A24: Indie studio or blockbuster giant?
In summer last year, Axios Pro reported that the indie distributor A24 was valued at $3.5billion after its latest round of investments, raising questions about the cult studio’s identity as an indie film producer and distributor.
The valuation represented a clear evolution in the production house’s standing in the film industry, putting it on par with Hollywood studios like Lionsgate and Paramount. But could this new valuation also signal a reframing of its output involving bigger budgets, less directorial control and more corporate red tape?
The distributor and producer’s unique, expansive and genre-bending films like I Saw the TV Glow, Problemista, Beau is Afraid and Marcel the Shell with Shoes On are a result of its unique formula, which includes giving up-and-coming directors almost unprecedented creative freedom and creating viral marketing campaigns through social media and word of mouth. A24 is where Ari Aster and Robert Eggers launched their careers and where smaller directors like pre-Barbie Greta Gerwig were first propelled into the spotlight.
Since its early beginnings in 2012, the company has come to be known for distributing films that offer a clever mix of high production, rich cinematography, and outlandish plots, often taking on scripts that most studio execs would shudder at the mere sight of, much less think of developing.
Is A24 losing its indie identity?
It’s a formula that evidently works: Despite reaching newfound dizzying heights of success over the last few years, the beloved brand has so far been able to stick to its promise of delivering quirky, niche, and freaky films on small budgets. But does the release of Materialists threaten to unbalance this expertly curated vision?
Trailers for new films are always highly anticipated, with each one wildly different from the one before. That was until the trailer for Materialists was released earlier this year, a new romcom written and directed by Celine Song – also known for making her directorial debut with A24’s critically acclaimed Past Lives – starring Dakota Johnson, Pedro Pascal and Chris Evans. While, in fairness, the latter isn’t wholly different from Past Lives, with another love triangle of one woman and two men involving one character with a complicated history and the other as a near-perfect match, something feels off. The trailer feels like a sanitised big-budget, surface-level romcom that would be streamed on Netflix, and it’s missing that USP that makes A24’s films special.
It’s no big secret that the production house has firmly made its mark on the Hollywood circuit, churning out projects nominated for over 70 Oscars, winning 21, and its budgets are now averaging more than in the tens of millions. But the arrival of Materialists, and A24’s 2024 safe, if not heartbreaking, We Live in Time, starring Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield, might be signalling a new direction for the brand. It’s an indication of the widening of the distributor’s content remit towards a more crowd-pleasing, blockbuster-orientated focus.
With their latest valuation, chances are a little up in the air about whether the studio will remain loyal to its cult following. While already producing TV shows for streaming giants like Netflix, A24 plans to further expand its production and distribution efforts, investing in live theatre, consumer products and even music.
However, the crop of films due to be released this year and early next year goes some way in offering proof that the brand might just be able to straddle this tightrope between independent distributor/producer and multi-million dollar corporation. With the increasing costs of making films, the need to strike a balance between commercially successful films and wild and wacky creative passion projects for niche audiences is more important than ever.
