Quotes & Sayings About Independent Films

[Hollywood] studios are handing out money to make independent films now, but they all want the same thing. They want the style and the deadpan delivery of RESERVOIR DOGS or FARGO and so they imitate those movies. They want PULP FICTION, but they get it all wrong! They get the detachment, but that's it. And then it's all about style, and in the end what do you learn about the characters? Nothing. You learn you wasted two hours. — Stanley Tucci

The thing I've come to learn is that what's great about small independent films is the intimacy and the communication that occurs when you're making them. — Guy Pearce

When you work on big commercial movies, of course there's more money involved and you can still do some good work. But with an independent, you get films that are really close to the writers' and directors' heart. Somehow it becomes a little deeper. A little more meat and not as much flash. — Dennis Haysbert

The problem for independent filmmakers is that huge companies control all the promotion, all the advertising. Hollywood films' advertising budgets are as large as their shooting budgets. — Robert Kane Pappas

I think that there's a lot more freedom in the low budget, the independent films where, unfortunately, you don't have the money, necessarily, to get the orchestras in there to play a lot of stuff. But, you have a lot more freedom, very often. — Danny Elfman

There's plenty of great independent films to do, but you can't support yourself making independent film as an actress. — Gaby Hoffmann

The scene of independent cinema is already a large scene in America, and not in a negative way, but it's cluttered. It's very populated with just American films, so the room left for foreign movies is not extremely vast. The American public also does not really read. They don't read subtitles. But we're like that in Canada, too. — Xavier Dolan

In the beginning, it wasn't even a question of deciding I'm going to do independent film and not commercial films - I wasn't being offered any commercial films, and there wasn't an independent scene. — Steve Buscemi

I am a hybrid. I do independent films and also do Hollywood films - I love them both. — Spike Lee

I know, that trends and all of those things and formulae that calculate what audiences want to see and what audiences don't want to see and various other demographic demarcations are the eccentric and ludicrous prerogative of Hollywood studios. But out there in the real world - by which I mean the rest of the world where we make truthful organic films, independent films unimpeded by interference - it's not about all those sort of calculating what is commercial. It's about wanting to say things and saying them in a way that will get through to people. — Mike Leigh

I always went to see independent films, they're the movies I'm usually most excited to see. — Elizabeth Olsen

I haven't done a lot of studio movies, but studio movies and independent films are always just as fun as each other. — Kodi Smit-McPhee

You earn very little money on independent films and I'm the provider for my home, so I do have to think of taking one for the accountant time and again and that means studio pictures. — Vera Farmiga

I would like to do more independent films. — Ansel Elgort

After six years of working on low-budget independent films of the too-weird-to-watch variety, being asked by DreamWorks to come and play with the big boys, it was like finding an unicorn in your sock drawer. — Sienna Guillory

I started to make my own films, however small and however independent they were, from the beginning. And so, even though I was nobody, I was always the master of my own work. — Mira Nair

I didn't know this about myself, but when 'Pirates of the Caribbean' came out I realised that I didn't enjoy a huge amount of recognition. I didn't react to it well, but I think life is about finding out who you are and what you like. So I started doing independent movies and art-house films instead. — Keira Knightley

The awards season gives a chance for independent films to have a bit of longevity in the press and the media. — Danny Boyle

I love good film, whether it's an independent or studio film. The independent films, I think the good ones aren't necessarily eccentric ones but they're the more specific ones. — Matthew McConaughey

My good films were independent and my bad films were not. — Ralph Bakshi

I definitely want to continue working in independent films - and big budget stuff as well - but there's a freedom you have when you're not getting paid. It's easier to say no and there's no pressure to please the powers that be. Also I don't have to hear 'flirt and smile more.' — Trieste Kelly Dunn

I would recommend going out for more independent films. You can get bigger roles and really work your acting chops and build a reel. — Valerie Azlynn

I watch many, many, many independent films every year that you see once in a film festival and they're never heard of ever again. Many of them are very, very good. — Karen Allen

Independent films have a very different cachet than success films. — Diane Lane

We have a thriving subculture of 'independent' American movies that makes an impact on America as a whole roughly equivalent to that of a the modern literary novel. These are the films sincere viewers marry, whereas, once upon a time, movies were a lifetime of one night stands. — Edward Jay Epstein

I like working in both movies and television. Television is faster, not very much rehearsal and a lot of material is shot in a day. Big budget movies are luxurious in terms of the schedule. Independent films often shoot fast as well. — Juliet Landau

I'm really interested in making movies that people see: I've made a lot of independent films and it's really depressing when no one sees them. — Elizabeth Banks

I like independent films ... European films. I do go and see popular films as well because my kids force me. — Frances O'Grady

Each form of the acting is different. I think it keeps your mind active. TV, film and theater are different disciplines, as are independent films, opposed to studio films. There are differences in the size and the genre, or a period drama as opposed to a contemporary drama, or the types of characters. — Luke Evans

You know, independent films have been institutionalized, practically. Every studio has got a boutique arthouse label. — Edward Norton

I love doing independent films, but it's very hard to make a living that way. — Dennis Quaid

I'm an independent filmmaker with complete creative control of my films. I hire who I want. I have final cut. But at the same time, I go directly to Hollywood for financing and distribution. I find it's best for me to work within the Hollywood system. — Spike Lee

Oh, I love making independent films, it's such a special, magical thing because you collaborate with a small group of people and everyone's pitching in. You'll see producers setting up the lunch table and the sound guy driving a van. We're all really there because we want to be. — Olivia Thirlby

I guess in the independent market, I'd be getting offers, but in terms of big studio films, I still have to audition. I don't think my name is that well-known, I don't have much of a following to guarantee box office success yet. — Michael Fassbender

I think once you have films in certain festivals you begin to have name recognition, and there are possibilities. Especially for independent filmmakers, it's always good to try the international market because it doesn't have the same kind of baggage. — Haile Gerima

Unless it's something very clever like 'Memento,' most independent films have a very tough life out there. — Allison Anders

I worked initially in very low-budget independent films that I often wrote. My early work was all written by myself, and then I adapted 'Tsotsi,' so I was used to the writing process being, in a way, integral to my directing. I felt it really prepared me. — Gavin Hood

Television and cable have become the new independent films, in a sense, for writers and actors to gravitate towards. That's why I like short films, too; I love doing readings, audio books, working with young filmmakers; anything that keeps you from getting blase about yourself or in a rut. — Campbell Scott

I believe I'm doing the right thing in trying to step away from that and to take chances and work on little independent films and do stuff like that wild dance scene. — Patrick Warburton

People don't read any more. It's a sad state of affairs. Reading's the only thing that allows you to use your imagination. When you watch films it's someone else's vision, isn't it?
[Interview in The Independent, 15 October 2005] — Lemmy Kilmister

I've been blessed in my career to be able to do studio and independent films. — Jackson Rathbone

I've really dreamed of doing television. All of us do television, coming up. But when I was coming up, television was a black hole for actors. Now, television has a certain cache. Now everybody wants to be on TV because they're doing adult dramas. If you're an actor, it's like, "Well, get me on television," because it's the only place you can do it and also make a living at it. If my kids need shoes, I better do a TV show because I damn sure don't make any money with independent films. — Billy Bob Thornton

Which is why I felt I was truly blessed this year, with leads in two nice films, and also the luxury of being able to do a studio film and an independent afterwards was fantastic. — Rachel True

I don't want to just do independent movies and I don't want to just do adventure films. I enjoy both, and I think both are cogent. — Nicolas Cage

I would never want to do something just for the sake of being independent or for the sake of doing big films. I'm always surprised by the material I'm attracted to. And that's how I like it. I like to be surprised. — Alice Englert

I try to balance independent films with commercial films, and I've done a pretty good job of it over the years. — John Travolta

I think it's all independent films. There aren't any! If they were looking for me when I was making Polyester, then it'd be perfect, but they're not. I'm not looking for that. TV is much bigger and better now; far more people see it. — John Waters

But I think the thing I'm proud of about the film is that there aren't many films - either independent films or mainstream Hollywood films - that are like this; it's of its own times, and it's the film Mike Nichols wanted to make. — Patrick Marber

I enjoy doing independent films more, only because there's more freedom. There's not as many cooks tampering with what you are trying to do. — Illeana Douglas

It's so hard to raise money for independent films and the fact of the matter is that the bigger my star or whatever is, as a result of doing bigger pictures, the easier it is for me to get money for my own projects. — Edward Burns

Give us a break! I've hardly done anything but independent films. — Emily Blunt

I think distribution has become a lot harder. With the whole explosion of digital video, there's just a lot more people making films. Distributors have a lot more choice. I do think there's an audience out there for small films. It's obvious to me what the studios do: they've co-opted independent film. They all have their independent arm. They can afford to crush the competition. — Steve Buscemi

There was a golden era in film-making in Hollywood back in the 1970s, and although there is some great independent film-making in America, it's actually very hard to get independent films made in the United States. It's much more feasible from Europe. — Lenny Abrahamson

I'm confident in my ability to maintain a career. I don't know if it will be doing either independent films or plays in New England. — Randy Harrison

But, I love making independent films. I love it! You create a family, and you sweat, you bleed, you cry, you shout, you laugh and you hug. It's such an extraordinary experience, making independent films. — Juno Temple

I feel a lot of films that are shot digitally, even low-budget independent films, they look super slick now. Because the technology is so good that they look too good. — Colin Trevorrow

What you realize is it's not about financial success as an artist. A lot of actors and actresses, producers, writers, and the creative people in the business realize that. It's not about that. Yeah, we all want to be successful, but we all just want to create and we want to tell the stories. We want to continue creating the opportunities to be able to continue doing what we love. So, at the end of the day, I feel like it's a win-win for everybody to be able to make these independent films. — Jennifer Lopez

I love independent films, it's the only place as an actor you're totally allowed to breathe. — John Leguizamo

There is a sort of creative purity in an independent film, in the passion of the director, the passion of the crew. They're not getting a whole lot of money, so you know they are not there because they want to get rich. Instead, they are there because they want to make a movie. In the bigger films, I remember when I used to do those, it's just a job for a lot of people, so there is less of an intense energy devoted to the whole project. — Amy Irving

I find the most interesting and most daring scripts tend to be for independent films. — Neve Campbell

A movie is a mass consumption product. I have got no delusions about being niche. I don't want to be niche. Though in the earlier part of my career I was into niche cinema, doing independent films - and I do have a revolutionary bent of mind - but you cannot make a change from outside; you have to be a part of it. — Randeep Hooda

I've done a lot of independent films that not a lot of people have seen. — Katia Winter

Independent film is almost nonexistent right now, because all the distributers that used to love to put out these little art films are all out of business right now, because it costs so much to open a movie. — Ron Perlman

I moved with my mom to Los Angeles for her to pursue her acting career, and she got a job casting atmosphere in some independent films. — Thomas Ian Nicholas

I started doing independent films. My first one was 'Miss Bala,' which was very well-received at film festivals. — Stephanie Sigman

Right now my career is totally schizophrenic, because when an American production like Hitchcock Presents asks to see my work I would never dream of showing them my independent films. — Atom Egoyan

I do like working on independent films where it is a smaller budget and less pressure. The pace is also quicker than that of a big budget film. You are shooting at a fairly fast pace. Sitting around for three or four days can be quite draining. So I guess in terms of film or television, I would say filming an independent feature. — Colm Meaney

I was still making movies so it wasnt as if I were working in a bar, but they were independent films that couldnt find distributors. — Linda Fiorentino

I've made a number of independent films that didn't receive theatrical distribution, that a lot of people haven't heard of, and as a result, I've conditioned myself to go into small independent films with the expectation that they will not, and therefore, I have to find my reward elsewhere. — William Mapother

There are always at least five good films at the end of the year to get nominated, but generally speaking nowadays, it's more of the independent films that are recognized. — Mark Rydell

Independent films are very hard to get made, but I'm lucky enough to get them made, so I'm going to keep doing it. I like my independence. I like being able to tell a story the way I want to tell a story. I don't like developing it with a team. I like coming to a story and deciding whether I want to do it or not. — Paul Haggis

Going forward, I would love to work with directors like Rian Johnson and Joss Whedon; people like that who are doing big films but do have really independent voices. That's kind of what I want to focus on, is always working with people with at least an independent point of view, even if it's not an independent film. — Mary Elizabeth Winstead

There are lots of great movies coming out of the U.S. but it's not something I've ever really been interested in. They're great films but I much prefer the smaller independent films, which are more thought provoking and experimental. — Billie Piper

The greatest thing about having done 'Orange' are the doors that have opened for me, and people have been able to see me, like the executives and the casting directors - also, all of the fantastic directors and writers for independent films. — Ruby Rose

I've been doing independent films for 10 years, but one out of five didn't see the light of day. — Scoot McNairy

I like to believe that intimate moments between characters don't need to be relegated to independent films. — Colin Trevorrow

I love independent film making. So much real love and passion go into them and you can feel it while you watch. As for my career, I don't want to be famous. I just want to be a part of as many beautiful, crazy, unique films as possible. — Alicia Sixtos

I have a theory that there's almost this primal viewpoint on women in the business, that once you're beyond childbearing age, you are perceived as nonthreatening, nonsexual, noncastable. Sure, I already knew it before I got into it. I just didn't know I'd end up making my living from low-budget, independent films. — Marcia Gay Harden

You've got these big studio films and these tiny independent films now. It's very much either/or. With the independent films, it's always a beautiful risk - it might never be seen. With the studio films, you're conforming to the formula of what's always been in place. — Imogen Poots

I didn't fill it up with movies every time because I was trying to just film one damn movie, but that's the heartache of independent films. — Shane West

I like the intimacy of independent films and I like the idea that people aren't being paid necessarily as much money as some one on a studio film. — Kim Shaw

I think that in America there is a new movement of underground movies that wants to kick the ass of independent films that they think whine too much. — John Waters

Hollywood ... that's not going to be my niche at all. If anyone is going wants to work with me, I would think it's going to be independent films. I'm not 22! — Lesley Manville

To make independent films, you can't think about them too much, ponder on them too much, get overwhelmed by the enormity of it. — Michael Rapaport

I've love to do more movies. Just because I'm interested in the medium very much. I've done a lot of theatre at this point, and I've done a lot of TV. I've done a few independent films, but a lot of them have not seen the light of day. It'd be really nice to be in a film that gets out there. — Morena Baccarin

Independent films, for the most part, to me, are not so independent. They often feel like people auditioning for a big commercial career. They often do not have independent spirit to them. — Ron Eldard

I'm not prejudiced about what type of movies I'm in, what form they take or whether they're studio or independent. I just want to make films that are going to be good. — Michael Pitt

Many of us had this idea of doing independent film, of making personal, relevant films, as opposed to Hollywood fluff. I directed a few. — Robert Kane Pappas

Independent film is film that has thought in it. There's no independent thought in studio films. It's collective thought. — Seymour Cassel

Most of my movies are indies. The best scripts I can find are independent films. But I love big-budget movies, I love craft services! — Anthony Mackie

A lot of times, you do independent films for passion because you may even lose money doing one, but it doesn't matter. — Sung Kang

I've done all kinds of movies, but I wanna do some more independent films that are not your run-of-the-mill type movies like 'American Splendor', which I had a big part in, that are really trying to do something unique. — Judah Friedlander

I did four independent films during the break between 'Twilight' and 'New Moon.' I haven't even really had time to sit back and process it all. But when you do finally sit back and think about it, it's incredible. — Ashley Greene

It's hard to make a living at independent films, at least in my experience. It can be hard to be really creatively fulfilled in some television. Between the two, I get a bit of both. — Julianne Nicholson

But it's often been the case, I've done so many countless small, independent films that really 3.2 people have seen, so you never know. You do it for the joy of the part and not necessarily expect anyone to see the final product. — Helena Bonham Carter

Independent films are where you really get to cut your teeth and have some fun and do the things that mainstream Hollywood doesn't want to do. — Anthony Anderson

Independent films in this country are in the same position. Miramax and Fine Line are not independent - they're with Disney! Come on. Or they're with Warner Brothers. They're all with somebody. — Dennis Hopper

The independent films are really where I kind of come from and where I feel comfortable. — Mia Wasikowska

You work hard making independent films for fourteen years and you get voted best breasts. — Scarlett Johansson

The films that I really liked and the ones that really blew my mind when I was younger were independent films. They're like great records to me. — Jim Sturgess