It's no secret that Hollywood often scours the ever-expanding pool of indie filmmakers for new talent. This year, Lena Dunham's low-budget dramedy led to a gig creating an HBO show with Judd Apatow, and Gareth Edwards scored a spot directing a Godzilla remake thanks to his festival hit Monsters. But equally often, the directors behind some of the most memorable indie films of each year get overlooked and end up starting the process of scavenging for a small amount of money to make a new film all over again. Here are five such filmmakers whom Hollywood should pay more attention to ASAP.
Granted, in some admirable cases, filmmakers stay independent by choice. More power to them! It's also true that indie filmmakers sometimes end up getting run over by studios and churning out mid-level genre fare that seems as uninspired as their commercial counterparts. All the same, the following filmmakers have shown potential to take accessible material and put a creative spin on it, and if nothing else, it'd be nice not to wait around for them to scrounge up money before we get to see some new work.
That said, if any more comic book adaptations, remakes or "reboots" get thrown their way, I'm retracting my plea.
Filmmaker: Noah Buschel
The Argument: His Neo-Noir The Missing Person premiered at Sundance, then quickly came and went from theaters a year later. It was disappointing that so few people saw the film, because Buschel has a much better grasp on the spirit of the classic hard-boiled detective stories than the recent post-modern attempts like Bored to Death or even Thomas Pynchon's novel Inherent Vice. His film was stylish, thrilling, funny and managed to pack an emotional wallop to boot. He also shows a rare dedication to story and narrative that both indie and mainstream filmmakers often overlook. Plus, casting Michael Shannon as a down-and-out private detective was a stroke of genius.
Current Activity: Currently in post-production on another indie film called Sparrow Dance.
Filmmaker: Julia Loktev
The Argument: Granted, Loktev's debut effort Day Night Day Night, a provocative thriller about a young female terrorist trying to bomb Times Square, was probably a little too controversial and low-budget to register on the mainstream radar. But Loktev proves that she can build suspense and tension with the best of them during the nail-biter climax, which she filmed with no permits in the heart of Times Square. I'm betting she could do wonders with a female-centric thriller.
Current Activity: In post-production on an indie thriller with Gael Garcia Bernal called The Loneliest Planet.
Filmmaker: Andrea Arnold
The Argument: Arnold most recently received recognition in the States for her intimate character study Fish Tank, which featured a performance by Katie Jarvis that should have been honored by the Oscars. But before she proved that she could cast and direct actors with the best of them, Arnold also proved her genre skills with the harrowing surveillance thriller Red Road.
Current Activity: She's finishing up an adaptation of Wuthering Heights with a mostly unknown cast which will hopefully further prove her versatility.
Filmmaker: David Michôd
The Case: It's no secret that here at Movieline, we are sort of fans of Michôd's wicked drama Animal Kingdom, which has actually picked up more buzz after its theatrical run thanks to the lovely Jacki Weaver's Oscar nomination. Michôd showed a deft handling of actors, style, tone and story in his debut that often eludes more experienced filmmakers well into their career. More please!
Current Activity: It looks promising, as Michôd's name has been popping up on some wish lists. Unfortunately, so far, wish lists don't mean a thing, according to Michôd.
Filmmaker: Eugenio Mira
The Case: If nothing else, Mira teased out a totally affecting, restrained and believable performance from none other than Corey Feldman, who played a slow everyman in The Birthday. The film, which transitions from some strange David Lynch/Federico Fellini hybrid to full-on H.P. Lovecraft-inspired chaos, is admittedly a bit uneven. The transition between the suspenseful, darkly-funny build up and the payoff is clumsy and over-expository. All the same, the first half of the movie is some of the most genre-bending fun I've had in years, and with the right script, Mira could hit it out of the park.
Current Activity: His recent historical romance/horror film Agnosia got some love from Fantastic Fest, but hasn't received much other attention stateside. No new directing projects announced.