A QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY ANALYSIS OF THE CURRENT CONDITION OF NICHE MARKET, INDEPENDENT MOTION PICTURE PRODUCERS

Abstract

This dissertation provides researchers with a window into the field of motion picture production from an inside-looking-out viewpoint filmmakers actively working in the field of motion picture production. Through a series of in-depth interviews, producers discuss the complexity of their roles and give first-hand accounts of what it means to be a filmmaker working outside of the corporate studio system of production. The study substantiates Bourdieu's model of the field of cultural production and shows how it is applicable to the study of producers. The study also expands previous research, helping to build a more complete account of the current state of the field of motion picture production. Producers interviewed for this study include: Ted Hope, producer of over sixty films and selected for this study because of his particular involvement as producer for the film American Splendor; Eric Gitter, who produced 2010's surprise hit Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, a film based on the mildly successful graphic novels created by Bryan O'Malley; Christine Walker, who produced over fifteen films and worked on both American Splendor and Howl, a film based on popular beat poet Allen Ginsberg; Marisa Miller Wolfson, who directed and co-produced the 2010 film Vegucated; Ben Steinbauer, director/producer of Winnebago Man; Bradley Beesley, producer of six films such as Sweethearts of the Prison Rodeo and Okie Noodling; Sarah Price, producer/director for American Movie, Summercamp and others; Tracy Droz Tragos, producer for Be Good, Smile Pretty and Rich Hill; Tim Kirk, Room 237, a film exploring the theories behind Stanley Kubrick's The Shining; Jon Betz, producer for Queen of the Sun and Seed: The Untold Story; Jon Reiss, producer of street art film Bomb It and author of Think Outside the Box Office; Stan Lee, former president and CEO of Marvel Comics and executive producer of Spider-Man, Hulk, and X-Men; and Grant Curtis, the producer for three Spider-Man films directed by Sam Raimi, as well as Raimi's Drag Me to Hell