Ted Hope recently gave a keynote address to the FIND Filmmaker Forum in Los Angeles titled: Building A Truly Free Film Culture where he outlines the death of “indi” films and celebrates the birth of Truly Free Films. It is a fascinating read for anyone interested in the former “independent” film. I have cut and pasted it here – but you can go to it via the link above which will also take you to the Truly Free Film Blog – that I will also be posting on.
A THOUSAND PHOENIX RISING
How The New Truly Free Filmmaking Community Will Rise From Indie’s Ashes
Film Independent Filmmakers’ Forum Keynote 9/27/08
I can’t talk about the “crisis†of the indie film industry. There is no crisis. The country is in crisis. The economy is in crisis. We, the filmmakers, aren’t in crisis.
The business is changing, but for us –us who are called Indie Filmmakers — that’s good that the business is changing. Filmmaking is an incredible privilege and we need to accept it as such – and accept the full responsibility that comes with that privilege.
The proclamations of Indie Film’s demise are grossly exaggerated. How can there be a “Death Of Indie†when Indie — real Indie, True Indie — has yet to even live?
Yes, there’s a profound paradigm shift, and that shift is the coming of true independence. The hope of this new independence is being threatened even before it has arrived. Are we going to fight for our independence and can we even shoulder the responsibility that independence requires? That is: will we ban together and work for our communal needs? Are we ready to leave dreams of stardom and wealth behind us? Continue reading →