Contrast that with its embrace of every grimy detail of demented dubstep nightmare Spring Breakers, for which the company went so far as to mount a sincere consider this sh*t awards campaign for James Franco. And I think theyre creating a kind of renaissance in filmmaking. Beyer: I remember when we had Room, like, six months after Ex Machina or something, Fenkel was like, Whats the Tinder for Room? And I was like, No, no! It was, like, every time another person walked out, I was like, Oh, there goes another one!, Sacco: All my friends and family, they kept asking about this new company. John has been a trusted partner who helped conceive A24 and for that we will always be grateful, A24 noted. Aizenberg: We had a couple movies in there that we tried to force into making, like, event-y theatrical, and they werent. . Variety is a part of Penske Media Corporation. We want to go two thousand screens. Take the fate of John Macleans Slow West, one of the years best films, a neo-Western starring Michael Fassbender as a bounty hunter. And someone was like, Where did those images come from? And I was like, Google? Login to view all information @ I think what theyve understood is theres a sufficient number of people out there who want more challenging or different material. Katz: They were kind of comfortable with the Under the Skin release. (Joy, Annapurnas only 2015 title, arrives in theaters on Christmas Day.). Its such a really fucking well-executed movie. Not heyday. Fenkel: The world kind of shifted in its direction, where the film was for an audience, and then you realize, Whoa, the movie is needed by other people. [8] In October 2012, Nicolette Aizenberg joined as head of publicity from 42West where she was senior publicity executive. So, um, well done, A24! There has been speculation for the past six months that the company is for sale. Lady Bird remains its biggest success, earning $49 million domestically to date. Eggers: People always want to do bigger and better the next time, you know? Filmmakersoften the toughest audiences for their own films marketing campaignsrecognize the companys real excitement for their films. I think he was in Hawaii on his honeymoon or something while it was all going down, so I felt terrible. At the time of my visit, however, A24 still looked more like a startup than a movie studio, and you could find the countrys fastest-growing film companys actual HQ only by following the flimsy paper signs that had been taped up along the 17th-floor hallway outside its headquarters. And we broke records. We were watching it the whole time. Gif excerpt from the film Room via A24 Films. Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Art and Experience : John Hodges is leaving A24, the Oscar-winning indie studio that he co-founded. And so with [The Rover], they took that into account, and instead of blowing loads of money, [they did] more targeted marketing and also really sophisticated online campaigns and stuff. So long as A24 continues tooperate independently and make edgy films from newcomers and established veterans alike, Ill be a happy moviegoer. Igoe: Even with Ex Machina at the time, we were getting bigger, but we still had that kind of start-up mentality that I dont know wed be able to get away with now. If anything, it was the bastard stepchild at that point. Distribution: Theatrical, TV, DVD-video, VOD, USA. Hes not gonna be able to do this right now. Our first release. This is a growing company, not a struggling one. The company, improbably, was based in New York, not Los Angeles. Sacco: To engrave the Spring Breakers logo onto the glass-gun bong. The Bling Ring provoked Emma Watson to cast off the shadow of Hermione Granger and step into the pink Juicy Couture sweatpants of a spoiled teen criminal in contemporary Hollywood. But I remember vividly that they had chosen some specific movies, one of which was Under the Skin. That was a thing. Its funny. Fenkel: Charlie Sheen was in this interesting place where maybe he was on the verge of a comeback, and Im saying that with a straight face. The companys expansion into film is a natural progression as the company continues to produce scripted and non-scripted television as well as stand-up comedy specials. The first: Barry Jenkins Moonlight, which chronicles a gay mans coming of age across three stages of his life in war on drugsera Miami. Beyer: I think the operating principle was, Dont ask for permission. Asif Kapadia (director, Amy): I had never heard of A24. I think theatrical will always be there, but most of my biggest experiences of cinema have been in front of a TVno one was screening Fellini films in Ireland when I was 19 or 20.. Prior to A24, all had worked extensively in film and production before leaving their current positions to co-found the company, originally A24 Films, which specialized in film distribution. Like Under the Skin, Locke, Enemy. Earlier this year I was drinking in a hotel bar with the head of another distribution company at a film festival. So what is an A24 film? A24 is cool and I know they say great things about Miramax, which makes me feel proud and old at the same time. [25], On November 13, 2019, A24 entered into a premium cable television broadcast deal with Showtime Networks, covering all film releases through November 1, 2022. How A24 is Disrupting Hollywood. And it was the hair and makeup people. [23], On March 26, 2018, co-founder John Hodges announced that he was exiting the company. Jeanie Igoe (production, A24): None of us really knew what we were doing. And on some level, honestly, I was afraid to go out on my own and try to make it work. The world opened itself up. And it satisfied something they werent getting. When historians of the future try to pinpoint the precise moment that the film industry crawled out of its deathbed and back onto its feet, theres a good chance theyll land somewhere in March 2013, when a fledgling distribution company called A24 Films transformed a Harmony Korine movie starring a cornrowed James Franco into a genuine cultural event. Katz: People say, Oh, Barry, why didnt you bring us Moonlight?As if that was the most obvious Best Picture! Pattinson: I mean, with Twilight, the first tour we did was literally going to suburban shopping malls and doing local-news stuff. Katz, Fenkel and Hodges prior to A24 worked in film and production, before leaving to eventually co-found the company, Our site's data suggests A24's net worth to be about $1.89 million. I think when we started [2016], it was another, like, what Id consider a building year. Here's who: Daniel Katz, David Fenkel, John Hodges and James Schultz. In between, A24 went from being a tiny, disorganized room of eight or so people to being the place where big stars like Robert Pattinson and Scarlett Johansson go to make small, strange movies, and auteurs like Jonathan Glazer and Denis Villeneuve go to make deeply personal films unmolested by studio notes or clueless executives. Katz: There was still, I think, the element ofthey thought we got lucky. Thats someone else. And the guy asked me, Is there anything we might find suspicious in there? I said, Theres an art piece inside in the shape of a gun. And literally the entire security department was like, What is wrong with you? Long story short, it made it through. Focus and Fox Searchlight had become kind of isolated in what they did. Sasha Lane (actress, American Honey): They were like, You guys are who you are and were not going to change that. No one had to be perfected for anything. Did Moonlight just win Best Picture?. Theyre on the tarmac, and were having to find a new jet for them within twenty minutes. But I think in experiences since then, doing mid-budget or relatively low-budget movies, if you try to do a toned-down version of thatIve just seen it not work, again and again and again. [27], A24 distributes and produces around 18 to 20 films a year. But then also do things that other companies arent doing. A24 typically pays a bit more for these movies than it does the ones the it buys itself, andlike most VOD content providersit doesnt make its grosses public. I dont think that switch in psychology is supposed to happen that dramatically, or that abruptly. Please! And we werent thinking about that. As of 2023[update], the company's films had received a total of 49 Academy Award nominations. [15], In January 2016, Sasha Lloyd joined the company to handle all film, television distribution and business development in the international marketplace. A24, which was founded in 2012, said that no additional changes in management will be made. Radcliffe (actor, Swiss Army Man): I could see them saying, like: Weve got a reputation now, and have money now. A lot of people in that position would then go, Okay, lets become quite conservative in our choices. And whats lovely is they are choosing to still channel that stuff back into supporting weird, different, ambitious ventures. John Hodges is Head of Film for Jax Media, where he heads Jax's feature film development and production. Judging by the fact that the trailer racked up more than 3 million views in its first week online, the crowds are ready with their pitchforks. And in that moment I was like: Now its time to go do this. The company is behind instant fan favorites like Uncut Gems, Ladybird, The Lighthouse, and Everything Everywhere All at Once. The Oscar-nominated actor gives us his all-time favorites of film. Katz formerly led the film finance group at Guggenheim Partners, Fenkel was the president, co-founder and partner at Oscilloscope, and Hodges served as Head of Production and Development at Big Beach. If after seeing it you have a renewed taste for fright, here are nine other recent horror gems that use their modest scale to their advantage. Far left, from left: A24 founders David Fenkel, John Hodges, and Daniel Katz. The deal excludes films that are already part of the Apple partnership. Your eyes dont gloss over James Franco as a trap music Jesus. The company said he will exit to focus on "future opportunities," but did not clarify beyond that statement.. [18] In June, the company, along with Oscilloscope and distributor Honora, joined BitTorrent Now to distribute the work of their portfolio across the ad-supported service. And it was like. 2023 Deadline Hollywood, LLC. For instance, an actress. "I'm thrilled to be joining the team at Jax,". Over the past six years I have been fortunate to work with a diverse group of talented storytellers across film and TV and look forward to continuing those collaborations in my future endeavors.. You look at the underdog story, I think thats not by accident. And I felt with these guys it was a dialogue. Scott didnt say anything. But in general distribution is like plumbing: unseen, unnoticed, and notable only when it malfunctions. Since then, A24's success has been immeasurable, especially for an independent Production company founded the same year The Avengers came out.