Indie Directors Reception
By David Geffner
Photos by Robert Hale
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Attendees at the recent DGA Independent Directors Committee reception.
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Coming just 11 days after what many consider to be the single most tragic event in America's history, it was impossible for guests at the DGA's Independent Directors Committee (IDC) reception not to express their feelings on the changes the industry will experience in the months ahead.
The Saturday-afternoon reception was a low-key event designed to bring DGA indies up to speed on the committee's activities, as well as to offer an informal setting to swap information. As filmmakers awaited the afternoon's speakers, mingling over drinks and a light buffet, their conversations inevitably turned toward the events of September 11.
"I'm working on a project that concerns the Armenian genocide during World War I," related Salvador Carrasco. "Up until two weeks ago it was the slowest-moving of all my films, yet after the tragedy, I received calls from three different producers who have the script and want to move forward very quickly. I believe this event may signal a change toward films with more ambitious social content, at least for the near future. Filmmakers have a moral responsibility not to portray mindless, gratuitous violence. It just has no place in cinema, in light of these events."
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Directors Steven Soderbergh and Euzhan Palcy
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Nandi Bowe, who, like Carrasco, took advantage of a recent indie directors mixer with the American Film Marketing Association (AFMA), shared that the events of September 11 "overwhelmed her in terms of the sheer scope of what happened." The tragedy also inspired Bowe to contemplate making a film based on the death of a boy's mother and its emotional aftermath. "I think this event is already forcing people to reevaluate what kind of stories their audience will want to see. My own sense is that we are all grasping for what may come next, and that the stories studio and network executives thought were essential will look much less so in the weeks and months ahead."
Even indie filmmakers can have their fill of a subject, of course, so it was a welcome moment when Committee member Mary Lambert took to the microphone to kick off the afternoon's program. Lambert urged directors to "imagine a future without fear and terror" and to "keep imagining the future because that's what artists and filmmakers are supposed to do."
Committee member Steven Soderbergh followed to detail a two-fold goal for the IDC event. "We want to get the word out about the committee and publicize things we have going on: the Director's Finder Series, the Under the Influence Screening Series with master filmmakers, and seminars, like the upcoming panel on Independent Distribution that will use Memento as a case study. That film was turned down by every indie distributor in the business and was ultimately self-distributed by the production company to the tune of a $25 million domestic gross. The second part of this event is to get the word from you as to what's happening out in the field."
Committee member Penelope Spheeris was introduced for that express purpose, urging filmmakers to share their questions, comments or "horror stories that we all know you have," Spheeris laughed.
As the Q&A unrolled, the dominant concern from IDC members revolved around residuals. "These Independent Producers Association–type companies simply don't want to use DGA directors because of the residuals they have to pay," lamented IDC member Sam Firstenberg. "They will set up shell companies just to get around hiring DGA directors and paying out residuals."
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A gathering of minds and appetites at the IDC breakfast.
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After a spirited give-and-take on how the IDC could help address member concerns, the entire reception assembled for a group photograph. Euzhan Palcy, who joined the DGA in 1989 while making her anti-apartheid film, A Dry White Season, and whose new project on the aftermath of the Attica prison uprising, The Killing Yard, would screen the following night on Showtime, summed up the tenor of the afternoon.
"I was approached by some younger filmmakers who respect my work and know that I always tell the truth. They asked me whether the Guild was right for them, if they should join as independents. I said, 'Guys, the door is open and you should go. The Guild offers the best protection for us, the filmmakers.' Experienced directors make themselves available to advise young filmmakers. It's so important to stay together since we don't know what changes will be coming and what is coming next. Every time I can come to a meeting I am so happy to be with other Guild members."
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