Decade's Best DIY Films You Never Heard Of

For our first edition of Throwback Sundays in 2010, we're highlighting our picks for 5 of the decade's best DIY films you probably have never heard of. These films were done with little to no budgets, with the filmmakers using nothing but the resources available to them, and creating something meaningful from them. These are in no particular order. Feel free to click on the titles for links to the films' online presence or dvd purchase pages.

1) Cry Funny Happy (2003)

Dir: Sam Neave

Story: Six characters at a crossroads in their lives come together for a thirtieth birthday party that will change them forever.

Reception: After having its premiere at Sundance, where the film didn't pick up any awards but got a nice quote from Robert Redford (whose daughter was one of the leads), this very no budget feature film went on to be nominated for an Indie Spirit producer's award in 2003. Critically it evoked sort of a "blah" reaction (which isn't good for any filmmaker), before getting truly panned by variety (at least someone took a stand). There was a great quote however from Norm Schrager of FilmCritic.com who said, "in creating the party sequences, Neave succeeds at one of the toughest directorial tasks – building a party out of thin air, and making it seem absolutely real." The film went on to span both coasts domestically, before ending its run with a showing in Hawaii and in Bangkok, to bring their fest total to about 6 before getting released on DVD by Spot Creative. It is now available on iTunes as well as Amazon.

Comments: Beyond your standard DIY tech issues, this film seemed to have focus issues, with the consumer DV cameras used. The whole film seemed soft. As some critics pointed out, the film ends much stronger than it starts, which I guess could have been the point. There were also some actors that were not quite able to make their characters the least bit likable, even though their characters themselves were fully dimensional. That being said, this film packed a hell of a surprise punch at the infamous party scene where things all of sudden go terribly wrong. Although the structuring was a stroke of genius, this was "mumblecore" before there was "mumblecore." Improvised dialogue, very nuaced and natural character and story development, and a brilliant first feature performance by Kellee Stewart, who after doing this no budget film went on to major roles in Hollywood films like Guess Who with Ashton Kutcher and TBS's "My Boys." Its one of those rare finds, and I'm glad I randomly picked up the DVD (although till this day I cannot remember where from). The trailer alone gives me goosebumps when I stumble on it from time to time:


Cry Funny Happy from sam neave on Vimeo.


2) Johnny Montana (2006)

Dir: John Daniel Gavin

Story: Johnny in his mid-20's, from Brooklyn tries to grow beyond his provincial background in his quest for self-discovery but falls into a dark underworld that brings him everything he thinks he wants.

Reception: After getting rejected from top tier fests like Sundance, the film had its world premiere at the San Francisco Independent film festival, before showing in Palm Beach and Newport Beach International Fests among several others. Paul Rogers of LA Critics called it "the new watermark in no budget feature filmmaking." It was awarded best feature at Moondance, and best debut film at Australia International. No word on the DVD release (the director has been admittedly slow to come to terms with having do all the work necessary to self-distribute it), except its "coming soon," but you'll be sure to hear it first on the film's FB page HERE.

Comments: Saw this film for the first time at the Idaho International Film Festival and was floored. Its not that I hadn't heard any hype about it, John Gavin the director, who is now a friend of mine, will tell you flat out, "the film is fantastic." Believe me he isnt a jerk, and just like the film, its endearing. He is underselling the film as far as I'm concerned. Without a budget, these guys managed to cover countless authentic NYC locations in the span of this movie. This film has more heart than most DIY films I've seen, and that is probably because it is centered by one of the best single performances in a DIY film, by John Daniel Gavin who also plays the title role - thats why its on this list. This is all despite the fact that as I've expressed to Gavin privately, his performance was so good that unfortunately the run and gun nature by which he was forced to shoot, would often work against him, with lighting schemes that several times hid the brilliance that you could hear and feel was there. But its one of the only times I can remember watching a performance and immediately thinking to myself that the actor belonged on a much larger screen, as a bonified superstar. Gavin's performance in my opinion was beyond the limits of DIY, it was epic. I also must mention that it contains an opening scene that features some of the best staging I've seen in a low budget film period.



3) Dear Pillow (2004)

Dir: Bryan Poyser

Story: A study of lonely, alienated people in bland apartment complexes who fill their empty lives with sexual fantasies and pornography.

Reception: A very well received film, that was granted the one-two punch of a Slamdance premiere followed by a screening at SXSW. The rest is basically history, as several critics including Robert Koehler at Variety praised the debut. An impressive festival run that included Gen Art, Philadelphia, and Boston before going overseas. It was eventually released on DVD by Heretic Films in 2007.

Comments: Delightfully deceptive in several ways. A Mini DV, DIY film that looks and feels like a 35mm Sundance selection, and a film that talks way more about sex than it actually shows. Very mature, low key performances across the board. A visibly well made film with an invisible budget.


Dear Pillow Trailer by IndieFlix

4) Natural Causes (2008)

Dir: Alex Cannon, Paul Cannon, Michael Lerman

Story: In the wake of a brief, but intense relationship with Shaina, David struggles to find the same connection with Cara, his new flame and Shaina's former best friend.

Reception: Official Selection at SXSW, good reviews across the board from critics that included Peter Martin of Cinematical. Strangely enough, this film may never be seen again, as the DVD release has been held up due to music clearance issues, and may or may not complete that process.

Comments: Shot for around 15 grand, it was my favorite film of '08. Saw it at IFC. Great use of music score. Emotionally raw, honest. Leah Goldstein gave a strong performance. Some really cool, thoughtful blocking as well. It includes the best single steadicam shot I've seen in a decade; one that was in itself metaphorically comprehensive.



5) Four Dead Batteries (2004)

Dir: Hiram Martinez

Story: Four New York improvisers struggle with love, commitment, and understanding the women in their lives, in this ensemble, indie comedy.

Reception: Although rejected from top tier film festivals, the film found its audience at regional film festivals all over the east coast, and received several strong reviews including this good one from BlogCritics. The film was picked up by Hightone after nearly 2 strong years on the festival circuit.

Comments: Shot for around the same budget as the above film, this gem of a comedy was shot as if their DV Cam was a 35mm Panavision special. Heavy use of dolly shots, and the lack of handheld work was refreshing, daring, and showed the world that all no budget films don't have to look or feel the same way. The writing is nearly perfect, the jokes funny, the actors engaging. Features a rare but wonderfully dramatic, pre-Fuse TV performance from funny-woman Allison Becker (MTV's "Boiling Points").

Four Dead Batteries - Making of Four Dead Batteries
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