Schultz articulates their philosophy: “My personal dream is to make LOOK a home for filmmakers. It provides our audience with a unique experience they can’t get anywhere else, and offers filmmakers the chance to showcase their film the way it was meant to be seen.” She emphasizes their role as partners: “It’s much easier to ‘plug and play’ a studio film. If a film buyer chooses your movie, it’s because they want to support your project. We hope filmmakers see us not as gatekeepers, but as partners.” This partnership extends to practical support: if a film performs well on those key weekend nights, LOOK will expand its run to all of their screens for the rest of the week, even investing in P&A (Prints & Advertising) to ensure audiences know these films are there.
This new ecosystem empowers filmmakers to take direct control of their theatrical destiny. Peter Hyoguchi, for example, is making 50/50 revenue-sharing deals directly with multiplexes, ensuring The Occult plays right alongside summer blockbusters. His tour has been a mix of mom-and-pop and chain theaters, and he initially found it “surprisingly easy to book screenings during the week with theaters across 10 states.” The primary challenge? “They would not be doing any promotion, so it was all on me to put butts in seats.” Yet, his commitment to “ONLY IN THEATERS. No VOD. No DVDs” for The Occult (full disclosure: whose tour Indiegogo I have backed because I want to see this succeed) presented in stunning 4K with 5.1 Dolby Surround Sound, has yielded over-capacity houses and dual-theater runs across multiple states.
Other filmmakers are also charting similar courses. CJ Goodwyn, director of Sherlock Holmes: Mare of the Night, reflects on his journey: “My expectations when I started as a filmmaker were, I’m going to make feature films that I want to see, that are good enough to make it into Movie Theaters, while giving others opportunities to achieve their own goals and dreams.” He sees the current moment as a realization of these goals, now setting his sights on international theatrical distribution. Goodwyn’s films achieve remarkable production value on indie budgets by leveraging “Patience, creativity, outside the box thinking, a script that works with your resources for those time periods, and good people on your crew to help you bring it to life.”
Goodwyn believes the shift towards indies is a dual phenomenon: “Theaters need more films as a lot of studios have now gone straight to streaming release, skipping theaters, giving indie films more of a platform. I also believe audiences want to see more indie films, as a lot of audiences are beginning to be burned out by the typical Hollywood model type films.”
“The traditional gatekeepers no longer hold all the keys.”
Eduardo Castrillo, director of Bears on a Ship, offers another unique perspective. His film’s concept didn’t stem from audience trends (like public domain horror spin-offs), but from a more organic creative process that involved finding bear costumes online after an initial idea for a rat attack film. “The idea actually came from trying not to do something the audience wants,” Castrillo states, explaining his departure from popular trends. The film’s unconventional nature has resonated deeply with audiences. “I wasn’t expecting it, but it’s been a lot of fun for everyone to see how interactive it has become,” Castrillo shares, noting that audiences show up with stuffed bears, dress up, and bring friends. “The theaters love it, they like to see people having fun and enjoying the theater experience you can’t get at home.”
Castrillo’s experience highlights the power of audience engagement. His film has sold out theaters on nights when studio films might draw only a handful of people. While he admits “it’s a risk for any theater to take a chance on the little guy,” he credits theaters like LOOK Cinemas and Cinelux with giving him that initial opportunity after successful screenings elsewhere. The confidence in indie films is building: “We have another showing with LOOK and Cinelux coming soon, and honestly, if we keep getting tickets sold, I would love to continue ’til the end of the year.”
This is a fundamental reclaiming of the theatrical experience. It’s about building direct connections between filmmakers and their audiences, unmediated by layers of bureaucracy. It’s about proving that the quality and originality of independent cinema can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the biggest studio productions, and that unique, interactive experiences are what audiences crave.
For aspiring filmmakers, the message is clear: the traditional gatekeepers no longer hold all the keys. Your vision, brought to life with passion and ingenuity, has a legitimate and increasingly viable path to the big screen. For audiences, it means a richer, more diverse cinematic offering at your local multiplex. The future of cinema is being written right now by visionary theaters and brave filmmakers. It’s a call to arms for independence, and everyone invested in the magic of movies should be paying attention.
You can watch my full interview with LOOK Cinemas’ Shelby Schultz at this link: https://youtu.be/sdDVbQHGNvE
Christopher Moonlight is an animator, special effects artist, and the director of the ‘Award This’ winning movie, The Quantum Terror. His upcoming animated sci-fi adventure, Escape From Planet Omega-12, combines traditional film-making special effects with AI to create something never seen before in independent film. You can follow the behind-the-scenes, including tutorials, tips, and tricks, on his YouTube Channel and Substack.
