

absalom — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 17:56:57 -0800

Last summer, Uwe Boll took on four of his many critics. The "Teutonic Terror" (an amateur boxer who spent months in training for the event) so throughly savaged his opponents that three of them became gushing fans. Sure, he exploits an enormous German tax loophole to make dreadful films, but maybe he's just an industry-savvy Ed Wood. His most recent bit of empassioned lunacy suggests so. Hell, he has one more doctorate in literature than I do, and even the Wired guys though one part of Postal was funny.

Children of God film to premiere September 6 on HBO.

k8t — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 11:55:21 -0800

Children of God film to premiere September 6 on HBO. Filmmaker Noah Thomson goes in search of the young adults who have made a life for themselves outside of the controversial Christian cult "The Children of God." [previously] Many children of this cult have failed to thrive in the outside world and committed suicide, unable to adjust to life in a society indifferent to their abuse as children. Premieres Thursday September 6 on HBO. Link to trailer (sound is low). Jane Magazine has an article on the group and Noah Thompson in its June/July issue. [link to text and PDF scans].

A Spinal Tap for the geek set.

goodnewsfortheinsane — Fri, 15 Jun 2007 19:26:50 -0800

JP Nicholas Reilly is a theatre (that's "thee-AY-ter") artist who takes himself very, very seriously. Most of his knowledge of the world comes from Hollywood blockbusters. Although his previous plays have sucked big fat hairy sweaty donkey balls, his latest production - about Hitler in college - promises to be his magnum opus.

And if that doesn't convince you, there's the wikification of the world, a phone call from Ira Glass, a Wii swapped for a Super Nintendo, and the Holy Fucking Grail. Watch.

Superheroism On A Budget

grabbingsand — Mon, 10 Jul 2006 05:49:34 -0800

Hero Tomorrow. Superman Returns had a budget of $260M. X3? $210M. So what kind of superhero film can you make for a mere $100K? Check out Hero Tomorrow, making its big screen debut next week at the San Diego ComicCon.

Why can't I be Mr. Black?

fenriq — Tue, 08 Nov 2005 16:49:27 -0800

Empire Online's 50 Greatest Independent Films
I had no idea The Terminator was an independent film but they explain (a little) how they choose the movies as being made with "an independent spirit".

And if you think they got some wrong or missed the boat entirely, let 'em know. I, for one, wholeheartedly agree with #1, though I'm sure some of you will not.

Coffee and Cigarettes, anybody?

matteo — Sun, 28 Mar 2004 16:35:10 -0800

"What did you think of Seabiscuit?" the young man added helpfully. Even the deadpan Jarmusch laughed. Jim Jarmusch's new movie (the first feature-lenght after 1999's Ghost Dog), "Coffee And Cigarettes", is "a droll, ironic look at two of our favorite addictions". The black and white movie (trailer here) has a strange (or Stranger than Paradise?) cast: Roberto Benigni, Steven Wright, Steve Buscemi, Iggy Pop, Tom Waits, Cate Blanchett, Meg White, Jack White, Alfred Molina, Steve Coogan, GZA, RZA, Bill Murray, ... Jarmusch's philosophy: "When you're watching movies, the guy's girlfriend calls him, she's having something bad happening, and he says, 'I'll take a cab. I'll be right over.' Cut to him getting out of the cab. And my brain always says, what about the cab ride? The incidental thing, the thing that's not the destination?". (more inside)