An insider's nuts-and-bolts dissection of the gritty machinery of independent film financing and distribution. The modern ``indie'' film movement was born in 1984 with Jim Jarmusch's Stranger Than Paradise, which proved with the force of a revelation that an important, good-looking movie could be made for less than $100,000. Directors began to compete over who would do the most with the lowest budget, with Richard Rodriguez's $7,000 El Mariachi the bargain-basement winner. But no film that makes it to the local multiplex really costs so little. El Mariachi, for example, required more than $100,000 just for reworking the sound. The lowball budgets were just to get the film ``in the can,'' so that it could be shown to someone like John Pierson. While Pierson has produced a few films, the niche he carved for himself was providing finishing money for films and then, as a ``producer's rep,'' finding a distributor—crucial if a film is ever to have a theatrical run and get proper publicity. Over the last ten years, from Roger and Me to The Thin Blue Line and Slacker, there were few independent films he wasn't somehow involved with. In Hollywood terms the money at stake was chump change—less than might be spent on Demi Moore's entourage—but the 15-plus films Pierson helped were, almost without exception, quirky, provocative, utterly original, and could never have been made in Hollywood. With a swashbuckler's zest, Pierson recounts his various deals and machinations (usefully documented by budgets and deal memos) as he fought to get the filmmakers—and himself—the best possible deal. He also takes pains to note that most independent films are never distributed, languishing instead in the uncinematic darkness of the director's basement—$20,000 worth of celluloid playing only to the plaudits of dust. While the specialized nature of the material will probably limit its general appeal, this book should be required reading for all would-be filmmakers.
Pub Date: Jan. 25, 1996
ISBN: 0-7868-6189-4
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Hyperion
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 1995
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
