Everywhere Ive gone at this festival, the conversation the obsession, really has been about new distribution models.
If you listen up, theres some awfully excited chatter.
Independent filmmakers are going to take control of their destiny!
Theyre going to forge new strategies!
Theyre going to make the technology work for them!
Theyre going to self-distribute!
Theyre going to plan out how to market their movie before the movie has even been made!
(Think Im kidding?
Ive heard that one several times.)
What youre really talking about is giving up the theatrical experience!
Youre giving up the dream of what movies are!
And youre daring to call that a revolution!
Okay, I just had to get that out of my system.
Now lets talk about the real world.
And now, the audio-visual quality may trump anything thats come before.
So whats not to like?
For an increasingly sizable quota of filmmakers, very little.
Its a system and, for a few lucky filmmakers, a living.
But video-on-demand promises something else.
The potential of video-on-demand is vast.
Theyre simply too…quiet.
Katie AseltonsThe Freebieis a sexual-gimmick comedy, likeHumpday, only teensier and fresher.
To recharge their libidos, they agree to each go off and enjoy a one-night stand.
The result is like Escape (The Pina Colada Song) shot on DV by Eric Rohmer.
The actual experiment a clearly terrible idea is the least interesting part of the movie.
Indie film agrees with Dax Shepard he comes off as a fascinatingly affectionate snake.
Yet its been made with great humanity and skill.
Bass Ackwardswas made for $30,000, yet it looks like it was shot by Vilmos Zsigmond.
Phillips eloquent images caress the landscape, and also the fascinating oddballs he finds there.
Its the kind of truly and redemptively quirky cinema that adventurous moviegoers will be grateful to see.
And happy to demand.
