LOS ANGELES (February 25, 2012) – Film Independent, the non-profit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival, handed out top honors to The Artist, The Descendants and Margin Call at this afternoon’s 27^th Film Independent Spirit Awards. My Week With Marilyn, Beginners, 50/50, A Separation and The Interrupters also received awards at the ceremony, held in a tent on the beach in Santa Monica.

Tune in to IFC tonight at 10:00 pm ET/PT to catch all the action at the 2012 Film Independent Spirit Awards, with actor, writer and producer Seth Rogen hosting. Highlights include: John Waters as the Voice of God, musical performances by My Morning Jacket and K’Naan.

The Spirit Awards was the first event to exclusively honor independent film, and over the past 27 years, has become the premier awards show for the independent film community, celebrating films made by filmmakers who embody independence and originality. Artists receiving industry recognition first at the Spirit Awards include Joel & Ethan Coen, Spike Lee, Oliver Stone, Ashley Judd, Robert Rodriguez, David O. Russell, Edward Burns, Aaron Eckhart, Neil LaBute, Darren Aronofsky, Spike Jonze, Charlie Kaufman, Hilary Swank, Marc Forster, Todd Field, Christopher Nolan, Zach Braff, Amy Adams and many more.

This year’s major category winners were The Weinstein Company’s The Artist, which won Best Feature, Best Director, Best Male Lead and Best Cinematography and My Week With Marilyn, which won Best Female Lead; Fox Searchlight’s The Descendants, which won Best Supporting Female and Best Screenplay; Focus Features’ Beginners, which won Best Supporting Male and Pariah, which won the John Cassavetes Award; Summit Entertainment’s 50/50, which won Best First Screenplay; Roadside Attractions’ Margin Call, which won Best First Feature; Sony Pictures Classics’ A Separation, which won Best International Film; and The Cinema Guild’s The Interrupters, which won Best Documentary.

The 5^th annual Robert Altman Award was given to one film’s director, casting director, and ensemble cast. J. C. Chandor’s Margin Call received this award, along with casting directors Tiffany Little Canfield and Bernard Telsey and ensemble cast members Penn Badgley, Simon Baker, Paul Bettany, Jeremy Irons, Mary McDonnell, Demi Moore, Zachary Quinto, Kevin Spacey and Stanley Tucci.

Film Independent, in partnership with NowLive and Yahoo!, streamed a Live Arrivals Show exclusively on Yahoo! Movies (http://movies.yahoo.com) to its audience of more than 26 million US users, across the web, mobile and iOs devices.

Premiere Sponsors are ELLE, Piaget, Jameson® Irish Whiskey, Audi of America, IFC and Principal Sponsors are Stella Artois and Nokia. Onitsuka Tiger is the Official Gift Bag and Staff Gear Sponsor. WireImage is the Official Photographer, American Airlines is the Official Airline and PR Newswire is the Official Breaking News Service of Film Independent. On 3 Productions is the producer of the Official Presenter Gift Lounge and Official Ceremony Gift Bags.  The Official Water of the Spirit Awards is FIJI Water. For more information on the winners, photo galleries, and video clips from the arrivals and show, please visit www.SpiritAwards.com.

The following is a complete list of the winners:

Best Feature                                                            The Weinstein Company

The Artist                                                        Producer: Thomas Langmann

Best Director                                                           The Weinstein Company

Michel Hazanavicius                                       The Artist

Best Screenplay                                          Fox Searchlight

Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash         The Descendants

Best First Feature                                       Roadside Attractions

Margin Call                                                      Director: J.C. Chandor

Producers: Robert Ogden Barnum, Michael Benaroya, Joe Jenckes, Corey Moosa, Neal Dodson, Zachary Quinto

Best First Screenplay                                Summit Entertainment

Will Reiser                                                       50/50

John Cassavetes Award                             Focus Features

(For the best feature made under $500,000)  Writer/Director: Dee Rees

Pariah                                                              Producer: Nekisa Cooper

Best Supporting Female                            Fox Searchlight

Shailene Woodley                                          The Descendants

Best Supporting Male                                 Focus Features

Christopher Plummer                                       Beginners

Best Female                                                 The Weinstein Company

Michelle Williams                                             My Week With Marilyn

Best Male                                                      The Weinstein Company

Jean Dujardin                                                  The Artist

Best Cinematography                                 The Weinstein Company

Guillaume Schiffman                                        The Artist

Best Foreign Film                                        Sony Pictures Classics

A Separation                                                   Director: Asghar Farhadi

Best Documentary                                      The Cinema Guild

The Interrupters                                              Director: Steve James

Producer: Alex Kotlowitz

2012 FILM INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARD WINNERS BY DISTRIBUTOR

The Weinstein Company                               5

Focus Features                                               2

Fox Searchlight                                               2

Roadside Attractions                                       2

The Cinema Guild                                           1

Sony Pictures Classics                                  1

Summit Entertainment                          1

Two new filmmaker grants were awarded during the ceremony. The 2012 Chaz and Roger Ebert Fellowship, which recognizes a social-issue documentary and includes a cash grant of $10,000, was given to Kathrine Fairfax Wright and Malika Zouhali-Worrall, co-directors of the documentary Call Me Kuchu. The film was developed in Film Independent’s 2011 Documentary Lab and has its world premiere at the 2012 Berlin International Film Festival, where it won the Teddy Award for Best Documentary.

The 2012 Giorgio Armani Directing Fellowship, which includes a cash grant of $10,000, was awarded to Grace Lee, director of the documentary American Revolutionary: The Evolution of Grace Lee Boggs. The film, currently in post-production, is in Film Independent’s 2012 Documentary Lab.

On January 14^th, the following winners were honored at the Spirit Awards Filmmaker Grant and Nominee Brunch at BOA Steakhouse in West Hollywood:

The 18^th Annual Audi Someone to Watch Award was given to Mark Jackson, director of Without. The $25,000 unrestricted grant, funded for the first time by Audi, recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not received appropriate recognition.

The 17^th Annual Nokia Truer Than Fiction Award was given to Heather Courtney, director of Where Soldiers Come From. The $25,000 unrestricted grant, funded by Nokia, is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition.

The 15^th Annual Piaget Producers Award was given to Sophia Lin, producer of Take Shelter. The $25,000 unrestricted grant, funded by Piaget, is presented to an emerging producer who, despite highly limited resources demonstrates the creativity, tenacity, and vision required to produce quality, independent films.

The 2^nd Annual Jameson FIND Your Audience Award, which helps one low-budget independent film find a broader audience, was given to Benjamin Murray and Alysa Nahmias, co-directors of Unfinished Spaces. The $40,000 marketing and distribution grant, funded by Jameson® Irish Whiskey, was designed to meet independent filmmakers’ biggest challenge today: How to get their films out into the marketplace.

ATTENDEES:

Joining Sean Mc Manus and Josh Welsh, Co-Presidents of Film Independent, was Host Seth Rogen.

Presenters included: John Waters, Colin Farrell, Kate Beckinsale, Olivia Wilde, Jessica Chastain, Ben Kingsley, William H. Macy, Zoe Saldana, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Elizabeth Banks, Zac Efron, Bryan Cranston, Kirsten Dunst, Anthony Mackie, Chris Pine, Ed Helms, Anna Kendrick, John Hawkes, Jonah Hill, Shailene Woodley, Terrence Howard, Patricia Clarkson, Ethan Hawke, Rashida Jones, Rosario Dawson, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Lucy Liu, Benjamin Bratt, Laura Dern, Goran Visnjic, Michael Moore, Penelope Ann Miller, Anne Heche, Michael Shannon, Giovanni Ribisi, Julia Ormond, Illeana Douglas, Willem Dafoe and Li Bing Bing.

Musical Performers were: My Morning Jacket, K’Naan, Kate Micucci and Garfunkel & Oats

Celebrity guests and nominees included: Michelle Williams, Alexander Payne, Woody Harrelson, Elizabeth Olsen, Dale Dickey, Ron Perlman, Alexander Skarsgård, John C. Reilly, Christopher Plummer, Derek Luke, Zachary Quinto, Steve McQueen, Danny Huston, Adepero Oduye, Jason Isaacs, Olga Kurylenko, Kevin Abrams, Lauren Ambrose, Penn Badgley, Simon Baker, Janet McTeer, Ziyi Zhang, Demián Bichir, Andre Royo, Souléymane Sy Savané, Kiefer Sutherland, Rachael Harris, Brit Marling, Tom McCarthy, Wilmer Valderrama, Matt Bomer, Mark Duplass, Sarah Paulson, Harmony Santana, Corey Stoll, Mary McDonald, Beth Behrs, Mike Mills, J.C. Chandor, Dee Rees, Jeff Nichols, Paddy Considine, Mike Cahill, Will Reiser, Asghar Farhadi, Robbie Pickering, Amara Miller, Nick Krause, Maryam Keshavarz, Evan Glodell, Stana Katic, Hilarie Burton, Antonio Campos, Daniele Anastasion, Simon Arthur, Robert Ogden Barnum, Michael Benaroya, Jim Burke, Chad Burris, Tiffany Little Caulfield, Karin Chien, Nekisa Cooper, Heather Courtney, Patrick Cunningham, Tyler Davidson, Miranda de Pencier, Danfung Dennis, Patrick DeWitt, Neal Dodson, Sean Durkin, Nat Faxon, Philip Gefter, Evan Goldberg, Matthew Gordon, Vincent Grashaw, Hunter Gray, Brion Hambel, Alma Har’el, Joel Hodge, Merrilee Holt, Brad Inglesby, Mark Jackson, Steve James, Joe Jenckes, Paul Jensen, Phil Johnston, Art Jones, Mike Jones, Ben Karlin, Benjamin Kasulke, Lars Knudsen, Alex Kotlowitz, Sheldon Larry, Melissa Lee, Sophia Lin, Chris Maybach, Jarreth Merz, Josh Mond, Corey Moosa, Benjamin Murray, Alysa Nahmias, Nicholas Ozeki, Marc Platt, Richard Press, Jim Rash, Adam Reid, Nicholas Shumaker, Adam Siegel, Eric Strauss, Jim Taylor, Bernard Telsey, Robert Tonino, Nate Tuck, Leslie Urdang, Andrew van den Houten, Jay Van Hoy, Dean Vanech, Jeffrey Waldron, Patrick Wang, David Weissman, Amile Wilson and more.

For more information on submission guidelines, voting, media and publicist credentials, and the history of the Spirit Awards, please visit SpiritAwards.com.

Download the full press release

Describe PERIODS. in 140 characters or less
Anachronistic period pieces with costumes a show choir would die for. (We actually asked the internet and that’s what they told us).

PERIODS. is one of the most inventive ideas I’ve ever seen executed. How did you come up with it?
ANNA: We’ve been doing it about 2 years. After Victor mentioned pilgrims, the idea of people dressed up as pilgrims talking to each other like the vapid young Hollywood kids on reality shows (I was nursing an obsession with The Hills at the time) was too funny to us not to try to do something with it. And once we had Dasha on board for costumes, we knew it would look brilliantly pilgrim-y. The most fun thing though, was on the day, discovering that Phil and Alison had this crazy ability to recreate what felt like a real-life break up onscreen. That was mesmerizing to me.

VICTOR: A sweet filmmaker friend of ours offered us a house on a farm for a weekend and suggested we make a horror film. Not a huge fan of horror movies I half-joking retorted “how bout we make a period movie instead? About pilgrims. WTF?” It was later, when we started actually thinking of making a short together, that my wife and co-creator, Anna, came up with the idea of making the short incredibly anachronistic. We ended up shooting on a rainy Saturday in Prospect Park without much of even an outline and ended up having so much fun with everyone that we said ‘when can we do this again?’ And then we did it again and again. It’s a bit of an addiction for us, each idea trying to top the one before it. It wasn’t until the second film in the series (Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome) that we were able to use our friend’s farm upstate and it wasn’t until our third film (Before After) that NY Mag’s Vulture blog called us a comedy troop and deemed PERIODS. a web series.

How did you know that people would be into it? What gave you the confidence?
V: Confidence? I’m not even so sure people actually like them. We just keep making them. In all honesty, they work in a myriad of ways; we use them to develop our skills and confidence in all areas of filmmaking. They allow us to try things and not be so precious about every single choice. And they’ve enabled us to really find a collective comedy voice as unfunny as that sounds. Not to mention I get to put my little brother, Phil, in all sorts of unflattering getups. It really appeals to the big brother in me.

A: I am very confident in Victor’s ability to direct and Giovanni’s ability to shoot beautifully and edit, etcetera. Phil being what I consider to be a genius of an actor and improvisor was a not-so-surprising surprise. So there wasn’t confidence that people would like what we made, but there was a belief that we had an awesome team in place (also including Alison Fyhrie and Yamin Segal) and that this one small thing was funny in a way we hadn’t seen before; just meaning that we had never seen people dressed as Pilgrims talking in the way that people talk now. For me it was about wanting to see that one funny little thought brought to life. And then once we did it, it became a fun addiction to making more.

Ok funny guy and gal, but what do you do to put food on the table?
V: My day job was directing commercials which enabled us to make PERIODS. which led to making a feature film based on PERIODS. which is now my day job. Dogs and cats living together, total anarchy.

A: I’m a fit model. Which means I help clothing companies make their clothing fit better. With the aid of my body. I work by the hour, so luckily I often have time to write and buy hair accessories and/or wigs and/or conquistador helmets that don’t arrive in time for short films.

You have very cool jobs. I’m jealous. I imagine lots of people are.  How do you get people to keep coming back when they walk around bemoaning the fact that you have way cooler jobs than they do?
V: This is the one thing that boggles my mind and keeps me up the nights we drop a new short.

A: Victor’s great on this end. He’s a passionate Internet promoter. Also, having everyone who is involved with making the series be genuinely excited about it and want to promote it online helps a lot. Having a friend who has a giant, rabid following of fans on twitter (cough-cough-Quinto) really helps.

V: I can’t even really say there is a strategy or specific thing we do. Our hit counts aren’t even as high as like a Vblogger that “life-casts” and puts on make-up every day in front of a YouTube audience of middle age men (you might want to ask her). In truth, we lucked out with the first short, YouTube picked it up and had it in a premiere slot on their Film and Animation page which led to other outlets like EW’s Pop Watch and Huff Post and Videogum posting it. Then we culled those contacts and basically just send around an email when a new short is out and pray that someone connects with it and posts it up. It doesn’t hurt to have Zachary Quinto (who we created the Before After videos around) tweeting it and showing it to his friends. We ended up forming a partnership with him and his company, and now have that infrastructure to help out. I think analytics wise we see the biggest push on our end coming from Facebook and then twitter. But the real deals are done outside of our control. It all comes down to being fortunate enough that someone likes and then posts our videos. That’s why I end every email now offering money and candy to anyone who will post our stuff.  *(editorial note: that’s true)

You’re making it sound too easy, tell me something that’s difficult about putting PERIODS. together.
V: These shorts are designed to be crafted around what we have (and to not spend money). We have a park, a pond, a willow tree, and oregano; BAM! we now have FOREFATHERS. So nothing is too difficult concerning production because we do it all as a team within our means.

A: We are so lucky to have this incredible group that kind of blossomed up around us after we did the first film. And everyone’s role in making the things evolves a bit with each film, which is fun. It’s like a little creative family that comes together every few months and sacrifices their time to make something we can all be excited about.

V: We also have an amazing talent in our costumer, Dasha Martikainen. I think Anna and I both recognize the game we’re playing as making Dasha happy. And the way to make Dasha happy? Esoteric period garb. So she gets to play, we get to play, and the actors get to smact. We also have probably some of the best shooters in the bizzle. As well as Giovanni P Autran and Charlie Porter who could edit your wedding video into a marquee feature. And of course our production partners Zach’s Before The Door Pictures (who we made our feature with) and Scott Robinson to call in the egg sandwiches.

Watch the short that started it all Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=1h6Yn3Gv0PI

And check out more PERIODS. films including my personal favorite, Nam (you’ve never seen Deer Hunter like this before) here at their site!

Oh and hey, you say you haven’t had ENOUGH of Victor Quinaz -- he’s the auteur our Spirit Award nominee videos for two years running!  Check them out.

--by Erikka Yancy for Film Indepependent

Download the crossword puzzle here and get goin’

Spirit Awards Crossword

TO SERVE AS PREMIER SPONSORS OF THE

2012 FILM INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARDS

Principal Sponsors Include Stella Artois & Nokia

Premiere broadcast to air exclusively on IFC on Saturday, February 25

at 10:00 pm ET/PT

LOS ANGELES (February 22, 2012) – Film Independent, the non-profit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival, announced its sponsors for the 2012 Film Independent Spirit Awards, which will be held in a tent at Santa Monica beach on Saturday, February 25, 2012. Returning sponsors at the Premier level include ELLE, Piaget, Jameson^® Irish Whiskey, IFC, with new sponsor Audi of America joining the event. Stella Artois and new sponsor Nokia serve at the Principal level. Onitsuka Tiger is the Official Gift Bag and Staff Gear Sponsor. WireImage is the Official Photographer, American Airlines is the Official Airline Partner and PR Newswire is the Official Breaking News Service of Film Independent.  On 3 Productions, the leader in customized gifting experiences backstage at the entertainment industry’s most prestigious events, returns to produce the Official Presenter Gift Lounge and Official Ceremony Gift Bags. The Official Water of the Spirit Awards is FIJI Water.

As previously announced, the awards ceremony will premiere later that evening at 10:00 pm ET/PT exclusively on IFC, with actor, writer and producer Seth Rogen serving as host of the ceremony.

ELLE is a proud Premier Sponsor of the 2012 Film Independent Spirit Awards for the sixth consecutive year. ELLE continues to support the Spirit Awards and the independent filmmakers they honor. Each year the nominees redefine boundaries with their creativity, personal style, and brilliance — the very embodiment of ELLE’s brand mission.

For the fifth year now, Premier Sponsor Piaget is pleased to lend its support to independence, and to bring sparkle to the event by offering a sneak preview of its newest diamond jewelry and timepiece collections, themed “Limelight Garden Party 2.” To further demonstrate its backing, Piaget is also proud to support the Piaget Producers Award in recognition of outstanding creative vision and achievement.

As a third year Premier Sponsor, Jameson® Irish Whiskey will serve the signature Jameson & Ginger specialty cocktail on the red carpet as guests arrive. Additionally, Jameson is a proud sponsor of the FIND Your Audience Filmmaker Grant, which makes it possible for filmmakers to find a broader audience for their work. As hosts of the Jameson® Backstage Lounge, Jameson will also be featured in all backstage tents at the Spirit Awards, and a bottle of Jameson will be placed on each table for attendees to enjoy during the show.

Audi is proud to support the Film Independent Spirit Awards as an inaugural Premier Partner.  The brand is a committed friend to the worlds of art, culture and entertainment and is honored to be involved in recognizing some of the greatest independent talent in the film industry. Synonymous with cutting edge design and impeccable performance, the Audi lineup includes a full roster of German-engineered luxury vehicles. Audi is among the most successful luxury automotive brands in the world and in 2011 broke all-time company sales records in the U.S.  For more information, visit www.audiusa.com or www.audiusanews.com.

Stella Artois is proud to be the official beer sponsor of the Film Independent Spirit Awards for the third year. Stella Artois is a long-time supporter of independent film and film festivals across the country. Guests on the red carpet and inside the Spirit Awards will have the opportunity to enjoy a Stella Artois, the best-selling Belgian beer in the world. With origins dating back to 1366, Stella Artois originally was originally brewed to celebrate the holidays, and it was named Stella (Latin for “star”) for its exceptional clarity.  Stella Artois should always be poured into its signature Chalice and served using the cherished Belgian Pouring Ritual to accentuate the lager’s golden color, crisp flavor and refreshing finish.  Visit www.stellaartois.com for more information.

Nokia, a global leader in mobile phone design, has long been committed to the global film industry and is proud to be the new principal sponsor of the 2012 Film Independent Spirit Awards. Nokia’s dedication to design, independence, and creativity will be brought to life by a collection of personal interviews utilizing the Nokia Lumia 800 smartphone. These films will be released to the public on the Spirit Awards website prior to the ceremony. Additionally, Nokia has partnered with Film Independent to present the prestigious Nokia Truer Than Fiction Award, which honors a documentary filmmaker who has not yet received appropriate recognition. Nokia will be providing the Nokia Truer Than Fiction Award winner with a $25,000 unrestricted grant to further develop their career.

The Hollywood Reporter is proud to return as a media partner of the Film Independent Spirit Awards. THR will be backstage with all the winners in the THR photo and video suite getting reactions and exclusive interviews. Coverage from throughout the evening can be found at THR.com. The Hollywood Reporter is the entertainment industry’s flagship news media brand. Named Entertainment Publication of the Year by the LA Press Club in 2011, THR leads the category in providing breaking news, feature stories and industry analysis to readers of its glossy print edition as well as to 10.4 million unique monthly visitors online.

HitFix is pleased to be the official sponsor of the 2012 Film Independent Spirit Awards Nominee Screener Program. HitFix (www.HitFix.com) is changing the way entertainment choices are made, promoting independent thinking for the independently great. HitFix brings the world of entertainment to fans of film, music and television by uniquely combining exceptional original editorial content with innovative technology. HitFix’s impressive roster of tastemaker journalists rank among the top critics in the U.S. and feature Greg Ellwood, Drew McWeeny, Alan Sepinwall, Daniel Fienberg, Melinda Newman, Katie Hasty, Liane Bonin Starr, Kris Tapley and Guy Lodge. HitFixʼs proprietary calendar, social media, mobile apps and casual games allow millions of fans to discover what’s next and manage their entertainment lifestyle.

Onitsuka Tiger, the Original Japanese Sport-Fashion Brand, is proud to be a sponsor of the Film Independent Spirit Awards. The brand continually supports the arts, music, and film and is thrilled to be the official gifting bag of the 2012 Spirit Awards.  Dating back to 1949, Kihachiro Onitsuka realized in his native Kobe, Japan that the country’s youth needed direction and inspiration. He believed the best way to accomplish this was through sport. In 2001, ASICS America Corporation resurrected the Onitsuka Tiger brand with original models updated in today’s energetic colors and fresh silhouettes.  Onitsuka Tiger can be found worldwide, including New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Seattle, Paris, Berlin, London, Milan, Tokyo, and other select cities.  Visit www.onitsukatiger.com for more insight on the brand and its products.

Intel Corporation and Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc., Digital Products Division are proud to sponsor the 2012 Film Independent Spirit Awards Arrivals Show on Yahoo! As sponsors, Intel and Toshiba will showcase its newest technologies during the online Arrivals Show in the form of Toshiba’s award winning Ultrabook™—the Portégé Z830 featuring 2nd Generation Intel® Core processors. The Ultrabook will serve as the social media bridge for viewers of the live webcast to ask questions of the various nominees and presenters walking the carpet. The livestream will be available only on Yahoo! Movies at 11:00 am PT/2:00 pm ET.

For more information on submission guidelines, voting and the history of the Spirit Awards, please visit SpiritAwards.com.

ABOUT THE FILM INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARDS

Now in its 27^th year, the Film Independent Spirit Awards is an annual celebration honoring artist-driven films made with an economy of means by filmmakers who embody independence and originality. The Spirit Awards recognizes the achievements of American independent filmmakers and promotes the finest independent films of the year to a wider audience.

Awards are given in the following categories: Best Feature, Best First Feature, Best First Screenplay, Best Director, Best Screenplay, John Cassavetes Award (given to the best feature made for a budget under $500,000), Best Male Lead, Best Female Lead, Best Supporting Male, Best Supporting Female, Best Cinematography, Best International Film, Best Documentary, and the Robert Altman Award.  The Filmmaker Grants include the Piaget Producers Award, Audi Someone to Watch Award, Nokia Truer Than Fiction Award and Jameson FIND Your Audience Award.

The Film Independent Spirit Awards are sponsored by Premier Sponsors ELLE, Piaget, Jameson^â Irish Whiskey, Audi of America and IFC, and Principal Sponsors Stella Artois and Nokia. Onitsuka Tiger is the Official Gift Bag and Staff Gear Sponsor. WireImage is the Official Photographer, American Airlines is the Official Airline Partner and PR Newswire is the Official Breaking News Service of Film Independent.

ABOUT FILM INDEPENDENT

Film Independent is a non-profit arts organization that champions independent film and supports a community of artists who embody diversity, innovation, and uniqueness of vision. Film Independent helps filmmakers make their movies, builds an audience for their projects, and works to diversify the film industry. Film Independent’s Board of Directors, filmmakers, staff, and constituents, is comprised of an inclusive community of individuals across ability, age, ethnicity, gender, race, and sexual orientation. Anyone passionate about film can become a member, whether you are a filmmaker, industry professional, or a film lover.

Film Independent produces the Spirit Awards, the annual celebration honoring artist-driven films and recognizing the finest achievements of American independent filmmakers.  Film Independent also produces the Los Angeles Film Festival, showcasing the best of American and international cinema and the Film Independent at LACMA Film Series, a year-round, weekly program that offers unique cinematic experiences for the Los Angeles creative community and the general public.

With over 250 annual screenings and events, Film Independent provides access to a network of like-minded artists who are driving creativity in the film industry. Film Independent’s Artist Development program offers free Labs for selected writers, directors, producers and documentary filmmakers and presents year-round networking opportunities. Project Involve is Film Independent’s signature program dedicated to fostering the careers of talented filmmakers from communities traditionally underrepresented in the film industry.

Download the press release

Director: Jay and Mark Duplass
Producers: John E. Bryant, Jay Duplass, and Mark Duplass
Budget: $60,000 (in the can); approximately $200,000 (delivered)
Financing: Filmmakers
Production: Austin, Texas, 3 weeks
Shooting Format: 1080i HD and Panasonic HVX 200
Screening Format: 35mm
World Premiere: 2008 Sundance Film Festival

Baghead, A Sony Pictures Classics film.

Development and Financing
Mark Duplass says, “Jay and I, we write a script and we cast our friends who are actors. The films are designed specifically to be shot cheaply and easily.” Jay and Mark Duplass self-finance everything. As a result of their previous film’s success (Puffy Chair), they received writing jobs in the Hollywood system (spec scripts, selling pitches, and writing for studios — some of which they will direct). With that money, they were able to make Baghead. “It took me and Jay three or four days to write the first draft of the script,” Mark says. “And then a year and a half to figure out how to end it.” “There was a time during the summer of 2006 when Puffy Chair was being released that studios were willing to help us make Baghead,” Mark says. “But we didn’t like the idea of movie about non-successful actors being played by successful actors. And we wanted to make it fast, so we decided to make it ourselves.” The production budget was approximately $60,000. The filmmakers spent nearly $70,000 more on preparation for Sundance (film print, publicist, plane tickets, etc.) and an additional $70,000 $100,000 for deliverables.

Production Highlights
Baghead was shot in October of 2006 in the woods 40 minutes outside of Austin, Texas. They didn’t get any permits for the shoot and every member of the small cast and crew served as semi-producers helping to complete the film.

Festival Preparation and Strategy
The Duplass brothers were always planning on premiering Baghead at Sundance because of the success they had there with Puffy Chair and their two previous short films. At the start, they were hesitant about hiring a publicist. They wanted to keep the film quiet and make it a surprise. Mark: “Why would you hire someone to keep it quiet?” But in the end, they wanted to make sure they did everything they could to sell the film, so they hired publicist Jeremy Walker. “Jeremy is a whiz kid in the business,” Mark says. “He’s smart and creative and he has a good relationship with the press.” They paid Jeremy a standard publicist’s fee (in the range $5K–$20K, for Sundance services). They also hired Josh Braun from Submarine Entertainment as their sales agent. They have known Braun for years and noticed him rising from mostly B-level sales in the past to A-level sales in recent years and were confident in his skills.

Mark: “He’s the best sales rep out there.” Josh gets a fee 10% of all sales – some sales reps charge more, some less. But Mark feels it’s worth paying your rep a few extra points if they are working hard for you. The team decided that screening the film later in the festival would be a creative strategy. Hearing that the 2008 crop of films was not as strong as years past, the Duplass team hoped those early films wouldn’t sell and that buyers would be hungry by the time they saw Baghead. The strategy worked. After the first screening, Braun advised the brothers to keep themselves out of sight while he promoted the film for a few hours on his own. He wanted all of the buyers to think Mark and Jay were in a room somewhere, making a deal. “For the next 72 hours, it was like playing James Bond,” Mark says. “Buyers were making deals with us in parking lots at four in the morning in their pajamas. There is a game of misinformation that is fun, but everyone is in on it and aware of it.”

The Sale
Approximately ten serious buyers were left at the end of the festival. Three serious offers were made on Baghead, and one offer was from three separate companies. Eventually they went with Sony Pictures Classics because they had the most enthusiasm, the most up-front money, and the best guarantee for how many theaters they would screen the film in. “We love the guys. Love their movies,” Mark says about Sony. “It took us about 24 hours to make the deal, but we pretty much knew we wanted to go with them as soon as we first spoke.” The sale was in the mid-six figures. It was an advance and 90% has been paid off since they delivered the film, as they still owe a few items to Sony. The Duplass brothers will make some money, but not as much as they thought as a result of the high cost for deliverables. Sony owns the film for 25 years and Mark and Jay will take a fair portion of the backend. The deal was fairly standard and negotiated by Braun. Paul Brennan at Sloss Law did their legal work. “We didn’t fuss a lot over the points since they gave us a really good deal on the advance,” Mark says. “Once you try to start to negotiate with Sony, they can drop you within an hour. Things happen really fast up there. They have to hold true to their threats in order to maintain their reputation.” Mark explains that they were not on the phone while the deals were being made. Braun would negotiate with Sony and then get back to them. They were only involved in the initial meeting before the deal was official. Sony was also responsible for booking Baghead into many festivals after its Sundance premiere to help promote its summer release. It played SXSW, Tribeca, LAFF, Newport Beach, Maryland, Washington DC.

The Release
Baghead was released in Austin, Texas on June 13 in two theaters. It opened next in Portland, Oregon on July 4, and then in New York and Los Angeles on July 25. The slow and steady release was intended to create buzz in the beginning, but the filmmakers felt that it didn’t make a huge difference in the end. “Baghead didn’t do as well as Puffy Chair in Austin, even though a great deal more money was spent on the marketing for Baghead,” Mark says. “But the press on the movie was really great, even better than Puffy Chair which we didn’t think was possible.” Jay and Mark have already done press junkets in over 25 markets. So far, the film has opened in 25 cities and it has 100 left to go until the theatrical run ends October 30. The DVD is scheduled to be released on December 30. Starz will take TV rights, paying a fee based on the final box office numbers.

Advice from the Filmmakers
Mark: Make a lot of very cheap, short films early on in your career. They are probably going to be bad, so if you spend your time and money on expensive long films, you will get depressed and might not have the courage to keep going. Make the films funny. Festivals always need comedies under five minutes, and they will program you constantly. Nobody wants to program 30 minute dramatic films. Jay and I constantly get asked specific questions about our marketing strategy, how we sell our films, how to get an agent — and our answer is always that with the craftiest maneuvering in the world, there’s a chance you can make a good movie do well. But if you make a great movie, you can throw it out your window and someone will find it. If it’s great, it will be seen. Focus away from the business side and focus on what you’re doing (the art). Take care of your craft, and don’t worry about the marketing and business.

Ok, here’s this week’s Short Fix, Mr. Happy Man

Bio:
Matt Morris is an award-winning filmmaker living in Winter Park, FL. In 2008, he produced and directed Pickin’ & Trimmin’, an Emmy® nominated documentary short that was an official selection of over 2 dozen international film festivals, including Clermont-Ferrand and Aspen Shortsfest. The film has won 7 awards, including Best Documentary Short at the Woodstock and Florida film festivals.

His next short, Watermelon Man premiered Florida Film Festival 2010 and has screened at the Nashville Film Festival and Palm Springs Shortsfest.

His current film Mr. Happy Man has screened at DOC NYC, Aspen Shortsfest, IFFBoston, Nashville Film Festival, and more. It won the audience award for Best Short Film at AFI Silverdocs and Grand Jury award for Best Documentary Short at the Sidewalk Film Festival.

Previously, Matt co-edited and contributed to the book Superheroes And Philosophy for Open Court Press. He attended Harvard University and the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

Seth Rogen, 2012 Film Independent Spirit Awards Host

What are you doing Saturday before your Catch the Indie Spirit screening party? Nothing? Well now you have plans to watch the stars, the filmmakers, the lights, the cameras and more at Yahoo Movies as NowLive streams the Spirit Awards arrivals!

The official Film Independent Spirit Awards Arrivals Show livestream will kick-off at 11:00 a.m. PT/2:00 p.m. ET and fans worldwide can tune in here: http://movies.yahoo.com. Arrivals show hosts include esteemed film critic and Film Independent at LACMA Curator, Elvis Mitchell, TheWrap’s film critic and host of What the Flick?! on The Young Turks’ YouTube network, Alonso Duralde and Yahoo!’s Kristen Aldridge. As previously announced, the awards ceremony will premiere on television later that evening at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT exclusively on IFC, with actor, writer and producer Seth Rogen serving as host of the awards ceremony.

“We created NowLive as a way for fans to watch and participate in elite entertainment events,” says Sara Bordo, Co-Founder and CEO of NowLive. “We are excited to partner with the Film Independent Spirit Awards and offer film buffs a virtual front row seat to interact with their favorite directors, writers and stars.”

Be there or you’re a total square.

Download -Spirit Awards Arrivals Show Release

Red Carpet Online Broadcast Available Only on Yahoo! Movies at

11:00 a.m. PT/2:00 p.m. ET

Awards Ceremony to premiere later that night exclusively on IFC at

10:00 p.m. ET/PT

Los Angeles, CA – February 21, 2012 – Film Independent, the non-profit arts organization that produces the Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival, today announced an exclusive partnership with NowLive, a live event production and streaming company, to produce and livestream the official 2012 Film Independent Spirit Awards Arrivals Show. The awards ceremony will be held at the Santa Monica beach on Saturday, February 25th. Film Independent, together with NowLive will stream the star-studded arrivals exclusively on Yahoo! Movies (http://movies.yahoo.com) to its audience of more than 26 million US users, across the web, mobile and iOs devices.  The online broadcast will offer an exclusive, real-time experience designed to put viewers in the middle of the action.

“The Film Independent Spirit Awards is the annual celebration honoring artist-driven filmmaking and recognizing the finest achievements of American independent filmmakers,” said Film Independent Co-President Sean Mc Manus. “Indie fans and our nominees are in for a funny and unpredictable show. With Seth Rogen as Host, John Waters as the ultimate Voice of God, an exquisite selection of nominees and an eclectic mix of presenters and musical performances, this year’s show is not one to miss.”

The official Film Independent Spirit Awards Arrivals Show livestream will kick-off at 11:00 a.m. PT/2:00 p.m. ET and fans worldwide can tune in here: http://movies.yahoo.com. Arrivals show hosts include esteemed film critic and Film Independent at LACMA Curator, Elvis Mitchell, TheWrap’s film critic and host of What the Flick?! on The Young Turks’ YouTube network, Alonso Duralde and Yahoo!’s Kristen Aldridge. As previously announced, the awards ceremony will premiere on television later that evening at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT exclusively on IFC, with actor, writer and producer Seth Rogen serving as host of the awards ceremony.

“We created NowLive as a way for fans to watch and participate in elite entertainment events,” says Sara Bordo, Co-Founder and CEO of NowLive. “We are excited to partner with the Film Independent Spirit Awards and offer film buffs a virtual front row seat to interact with their favorite directors, writers and stars.”

About NowLive

NowLive is providing the entertainment industry with a solution for events such as red carpet premieres, awards shows, cast chats, concerts and original productions. Comprised of a team of Hollywood digital alums, NowLive provides studios, networks and record labels an interactive platform which allows fans a new way to experience and socially engage in live events. For more information, visit www.nowlive.com

About the Film Independent Spirit Awards

Now in its 27^th year, the Film Independent Spirit Awards is an annual celebration honoring artist-driven films made with an economy of means by filmmakers who embody independence and originality. The Spirit Awards recognizes the achievements of American independent filmmakers and promotes the finest independent films of the year to a wider audience.

Awards are given in the following categories: Best Feature, Best First Feature, Best First Screenplay, Best Director, Best Screenplay, John Cassavetes Award (given to the best feature made for a budget under $500,000), Best Male Lead, Best Female Lead, Best Supporting Male, Best Supporting Female, Best Cinematography, Best International Film, Best Documentary, and the Robert Altman Award.  The Filmmaker Grants include the Piaget Producers Award, Audi Someone to Watch Award, Nokia Truer Than Fiction Award and Jameson FIND Your Audience Award.

The Film Independent Spirit Awards are sponsored by Premier Sponsors ELLE, Piaget, Jameson^â Irish Whiskey and Audi of America, and Principal Sponsors Stella Artois and Nokia. Onitsuka Tiger is the Official Gift Bag and Staff Gear Sponsor. WireImage is the Official Photographer, American Airlines is the Official Airline Partner and PR Newswire is the Official Breaking News Service of Film Independent.

Download -Spirit Awards Arrivals Show Release

Throughout the reading, the energy remained high and infectious as the actors jovially exchanged jabs in the opening diner, clearly enjoying each others lines as much as their own. The fun the actors were having became most apparent with Terrence Howard’s near refusal to die, extending his participation as long as possible. As anyone who’s seen the 1992 movie can tell you, “bloody” can definitely be used as an accurate description of the movie. Cuba Gooding Jr., as Mr. Orange, managed to get around the absence of stage blood and gave a practically Shakespearean performance of his wounded character. Continuing on the theme of pain, Terrence Howard turned his initially suspiciously hilarious Mr. Blonde into a terrifically vicious psycho as Stealer’s Wheel’s “Stuck in the Middle” was cued over the scene involving Mr. Blonde and an unlucky cop. (Who doesn’t cringe a bit when “Stuck in the Middle” comes on the radio?)

Reservoir Dogs is an indie film classic and it was fitting for Jason Reitman to include it in his series, which comes to an end on March 29. As Film Independent at LACMA curator Elvis Mitchell pointed out during his introduction, the subtext of a black, male perspective was always in Tarantino’s stunning screenplay. While Tarantino’s version of his script remains a paramount moment in original storytelling, this re-interpretation showed us another side of independent film: one that paves the way for transformed perspectives and creates a unique and diverse world that we have never seen before. And if there is anything that Film Independent hopes to champion, it’s the idea that every variety of person can have a place to be known and celebrated on screen and on stage.

Full Cast
Mr. White: Laurence Fishburne (originally played by Harvey Keitel)
Joe Cabot: Chi McBride (originally played by Lawrence Tierney)
Mr. Pink: Anthony Mackie (originally played by Steve Buscemi)
Mr. Orange: Cuba Gooding Jr. (originally played by Tim Roth)
Mr. Blonde: Terrence Howard (originally played by Michael Madsen)
Mr. Brown: Common (originally played by Quentin Tarantino)
Nice Guy Eddie: Anthony Anderson (originally played by Chris Penn)
K-Billy: Patton Oswalt (originally played by Steven Wright)

– by Jasmine Terán for Film Independent

I know you’ve been in quite a few festivals but how is your Pan-African Film Festival experience going, so far?
Aimee Lagos: It’s been great. I went to opening night last night, which was fantastic, and the film was really good.

Which film did they screen for opening night?
AL:  It was Think Like, what are they calling it? Think Like a Man.

We were talking about that movie, earlier today.
AL: It’s definitely a crowd pleaser.

But, we are talking about your film, 96 minutes!
AL: Yes (laughs)

Still from Aimee Lagos' first feature 96 Minutes

What is your background and how did you get into film?
AL: I actually came from the theater. I trained in theater and I started directing theater in New York, before I ever got into film and really learned. I learned everything I know about film just by working on films.  I started out as a script supervisor in New York and did a few independent features. Doing that was a really tremendous experience and a great way to learn the difference, on a very basic level, between directing a play and directing a movie from an on-set perspective.  And then, you know, continued to work in film. When I came up here to LA, I directed a short film, that did well in the festival circuit and that kind of launched me into the world of professional writing. 96 Minutes is actually my first feature.

From conception, since you did write it, how long did this film take?
AL: A very long time. I wrote it, it’s actually one of the first scripts I ever wrote. I wrote it… what year was that? That must have been 2005 when I originally wrote it. And it had a really long kind of up and down road. It was set up at several different studios and production companies and got very close to being made a few times. It’s definitely a difficult film to get made for a lot of reasons. One of which, you know, when you have a multi-racial cast, it’s an uphill battle, unfortunately. And so, it kind of came together and fell apart several times until we got this kind of motley crew of people together. I have great producing partners on this who just went out and found the money and we scraped it all together and we went out and shot the movie.

How long ago did you sort of say, “forget the studio, we’re going to raise this money”?
AL: That happened about two years ago, now. So, I think once we decided we were going to go ahead and make it on a really tight budget and just go find the money, you know, that was two years a go this fall and then we were shooting that following spring.

This being your first feature you faced many of the challenges that first time directors do with funding, but what are some of the other challenges you faced when it came to the production of the film?
AL: I get that question a lot. And usually, my first answer for “what’s the hardest part,” is really getting the funding and really getting your film on its feet. It’s a lot to ask people to invest in you and believe in you when you’re fairly unproven. But I really think for first-time directors, in general, that’s the hardest thing. For me, you know, there’s really nothing I love more than being on set. As soon as we start shooting the movie, I’m in heaven, it’s like I’m high constantly. That piece of it is very second nature to me. I mean that piece just is great. On this film, I had such an amazing crew and an amazing cast. My DP was incredible, we had a fantastic collaboration and my producers were so supportive and really protected me and let me kind of go and make the film I wanted to make. And of course, the actors were incredible. And then I think, probably the next most difficult part is sort of strategizing what to do with it. Sort of getting it put together. Then once you’ve made your movie, I think for most directors, and certainly this is my experience, you have a vision, you go out there, you get it done, you love it, you’re really happy with what you’ve done and now it’s back to a similar side of things as to putting it together, which is, how do you get it out there?

96 Minutes, Produced by First Point Entertainment and Perfect Weekend

You had an 18-day shoot and your film rivals Drive in the amount of car shots you had.  How did you fit it all in?
AL: Well, this is actually interesting. The film is shot mostly on 35 mm and then all of the interior car work is shot digitally. We took a car and converted it into a moving set. So, we built a platform around the car and built a lighting rig around the car and then they extended the drive shaft of the car underneath the car and up to the roof so we had a driver on the roof of the car, driving the car. And the actors, DP and I were all inside the car working. Before we started doing the car sequences was we scouted, we shot in Atlanta, we scouted Atlanta for driving routes that would have lighting scenarios that we liked for these different parts of film that take place in the car. And then each night we would drive that route and work the scenes over and over again as the car was driving through the city; so for the actors, it was a really tremendous thing; I mean, they were literally sitting in the car, just them, you know, running these scenes over and over again with me rather than having to kind of stop the car and okay, move everyone around and now the DP’s got to sit in this seat, you know, that kind of a thing. So it was intense, and we didn’t have a lot of time to do the car stuff but using a small digital camera and having that moving rig was just, was a godsend.

96 Minutes is a thriller/drama, which is definitely not an easy genre to tackle. Where did the idea come from?
AL: The story on experiences that I had when I was living in St. Louis and going to college. While I was in school, I was also working in the inner-city doing after school programs for kids and working in sort of neighborhood community organization project called Neighborhood Stabilization. So I was working spending a lot of time in inner-city communities, poor neighborhoods, and getting very close to the people there and very linked into that world as I was doing that work. At the same time, there were a string of violent events that happened on and around the campus where I went to school and one of them in particular involved some people I that knew and it turned out that the kids that had perpetrated this incident were from the neighborhoods that I was working in. So for me, it was a crashing together of the two worlds that I was very much invested in. So, this is a fictionalization of that event, but it was very much an exploration of kind of that experience, what it means to have these two different worlds, these two different ways of life occurring right next to each other.

There are a lot of controversial elements in the film, a lot of cause and effect. Is there a lesson you want people to take away from it?
AL: Yeah, I mean, kind of, as I said earlier, I do see it so much as a film about these very specific individuals more than a statement about sort of how to live or what things are like or are not like. You know, I think, ultimately, the biggest thing I hope people take, is the importance of making choices deliberately in your life and giving people choices when you can. So, you know, ultimately, if we don’t present to our young people options and we don’t nurture them along, they will perceive their options as being much more limited than perhaps they are and maybe they will actually be much more limited than they should be. So, to me, kind of as you said, there’s lots of choices and crossroads, I think it is very much about that, it’s about how we make choices and how we give options.

You have the option and we hope you’ll take it to check out the final screening of 96 Minutes at the Pan African Film Festival this evening Friday, February 17.

96 Minutes will be available VOD, March 22, and theatrically April 27.

–by Codie Brooks for Film Independent