Producers Discuss Rise of Indie Films At Bentonville Film Festival

The producers recognized on Variety’s 10 Producers to Watch list offered a look at the changing film industry during a panel in partnership with the Bentonville Film Festival, where Variety’s Carole Horst led the discussion on the challenges of producing and how independent films are evolving.

Producers don’t play just one role in the filmmaking process. Apoorva Charan (“Take Me Home”) began the panel by sharing what the job entails, which includes reading scripts, seeking talent, raising financing, hiring crew, strategizing distribution and supervising production and budgets.

Producers are partners to the directors, Emily Korteweg (“Splitsville,” “The Last Fix”) said, and it’s the two of them who see the bigger vision of the film.

“To produce, you kind of need to know and understand all aspects of production, from soup to nuts,” said Matthew Miller (“Tony,” “BlackBerry”). “You’re basically getting a group of people together and making something out of nothing, and you’re generally the first person to show belief in this filmmaker, in this script, in this idea.”

Overseeing the filmmaking process includes tackling several challenges, and it’s important to keep an open mind, Charan said. While working on “Take Me Home,” Charan shared they would come up with scenes and rewrite the script on the same day of filming, so relying on a set routine and expectations would hinder the process.

One of the hurdles Stephanie Roush said she faced during “Union County” was getting access to a courtroom and shooting during real sessions. Miller shared that creating the biopic “Tony” was challenging, as they had to go through Anthony Bourdain’s estate.

All the panelists shared one key struggle: finances. This challenge was especially prevalent for independent films, where producers are facing a “fearful marketplace.” Films like “Obsession” do incredibly well, but people don’t fully acknowledge they are made completely independently, Korteweg said.

“Now, financiers might say, ‘Well, why can’t you do it for less and have the same result?’ It’s not how it works,” she said.

There’s currently a significant gap between the funds going into a project’s distribution and the money put into independent films, which could be risky, Luca Intili (“Maddie’s Secret”) said. The consequence is that many independent films are never getting released.

However, there are new financiers popping up, but only if you know where to look. When searching for people to financially back her films, Charan will look at the movie and ask herself, “What are the themes? Where can you find your champions? Where are you going to find people who are as invested emotionally and financially in getting this film made?”

Actors can also create value for a film, Roush said, as having a great script can only do so much if there aren’t great performers to bring it to life. These producers look for projects that resonate with audiences, which is also the goal of most independent films.

Indie films have become more popular in recent years, as there’s been a rise in what Itali calls microbudget cinema. ”It’s like we’re all learning simultaneously that we don’t need huge budgets to make something creative and interesting and well-formed,” he said.

The panelists also praised original storytelling and finding the right filmmaker to bring it to life, which Roush said is essentially like finding the “diamond in the rough.”

“I also think Hollywood has a real habit of chasing the shiniest thing in front of them, and I think the ‘Obsession’ [and] ‘Backrooms’ conversation is really apropos to that,” Roush explained. “And the fact of the matter is, if you look at the history of independent film, chasing those things is not going to lead to the next hit or the next great filmmaker.”

Even with the interest from producers, independent projects aren’t selling out festivals anymore, and smaller distributors can’t afford these films, Miller shared. The panelists agreed film festivals are incredibly important for producers and the film overall. It’s a place for filmmakers to experience the audience’s reaction to the film and have dialogue with the viewers, which allows them to keep creating films, Charan said.

“Regional festivals serve to create community around filmmaking, and I think it allows for more people to see a certain movie that they might not see because it doesn’t get distributed,” said Taylor Shung (“Late Fame,” “My First Film,” “Materialists,” “Peaked”). “It also empowers regional filmmakers to push their own filmmaking, which I think is really exciting.”

Festivals also serve as “talent incubators,” which is incredibly important for young filmmakers, Roush said. They offer some of the earliest forms of validation in their careers, and receiving touchpoints of community and validation aids them in having long careers.

Also at the Bentonville Film Festival, Katherine LaNasa was honored with the Variety Virtuoso Award and joined Horst on stage to discuss her decades-long career and her work on “The Pitt.”

LaNasa shared she’s been a performer for over 40 years and is lucky to work as a storyteller. “Acting has given me such a rich and beautiful life. I love the craft of it, of creating characters and learning new things,” she said. “And some of my most deep and self-reflective moments have been while I’m inhabiting the mind of a fictional character because, ultimately, it’s about understanding them, and therefore understanding myself and other people.”

Starring as charge nurse Dana Evans on “The Pitt,” LaNasa praised the script’s writing for giving her the “elasticity” to make choices that feel natural. LaNasa told Horst the key to tapping into Dana’s character is finding humility.

“There’s so much about her that’s about service, and there’s a kind of deep sense of self and pride that comes from doing that,” she said.