Hollywood’s distribution mannequin is designed to serve the studio system—a machine fueled by large budgets and assured field workplace hits. However what occurs when audiences crave one thing completely different? In a panorama saturated with sequels, remakes, and IP-driven blockbusters, recent and authentic storytelling is usually left on the slicing room ground.
This yr’s Oscars despatched a loud and clear message: indie movies aren’t simply holding their very own—they’re successful. However whereas audiences are proving their starvation for recent voices, Hollywood’s distribution machine stays caught up to now, prioritizing opening weekend ensures over slow-burn success. That risk-averse mannequin leaves many impartial movies with out the distribution they deserve. Crowdfunding flips the script, giving filmmakers the facility to rally assist and show their tales belong on the massive display.
Crowdfunding as a Launchpad for Impartial Filmmaking
“When studios focus solely on assured hits, they depart behind the daring, distinctive tales that audiences truly need,” says Andy Striph, Indiegogo’s Artistic Works Director. “That is the place crowdfunding proves invaluable—it permits filmmakers to construct private connections and grassroots assist earlier than the movie is even made.”
When studios wouldn’t greenlight Don Cheadle’s directorial debut and Miles Davis biopic Miles Forward, crowdfunding made the undertaking a actuality. It offered the proof-of-concept that traders and audiences wanted to see—widespread grassroots assist. The proof is within the marketing campaign.
Indiegogo has been a launchpad for award-winning movies, serving to carry tasks like A Woman Walks House Alone at Evening and Pricey White Individuals to life. Filmmakers have turned to crowdfunding at each stage of manufacturing—from proof-of-concept shorts to pre-production funding, post-production ending funds, and pageant submissions.
Extra than simply funding, crowdfunding supplies filmmakers with a direct line to their viewers, serving to them construct passionate communities round their tasks. It’s a platform for daring, distinctive, and daring storytelling—tales which may by no means see the sunshine of day within the conventional studio system.
Enter Issues Like This: A Contemporary, Daring, and Needed Movie
Within the spirit of impartial storytelling, Issues Like This is precisely the type of movie that the Hollywood system usually overlooks. Whereas it options LGBTQ characters, Issues Like This is a rom-com for everybody—a heartfelt, humorous, and deeply private love story that anybody can join with. It follows two males who share the identical identify and, seemingly, the identical future. However in a metropolis the place goals and actuality continuously blur, is something ever that easy?
Written, directed by, and starring Max Talisman, Issues Like This is extra than simply one other rom-com—it’s a celebration of affection, identification, and destiny. That includes an ensemble solid that features Joey Pollari (Love, Simon), Jackie Cruz (Orange is the New Black), Charlie Tahan (Ozark), and Cara Buono (Stranger Issues), the movie brings a recent and inclusive perspective to the style.
Max Talisman’s directorial debut additionally challenges trade norms—particularly in terms of casting. As a plus-size actor, he’s breaking away from conventional Hollywood expectations, selling physique positivity and inclusivity in an area that usually lacks genuine illustration.
A Name to Motion for Indie Movies
Hollywood wasn’t constructed for indie filmmakers—however that doesn’t imply indie filmmakers must play by its guidelines. Whether or not you’re a movie pupil, a first-time director, or an trade veteran uninterested in combating for artistic management, crowdfunding is a confirmed path ahead. It’s not nearly elevating cash—it’s about proving demand, constructing a loyal fan base, and making the type of movies Hollywood is just too afraid to guess on.
