With the upcoming 25th anniversary of iconic found footage horror movie, “The Blair Witch Project” (1999), Lionsgate and Blumhouse have announced their collaboration on a revival. According to a press release from Lionsgate: Jason Blum, CEO of Blumhouse, will be working with producer of “Blair Witch” (2016) Roy Lee. In his announcement, chairman of Lionsgate, Adam Fogelson, revealed this will be “the first film in a multi-picture pact with Blumhouse reimagining horror classics from the Lionsgate library.” The aim of these revivals is to introduce the films to a new generation of horror enthusi ..read more

“The Zone Of Interest” is the latest Oscar-winning Holocaust film, but Hollywood has long had an obsession with Jewish victimhood. Why are we so obsessed with Holocaust films? According to Rich Brownstein, author of “Holocaust Cinema Complete,” there have been almost 450 Holocaust films made by 45 countries since 1945. Compared to other topics outside the Jewish sphere, Holocaust films aren’t as prolific as they may seem, but as Brownstein explains in his book, “of the 77 American-produced or co-produced Holocaust-related feature films, 21 have won or been nominated for at least one Oscar, wit ..read more

Roger Corman, the prolific filmmaker known as the “Pope of Pop Cinema” and and “The King of Cult” passed away peacefully at the age of 98. A trailblazer in the world of independent cinema, Corman’s career spanned more than six decades, during which he produced over 300 films—directing around 50 of them—that left an indelible mark on the industry. Corman specialized in fast-paced, low-budget genre movies, mainly horror, westerns, action, and science fiction, that he wrote, produced, and occasionally directed. His debut as a producer came with the 1954 film “Monster from the Ocean Floor,” and he ..read more

American filmmaker John Waters will make his return to the big screen after twenty years for an adaptation of his debut novel, Liarmouth: A Feel-Bad Romance. The book, published in 2022, opens with con artist Marsha “Liarmouth” Sprinkle on the run following a heist she carried out with Daryl, her partner-in-crime, whom  she’s promised sex to once a year. Rumors that Aubrey Plaza would star as Sprinkle surfaced months prior in a number of news publications — however these rumors were dispelled by Waters. The filmmaker released a statement to Baltimore Sun, stating, “While I am thrilled and ..read more

There are a plethora of ways to celebrate Earth Day, like taking a walk in nature or practicing more sustainable consumption habits. Here at The Independent we’re taking a look at five independent experimental films that make us think about the intricacies of the planet itself, and those who inhabit it. These films, varying in format and genre, all share one focus, besides their experimental natures, which is maintaining respect for our planet. From documentaries providing real life examples of the ways in which the Earth provides for us, to a striking example of Earth’s birth through a black ..read more

I sat down with a PR professional in the film industry for an inside look into anime, awards campaigns and what it means to work in animation distribution.  *Editor’s Note: Staff Writer Grace Rubin is a cousin of Lucy Rubin. “It was a moment I will remember for the rest of my life,” Lucy Rubin, the Director of PR for GKIDS Films animation, described her first time holding an Oscar for Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Boy and the Heron.” “Up until this year, GKIDS Films had had 12 nominations, 13 including ‘The Boy and The Heron’, and we kept calling this ‘Lucky 13.’ We really wanted to win it.” Desp ..read more

The American Cinematheque has always been known for their unique festivals; some past ones include The All Night Horrorthon at the Aero, Mods & Rockers Festival and the Screwball Comedy Festival. This year American Cinematheque is slated to continue this tradition of distinctive festivals with the This Is Not A Fiction film festival. This Is Not A Fiction, scheduled to run from April 10–18, 2024, is a nine-day celebration of documentaries and non-fiction storytelling that will take place across three different venues in LA/Santa Monica: Aero Theatre, Egyptian Theatre and Los Feliz. A total ..read more

The Festival de Cannes, the most prestigious film gathering in the world, has just announced the official lineup for 2024. Released on April 11, the lineup for this year’s festival features a variety of works by independent filmmakers. Greta Gerwig is presiding over this year’s jury for the 77th annual Cannes Film Festival, which is scheduled to start on May 14. Prior to the press conference, a few films had been confirmed to debut at the festival, including Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis,” George Miller’s “Furiosa” and Kevin Costner’s Western “Horizon: An American Saga.” Opening night of ..read more

 Wicked Queer, the fourth-longest LGBTQ+ film festival in North America, is back for its 40th anniversary. Film programmer, George Mansour, founded Wicked Queer in 1984, Downtown Boston, with the effort to promote queer voices via storytelling and filmmaking, unite community and keep the verve of queer history alive. Sponsored by Queer Film Institute (QFI), this festival will run from April 5th to the 14th, and will feature long and short form narrative films, as well as documentaries from 27 countries available both online and in person at varied Boston venues.  The opening night be ..read more

Within nearly every subcategory of the horror genre, women fulfill a unique role as both villain and victim. Barbara Creed, a feminist film theorist with her work focusing on the horror genre, has identified several character archetypes. Women are thus deemed virtuous or monstrous by the viewer through the lens of patriarchal ideology.  One such archetype Creed identifies in her 1993 book, “The Monstrous-Feminine,” is the archaic mother. Borrowing a term coined by psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, Creed explains how matriarchal figures in horror are depicted as monstrous because of their prima ..read more