Independent Movies

Two years ago, filmmakers would roll into the Sundance Film Festival confident that buyers would be willing to shell out $5 million to acquire their arty works, complete with a promise of a theatrical release. A lot has changed since then. The economy cratered, and dozens of independent films --including Sundance alumni "Hamlet 2" and "The Wackness" -- tanked. It was inevitable that this year's festival would be soft.

For years, filmmakers flocked to the Cannes Film Festival to sell their independently financed movies, confident they'd soon see their work exhibited in movie theaters. Like so many show business dreams, those visions have been vanishing quickly as numerous distributors of film-festival fare closed their doors after losing money or corporate support. But there's a potential savior on the horizon called video on demand -- and it may be hiding somewhere inside your cable television box.

Walt Disney Co., looking to rein in costs at its Hollywood studio as it focuses on mainstream movies, is slashing staff by 70% at its Miramax Films specialty label and is substantially reducing the number of pictures it releases. The retrenchment, which has been foreshadowed in Disney Chief Executive Robert Iger's strategy to emphasize family and "branded" films, comes quickly on the heels of the recent ouster of former Disney Studios Chairman Dick Cook. The former movie chief left abruptly last month under pressure from Iger, who had been unhappy with the studio's direction and performance.

British director Alex Cox made his name in the 1980s with two cult hits, the nihilist fantasy "Repo Man" (1984) and the punk valentine "Sid & Nancy" (1986). His third feature, "Walker" (1987), finally arriving on DVD this week (Criterion, $39.95), was the last film he made in Hollywood.

An early poster and the website for the devastatingly powerful documentary “Haze” proclaims, "Coming to a theater near you." Yet, as the makers of the film about college binge drinking learned earlier this year, theatrical distributors were hardly rushing to make that promise a reality, and it became obvious that "Haze" would never reach the multiplex. With many documentaries, such news can mark the end of the road.

The do-it-yourself movement has transformed music, home improvement, political action and even comic book publishing. Now the DIY cause is starting to upend movie distribution, and is no longer a scarlet letter that filmmakers labored to hide. Not that long ago, any movie being distributed by its director or producer was considered damaged goods: If not a single legitimate distributor wanted to release a film, it simply had to be agony to watch.

Producer William Keenan was about to close a deal on a movie about the early years of Jesus Christ recently when all hell broke loose on Wall Street. Despite a "built-in marketing angle" featuring arguably the world's most recognizable name, "The Aquarium Gospel" lost its $25 million in financing after a lender that previously committed to the project suddenly backed out.

Bullying is not just an epidemic in American schools, but an increasingly brutal worldwide phenomenon that can result in damaged psyches and death, as the headlines too often reveal. That's what led to the making of "Ben X," an award-winning drama from Belgium opening Friday at the Nuart Theatre.

"Ballast," an austere drama about a grieving man who forms a bond with a woman and her young son; "Frozen River," a somber tale about the relationship between two poverty-stricken women; and "Rachel Getting Married," an intimate drama about a young woman confronting her demons at her sister's nuptials, dominated the nominations for the 2009 Film Independent's Spirit Awards on Tuesday, earning six each.

Veteran Los Angeles film producer Leslie Urdang stands among the most fortunate independent filmmakers. One of 1,026 submissions, Urdang's low-budget "Adam," an uplifting love story featuring a man with Asperger's syndrome, was announced Wednesday as part of the lineup of titles competing in January's Sundance Film Festival, which programmers say could be more upbeat and accessible than recent gatherings.