Indie, Inc.

Miramax and the Transformation of Hollywood in the 1990s

Nonfiction, Entertainment, Film, History & Criticism, Performing Arts
Cover of the book Indie, Inc. by Alisa Perren, University of Texas Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Alisa Perren ISBN: 9780292742871
Publisher: University of Texas Press Publication: May 15, 2012
Imprint: University of Texas Press Language: English
Author: Alisa Perren
ISBN: 9780292742871
Publisher: University of Texas Press
Publication: May 15, 2012
Imprint: University of Texas Press
Language: English

During the 1990s, films such as sex, lies, and videotape, The Crying Game, Pulp Fiction, Good Will Hunting, and Shakespeare in Love earned substantial sums at the box office along with extensive critical acclaim. A disproportionate number of these hits came from one company: Miramax. Indie, Inc. surveys Miramax’s evolution from independent producer-distributor to studio subsidiary, chronicling how one company transformed not just the independent film world but the film and media industries more broadly. As Alisa Perren illustrates, Miramax’s activities had an impact on everything from film festival practices to marketing strategies, talent development to awards campaigning.

Case studies of key films, including The Piano, Kids, Scream, The English Patient, and Life Is Beautiful, reveal how Miramax went beyond influencing Hollywood business practices and motion picture aesthetics to shaping popular and critical discourses about cinema during the 1990s. Indie, Inc. does what other books about contemporary low-budget cinema have not—it transcends discussions of “American indies” to look at the range of Miramax-released genre films, foreign-language films, and English-language imports released over the course of the decade. The book illustrates that what both the press and scholars have typically represented as the “rise of the American independent” was in fact part of a larger reconfiguration of the media industries toward niche-oriented products.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

During the 1990s, films such as sex, lies, and videotape, The Crying Game, Pulp Fiction, Good Will Hunting, and Shakespeare in Love earned substantial sums at the box office along with extensive critical acclaim. A disproportionate number of these hits came from one company: Miramax. Indie, Inc. surveys Miramax’s evolution from independent producer-distributor to studio subsidiary, chronicling how one company transformed not just the independent film world but the film and media industries more broadly. As Alisa Perren illustrates, Miramax’s activities had an impact on everything from film festival practices to marketing strategies, talent development to awards campaigning.

Case studies of key films, including The Piano, Kids, Scream, The English Patient, and Life Is Beautiful, reveal how Miramax went beyond influencing Hollywood business practices and motion picture aesthetics to shaping popular and critical discourses about cinema during the 1990s. Indie, Inc. does what other books about contemporary low-budget cinema have not—it transcends discussions of “American indies” to look at the range of Miramax-released genre films, foreign-language films, and English-language imports released over the course of the decade. The book illustrates that what both the press and scholars have typically represented as the “rise of the American independent” was in fact part of a larger reconfiguration of the media industries toward niche-oriented products.

More books from University of Texas Press

Cover of the book Ritual and Pilgrimage in the Ancient Andes by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book Driving Visions by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book The Kin Who Count by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book Now More Than Ever by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book The Social Conscience of Latin American Writing by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book Stylistic and Narrative Structures in the Middle English Romances by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book Renewing the Maya World by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book The Amazing Armadillo by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book The Fictional Christopher Nolan by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book "With His Pistol in His Hand" by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book Twentieth Century-Fox by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book Bolívar and the War of Independence by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book Handbook of Middle American Indians, Volume 6 by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book The Dialogic Imagination by Alisa Perren
Cover of the book Kitchenspace by Alisa Perren
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy