It’s hard to say what’s been the biggest achievement for Daniel over the past few weeks — starting his own studio, Outerboro Films, getting selected as a 2025 Film Independent Documentary Story Lab Fellow, or telling the white supremacist Nick Fuentes that he’s an asshole.
"Polite persistence" -- that's the story of filmmaker Peter McDowell in so many ways, and it's how he brought the film JIMMY IN SAIGON to movie theaters, through May 1st, 2025 in NYC, and then beyond. He's been at work on the film since 2010, and it throws on its head what you might expect from a Vietnam War documentary.
Every Sunday, I'll post a quick video -- and podcast -- about an indie film from at least a year ago. Today's film: MOBILE HOMES (2017).
It takes a really special filmmaker to write, act, direct, produce their debut feature film. Well, let's go to Western Canada to find out in Caitlyn Sponheimer, the dynamo behind the film WILD GOAT SURF (2023), which had its US premiere in the beginning of April.
One of the things that fascinates me about filmmaking is the concept of authenticity. That is, the filmmakers either have to put in the time to do research for a particular film genre (veterans, ethnic films, etc) or they have to live it. For the new film BROTHERS AFTER WAR, my guest Jake Rademacher lived it. It's in his blood -- literally, as many of his siblings serve in the military. I felt honored to talk with a director who…
My guest, Chelsea Christer, is being modest but you can't be just dream adjacent while turning out brilliant, touching, and culturally relevant films like OUT FOR DELIVERY (2025).
Jump into the mosh pit with filmmaker Portlynn Tagavi. We talk about her stunning filmmaking career, animation, Film Independent’s Project Involve, and her brilliant short film, MOSH, which screened at Slamdance this year.
One of one. One of one. One of one. It kept coming back to me that every significant avenue filmmaker Alex Dvorak went into, she was the only one with that path.
