Even Top Indie Directors Make Little Money

Indie directors Sean Baker and Brady Corbet both had banner awards seasons for their respective films Anora and The Brutalist. But as IndieWire notes, both made clear on the interview circuit and in their speeches that it's nearly impossible for independent directors to make a living these days. Corbet, for example, said he had "made zero dollars" on his last two films and was surviving on a check from three years ago. And Baker (whose past critical successes include The Florida Project and Tangerine) said he can only do what he does because he has no children. Producer Alex Saks explains the economics at IndieWire's Toolkit podcast, using the (optimistic) hypothetical of an indie director making a film for $5 million that goes on to earn $7 million.

• "Under this scheme, the equity investor floated cash flow to make the movie. They would recoup their $5 million investment, plus a 20% premium—so, $6 million goes to the investor. The sales agent would also take a 10% fee from the sale; that's $700,000. From the $7 million sale, that leaves $300,000 to split between the investor and the filmmakers. That means just $150,000 for the creative team, which can include the producers, writer, director, and crew members."
• A director might get a salary of $75,000 (big names such as Baker and Corbet would likely get more, and new directors less), but it also might take three years to finish a film. The upshot is that a director could easily end up making the equivalent of minimum wage or less.
• The directors talk movie economics and more in a one-on-one conversation at Variety. "I eventually have to get out of this country—it's very expensive to shoot here," says Baker. "It's really, really difficult." To which Corbet responds, "I know."

Read the full Indie Wire story for more, including how the world of streaming also hurts indie directors because they don't have the partnerships with streaming giants that studios have. (More independent film stories.)