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A deep dive into the emergence and success of independent filmmaking in America
A Los Angeles Times Bestseller
The most important development in American culture of the last two decades is the emergence of independent cinema as a viable alternative to Hollywood. Indeed, while Hollywood’s studios devote much of their time and energy to churning out big-budget, star-studded event movies, a renegade independent cinema that challenges mainstream fare continues to flourish with strong critical support and loyal audiences.
Cinema of Outsiders is the first and only comprehensive chronicle of contemporary independent movies from the late 1970s up to the present. From the hip, audacious early works of maverick David Lynch, Jim Jarmusch, and Spike Lee, to the contemporary Oscar-winning success of indie dynamos, such as the Coen brothers (Fargo), Quentin Tarentino (Pulp Fiction), and Billy Bob Thornton (Sling Blade), Levy describes in a lucid and accessible manner the innovation and diversity of American indies in theme, sensibility, and style.
Documenting the socio-economic, political and artistic forces that led to the rise of American independent film, Cinema of Outsiders depicts the pivotal role of indie guru Robert Redford and his Sundance Film Festival in creating a showcase for indies, the function of film schools in supplying talent, and the continuous tension between indies and Hollywood as two distinct industries with their own structure, finance, talent and audience.
Levy describes the major cycles in the indie film movement: regional cinema, the New York school of film, African-American, Asian American, gay and lesbian, and movies made by women. Based on exhaustive research of over 1,000 movies made between 1977 and 1999, Levy evaluates some 200 quintessential indies, including Choose Me, Stranger Than Paradise, Blood Simple, Blue Velvet, Desperately Seeking Susan, Slacker, Poison, Reservoir Dogs, Gas Food Lodging, Menace II Society, Clerks, In the Company of Men, Chasing Amy, The Apostle, The Opposite of Sex, and Happiness.
Cinema of Outsiders reveals the artistic and political impact of bold and provocative independent movies in displaying the cinema of “outsiders”-the cinema of the “other America.”

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Gain a comprehensive understanding of the business of entertainment and learn to successfully engage in all aspects of global production with the revised and updated 4th edition of The Producer’s Business Handbook. Learn how to cultivate relationships with key industry players including domestic and foreign studios, agencies, attorneys, talent, completion guarantors, banks, and private investors.

This edition has been updated to include the latest opportunities presented by changing technology and their impact on the producer’s ability to brand, monetize, finance and globally release content. Also included is new information on audience, earning, distribution and funding opportunities created by the explosive growth of VR, AR, 360 and gaming, as well as the rapid conversion to OTT.

Additional features include:

• Completely updated production financing worksheets – an essential tool for producers;

• Expanded information for low-budget independent producers, internationally-based producers, producers using government funding, and film school students alike;

• Coverage of China’s changing entertainment landscape, including their entertainment consumption, their commitment to produce content for the big global territories, and more;

• New, full-color illustrations and graphics that provide a visual representation of complex topics.

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Known for a cerebral internalization of characterization, a technical mastery of extreme emotions, and a singular brand of icy intellectualism, Huppert’s performances continue to impress, stun and surprise audiences. By focusing on several theoretical questions that relate to image, identity, sexuality and place, this volume situates Huppert’s star persona in the more practical creative contexts of performance, authorship, genre and collaboration. This volume contrasts complementary critical accounts of her stardom by working across the different periods and territories of her career.

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