Indie Films Get Political

This week is the vote for the European Union referendum. For those of you, like me, who do not live in the UK I will explain what a referendum entails.

A referendum is when everyone who is of legal voting age in the UK votes on a question. Voters choose either yes or no and whichever side gets more than 50 percent of the votes is presumed to be what the public wants.

This year the referendum is deciding whether or not the public wants to stay in the European Union. I'm sure you're wondering, "what does this have to do with films"? If the UK decides to stay in the European Union it would have huge impacts on the production of European films.

The EU is pushing to make films available online available to all countries in the EU at once. In addition studios would have to sell the rights to the entire EU at once instead of territory by territory, decreasing revenue.

Rebecca O'Brien from The Guardian reports, "...this misguided DSM strategy will only serve to buffer the power of monopolistic players in the new online marketplace, squeezing out opportunities for thought-provoking European films to be made, and fostering a monoculture of formulaic blockbusters".

Which means that in the long run indie films will not make enough revenue to be a sustainable business market, leaving the film industry to be run by movie tycoons like Universal Studios or Fox Studios. Award winning European indie film I, Daniel Blake would not have been possible under the new laws proposed by the EU. Director of the film, Ken Loach is an example of someone who's influence in British culture originates from his powerful indie films.

Indie films are invisible supports of hollywood and the movie industry. Indie films are a breeding ground where new talented actors get their start in the film industry. They also offer new storylines and film techniques that are often left unexplored by larger film studios. Losing indie films would mean losing representation for a number of minority groups, who are often underrepresented or absent in blockbuster films.

Andy Leipzig from Cultural Weekly, claims that "Indie films are made by and for our culture’s opinion-makers, the people who drive the national discussion on artistic, social and cultural issues".

The UK stands to lose a major part of their culture if they stay in the EU. Without some careful economic planning to support media we could see the end of European indie films.