Studying American Independent Cinema

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This student-focused guide explores modern US independent cinema in depth and places it in context of its more general history. Starting with John Cassavetes and Shadows, it focuses on case studies of key films, blending detailed textual analysis with an exploration of each text's wider theoretical and historical contexts. In particular, it explores the defining period from 1989, when the creative talent met the moneymen the commercial potential of independent cinema was fully recognized and exploited. Discussions of Miramax and the Sundance Film Festival are paired with case studies of the work of Steven Soderbergh (Sex, lies and videotape), Quentin Tarantino (Pulp fiction), Todd Haynes (I'm not there), Gus Van Sant (Last days), David Lynch (Mulholland Drive), John Sayles (The return of the Secaucus Seven), Kimberly Peirce (Boys don't cry), Spike Lee (Do the right thing) and PT Anderson (There will be blood).