Recent Good British Indie Films!?

[daveyboy1984]

Are there many? I really can't think of a film-maker other than shane meadows who makes films about everyday british lives in a modern way.



Im not thinking Ken Loach, Mike Leigh, Michael Winterbottom, even Pawel Pawolski.



Is there young British film-makers who are starting out - the future aboves - who are making anything worth watching?



What do you think?

[ram4553]

name='daveyboy1984']What do you think?

Methinks perhaps you packed a few too many issues into one thread? No offense.



I'm at an obvious disadvantage in the States, though I try to keep up with emerging talent via Raindance, Edinburgh, and a few other sources. Like 'em or loathe 'em, I made a point of rushing to see Control (Anton Corbijn, okay Netherlands-born), Boy A (John Crowley), Red Road (Andrea Arnold), In Bruges (Martin McDonagh). Yes, Shane Meadows whenever he lands a U.S. distributor.



Clearly from the representative directors above, I don't pay much attention to age when seeking fresh voices and visions on screen.



(Granted, in the States, for bettter or worse, we seem to get waves of indie films, by young filmmakers, similar in theme and style and grounded in everyday experiences.)



Let me toss this back to you. Do young British filmmakers focus more on the past for themes/material than on everyday living? Is it different on TV?

[MB]

I don’t live near an ‘arthouse' cinema and so rarely get to see them until they come out on to DVD. But I keep an eye out for what is happening and I have noticed a tendency towards nostalgia/stories about childhood. I think this is partly because it is very difficult to get a project off the ground in the UK and people tend to hedge their bets I think – if they are going to spend a lot of time trying to get it made, shown etc they want to make sure that is has appeal. Anyone can relate to a film like ‘Son of Rambow’ etc..



Money being the primary issue - it is often known faces who get the cash, from even the people who I would have thought are there to look out for entirely new talent..and some of whom you might expect have got the cash themselves.



Then there are another set of films made which are extremely low budget – no one expects anyone to go and see them and are expected to have unusual themes and stories. But the popular and the ‘arthouse’ are kept quite distinct. Only occasionally does something bleed through.. I think we are lacking a bit of a middle ground. People putting money in to exploring ideas that aren’t thought of as sure fire hits. It is innovation – something a bit different - that really gets people going.



It is the same on TV. How Life on Mars got made I will never know. Although it does go down the nostalgia route – it is pretty wacky – there must have been some serious drugging going on.



But for some pointers – you could look at



2008 Nominations | The British Independent Film Awards



(Much of it doesn’t look particularly ‘independent’ to me – same old faces in the Hello style awards pictures……)



Film 4, Raindance, Shooting people all worth a look. A number of regional arts organisations showcase locally made films.

[jenny_adams]

I can't think of any to be honest...





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I work at a lovely firm of Liverpool Solicitors!

[daveyboy1984]

Its interesting how there aren't many that really stand out. Maybe even the good ones dont get any decent distribution...

[pod1969]

A little-known little Brit indie film called Slumdog Millionaire is worth a look , not to mention Happy-Go-Lucky, Somers Town, Man on Wire and Hunger.