Forum Schedule

Schedule of events for the 2023 Film Independent Forum

Please note: Forum program elements (panels, times, speakers, etc.) are subject to change.

The Film Independent Forum is back, entirely in person, and has so much to offer…

Experience a Filmmaker Keynote from director and Film Independent Fellow Justin Simien (Haunted Mansion, Dear White People); the LA Premiere of Frybread Face and Me, including a conversation with director and Film Independent Fellow Billy Luther; the presentation of the inaugural Changemaker Award to Film Independent Fellows Smriti Mundhra, Pamela Ribon and Kim Yutani; and a screening of Fair Play, followed by a conversation with EP Ram Bergman.

Plus, as always, take part in conversations with a stellar lineup of panelists who will give you the expert advice you need to move your career as a filmmaker forward. All of this and much more, September 29–30, live and in person at the DGA in Los Angeles.

 

Accessibility

Film Independent is committed to hosting events that are accessible. For inquiries regarding accessibility, or to request an accommodation, please contact us at accessibility@filmindependent.org or 323 556 9305.

 

Jump to: Saturday

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 29

Industry Connect at the Forum

3:30–5:30 pm (DGA Lobby)


Industry Connect is a unique opportunity to meet one-on-one with agents, casting directors, distributors, film festivals, funding organizations, production companies, and other industry professionals. Gain valuable insight on current business practices, get information on real opportunities to advance your career and receive advice on how to move your project forward.

Industry Connect meetings are 12 minutes in duration. Forum registrants interested in participating can initially sign up for two (2) meetings. Arts Circle and Filmmaker Pro Members receive a priority registration window. After open registration is complete, all attendees can sign up for additional meetings, pending availability.

Industry Connect key dates:

September 19: Arts Circle and Filmmaker Pro priority sign-up begins
September 21: General sign-up opens to all Forum passholders
September 27: Open sign-up for remaining Industry Connect meeting slots (if available)
 

Special Screening: Strange Way of Life

4:00 pm and 5:00 pm (DGA 2)

Two screenings of Pedro Almodóvar’s new film (30 min. runtime) starring Ethan Hawke and Pedro Pascal – exclusively for Forum passholders!

Strange Way of Life opens in theaters on October 6.
 

Welcome Reception

5:30–7:00 pm

A chance to meet fellow Forum attendees and participants, while enjoying refreshments and tasty bites.
 

Changemaker Award

7:00 pm (DGA 1)

A celebratory presentation of the inaugural Changemaker Award to filmmakers (and Film Independent Fellows) Smriti Mundhra, Pamela Ribon and Kim Yutani.

The ceremony will be immediately followed by the…
 

Opening Night Film

Frybread Face and Me
7:00 pm (DGA 1)

An official selection of SXSW and TIFF in 2023, Frybread Face and Me throws away stereotypes of Native American life and revels in the joys of being Indian. It takes audiences on a journey into a world that hasn’t been seen before: a hilarious look into a summer of “firsts,” both immersive and heartfelt, told through the eyes of two young Native kids.

The screening will be followed by a conversation with writer/director and Film Independent Fellow Billy Luther, producer Chad Burris, cinematographer Peter Simonite, editor Fred Koschmann and actors Martin Sensmeier, Kahara Hodges and Charley Hogan.

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SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 30

Conference Introduction

10:00 am

 

Filmmaker Keynote Address

10:15 am

Special remarks from, and conversation with, filmmaker and Film Independent Fellow Justin Simien (Haunted Mansion, Dear White People).

Moderated by Stephanie Allain (Executive Producer; Leimert Park, Really Love)
 

Financing Clinic: How Do you Package a Movie in Today’s Market?

11:15 am (DGA 1)

With the ebb and flow of money for independent film, structuring the financing for a film can be very unpredictable and frustrating. With few things totally in your control, a perfect pitch becomes indispensable. How do you leverage your project’s elements into an attractive package for financiers and investors?

We assemble a panel of producers, financiers and industry experts to provide a snapshot of financing today, and offer feedback on select Film Independent Fellows’ pitches. The panelists’ specific and practical advice will provide useful packaging and financing tips for all.

Ryan Broussard (VP, Sales and Production Incentives, Wrapbook)
Jenny Jue (Casting Director, Okja)
Stephanie Meurer (Producer; Uncle Frank, Native Son)
Rahdi Taylor (Concordia Studio)
Andi Wong (Agent, CAA)

Moderated by Angela Lee (Director of Artist Development, Film Independent)

With pitches from Film Independent Fellows:
Fiona Hardingham (Producer, Smoke Country)
Adina Luo (Director, You Have the Floor)
Jess Dang (Writer/Director, Surrender)
Jessica Olthof (Producer, Surrender)
Darren Haruo Rae (Producer, Surrender)

OR

Drawing a Line in the Sand: IP in the Time of AI

11:15 am (DGA 2)

At the end of 2022, with the arrival of ChatGPT, it seemed like AI grew from “the elephant in the room” to the “monster in the house.” Even though AI has been in our midst for quite some time, this time it feels very real and personal. With two major guilds on strike, AI has taken center stage in the disputes, and the conversation has moved from “if” to when and how.

Stakeholders including film artists (below and above the line), as well as tech and legal experts, provide insight on the uses and implications of AI in our industry, and the disruptions it will bring to intellectual property, the art of storytelling, the business model and the labor force. If we can’t deny its use, where do we draw the line?

John August (Writer; Aladdin, Big Fish)
Lisa Callif (Partner, Donaldson Callif Perez)
Alton Glass (CEO, GRX Immersive Labs)
Jay Redd (VFX Supervisor; For All Mankind, Alice Through the Looking Glass)
William Swartout (Chief Technology Officer, USC Institute for Creative Technologies)

Moderated by Billy Ray (Writer/Producer; Captain Phillips, The Hunger Games)
 

Program Break

12:30 pm

 

Fiction Case Studies

1:45 pm (DGA 1)

From inception, all the way to the big screen and the small screen, the teams behind Spirit Award-nominated Emily the Criminal and Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul. explore what it takes to make, sell and reach an audience with an indie film today.

Addama Ebo (Writer/Director; Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.)
Adanne Ebo (Producer; Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.)
John Patton Ford (Writer/Director, Emily the Criminal)
Drew Sykes (Producer, Emily the Criminal)

Moderated by Valerie Stadler (Producer, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe; EP, Fat Camp)

OR

Documentary Case Studies

1:45 pm (DGA 2)

In today’s challenging market, it seems like everything is stacked against the documentary filmmaker – yet passion and tenacity can still win out. Join the filmmakers behind two of last year’s indie docs, Liquor Store Dreams and Stutz, for a deep dive into their creation.

So Yun Um (Director/Writer/Producer, Liquor Store Dreams)
Eddie Kim (Producer, Liquor Store Dreams)
Melanie Miller (Producer, Stutz)

Moderated by Miranda Yousef (Director, Art for Everybody)
 

Industry Connect at the Forum

3:00–5:00 pm (DGA Lobby)

See Industry Connect listing above (Friday) for details.
 

Distribution: If You Build It, Will They Come?

3:30 pm (DGA 1)

The theatrical experience and box office still has not fully recovered since 2019. With fewer studio releases and box office numbers down, what can we expect for indie movies with no star power and limited marketing budgets? How do you build a distribution strategy that best serves your movie and returns your investment? What does a realistic distribution plan look like? Filmmakers and distribution strategists share their experience to help you solve the distribution conundrum and manage expectations.

Eric d’Arbeloff (Co-President, Roadside Attractions)
Melanie Miller (Producer; Stutz, Navalny)
Orly Ravid (Founder/Co-Executive Director, The Film Collaborative)

Moderated by Liz Manashil (Distribution Consultant)

OR

Staying Power: The Indie New Wave

3:30 pm (DGA 2)

After launching their careers with successful debut films, these filmmakers have found diverse ways of sustaining a career in film and television. Balancing their creative output between stories that matter to them and the new realities of the market, they have managed to break in and thrive, with staying power. From their experiences, learn what it takes to launch a career in film and television and what the future might hold for independent storytellers and artists.

Maria Altamirano (Producer, All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt; Co-Producer, Los Espookys)
Thembi Banks (Writer/Director, Young. Wild. Free.)
Julian Breece (Writer; Rustin, When They See Us)
Tze Chun (Executive Producer, Secrets of the Mogwai; Writer, Gotham)
Aurora Guererro (Director; The Other Black Girl, Little America)

Moderated by Dea Vazquez (Associate Director, Fiction Programs, Film Independent)
 

Closing Conversation: Producers at the Table

5:00 pm (DGA 1)

We close the Forum with our traditional roundtable featuring some of today’s best-known indie producers. They’ll discuss the challenges producers face today with an ongoing guild strike and a sluggish theatrical market that still hasn’t bounced back to pre-pandemic numbers. Is theatrical dead for all but the largest independent titles? And with streamers dominating sales at festivals and markets, what does this mean for the bottom-line and back-end? From telling stories that matter to sustaining a career, these producers prove that it can be done and will offer tips and advice for all.

Kori Adelson (Executive Producer, Fear Street 1,2,3; Dicks: The Musical)
Jacob Jaffke (Producer; X, Pearl, MaXXXine; EP, Bodies Bodies Bodies)
Alex Orlovsky (Producer, His Three Daughters; EP, Never Rarely Sometimes Always)
Datari Turner (Producer; They Cloned Tyrone, Uncorked)

Moderated by Danielle Renfrew Behrens (Producer; Columbus, Loot)
 

Happy Hour

6:00 pm


Sponsored by

 

Closing Night Film

Fair Play
7:30 pm (DGA 1)

An official selection of Sundance, TIFF and Aspen Film Festival in 2023, Fair Play is the feature debut of writer-director Chloe Domont, who weaves a taut relationship thriller, staring down the destructive gender dynamics that pit partners against each other, and unraveling the uncomfortable collision of empowerment and ego.

The screening will be followed by a conversation with EP Ram Bergman, moderated by Josh Welsh (President, Film Independent).

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Speakers & Panelists

Kori Adelson (Executive Producer, Fear Street 1,2,3; Dicks: The Musical)
Stephanie Allain (Executive Producer; Leimert ParkReally Love)
Maria Altamirano (Producer, All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt; Co-Producer, Los Espookys)
John August (Writer, AladdinBig Fish)
Thembi Banks (Writer/Director, Young. Wild. Free.)
Ram Bergman (Executive Producer, Fair Play; Producer, Knives Out)
Julian Breece (Writer; Rustin, When They See Us)
Ryan Broussard (VP, Sales and Production Incentives, Wrapbook)
Chad Burris (Producer, Frybread Face and Me)
Lisa Callif (Partner, Donaldson Callif Perez)
Tze Chun (Executive Producer, Secrets of the Mogwai; Writer, Gotham)
Jess Dang (Writer/Director, Surrender)
Eric d’Arbeloff (Co-President, Roadside Attractions)
Adamma Ebo (Writer/Director; Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.)
Adanne Ebo (Producer; Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.)
John Patton Ford (Writer/Director, Emily the Criminal)
Alton Glass (CEO, GRX Immersive Labs)
Aurora Guererro (Director; Queen Sugar, Mosquita y Mari)
Fiona Hardingham (Producer, Smoke Country)
Jacob Jaffke (Producer; X, Pearl, MaXXXine; EP, Bodies Bodies Bodies)
Jenny Jue (Casting Director, Okja)
Eddie Kim (Producer, Liquor Store Dreams)
Fred Koschmann (Editor, Frybread Face and Me)
Angela Lee (Director of Artist Development, Film Independent)
Adina Luo (Director, You Have the Floor)
Billy Luther (Writer/Director; Frybread Face and MeMiss Navajo)
Liz Manashil (Distribution Consultant; formerly, Sundance Creative Distribution)
Stephanie Meurer (Producer; Uncle Frank, Native Son)
Melanie Miller (Producer; Stutz, Navalny)
Jessica Olthof (Producer, Surrender)
Alex Orlovsky (Producer, His Three Daughters; EP, Never Rarely Sometimes Always)
Darren Haruo Rae (Producer, Surrender)
Orly Ravid (Founder/Co-Executive Director, The Film Collaborative)
Billy Ray (Writer/Producer; Captain Phillips, Richard Jewell, The Hunger Games)
Jay Redd (VFX Supervisor; For All MankindAlice Through the Looking Glass)
Danielle Renfrew Behrens (Producer; Columbus, Loot)
Justin Simien (Director, The Haunted MansionDear White People)
Peter Simonite (Cinematographer, Frybread Face and Me)
Valerie Stadler (Producer, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe; EP, Fat Camp)
William Swartout (Chief Technology Officer, USC Institute for Creative Technologies)
Drew Sykes (Producer, Emily the Criminal)
Rahdi Taylor (Executive VP; The Concordia Fellowship, Concordia Studio)
Datari Turner (Producer; They Cloned TyroneUncorked)
So Yun Um (Director/Writer/Producer, Liquor Store Dreams)
Dea Vazquez (Associate Director, Fiction Programs, Film Independent)
Josh Welsh (President, Film Independent)
Andi Wong (Agent, CAA)
Miranda Yousef (Director, Art for Everybody)