Film Independent DIRECTORS CLOSE-UP is back! SAGindie returns as a sponsor of the annual series featuring filmmaker and actor talks, all leading up to the 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards. DCU 2024 is a hybrid virtual and in-person event, running from January 17 – March 1. Check out the full schedule and video highlights below!
[UPDATED 2/29/24]
Schedule:
January 17 – Maiden Voyage: Best First Feature
Panelists:
- Tomás Gómez Bustillo (Chronicles of a Wandering Saint)
- Raven Jackson (All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt)
- Savanah Leaf (Earth Mama)
- AV Rockwell (A Thousand and One)
- Alejandro Rojas (Upon Entry)
- Juan Sebastián Vásquez (Upon Entry)
- Moderated by Shelby Stone (Executive Producer, The Chi)
January 17 – Small Screen, Big Picture: Best Scripted Series
Panelists:
- Zoe Lister-Jones (Slip)
- Boots Riley (I’m a Virgo)
- Adjani Salmon (Dreaming Whilst Black)
- Jake Schreier (Beef)
- Jake Szymanski (Jury Duty)
- Moderated by Wendy Calhoun (writer/producer, Prodigal Son; Empire)
January 24 – The Spirit of Cassavetes: Low Budget Filmmaking
Panelists:
- Babak Jalali (Fremont)
- Justin Lerner (Cadejo Blanco)
- Morrisa Maltz (The Unknown Country)
- Franklin Ritch (The Artifice Girl)
- Moderated by Lisa Kennedy (freelance journalist; The New York Times; Variety)
January 24 – Page to Screen: Best First Screenplay
Panelists:
- Samy Burch (May December)
- Tomás Gómez Bustillo (Chronicles of a Wandering Saint)
- Molly Gordon (Theater Camp)
- Nick Lieberman (Theater Camp)
- Alex Mechanik (May December)
- Laurel Parmet (The Starling Girl)
- Alejandro Rojas (Upon Entry)
- Juan Sebatián Vásquez (Upon Entry)
- Moderated by Fran Kranz (writer/director, Mass)
January 31 – Reel Life: Best Documentary
Panelists:
- Joe Brewster (Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project)
- Kaouther Ben Hania (Four Daughters)
- Asmae El Moudir (The Mother of All Lies)
- D. Smith (Kokomo City)
- Lina Soualem (Bye Bye Tiberias)
- Michèle Stephenson (Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project)
- Moderated by Shrihari Sathe (producer, Stay Awake)
January 31 – A New Kind of Narrative: Best Non-Scripted Series
Panelists:
- Razelle Benally (Murder in Big Horn)
- Matthew Galkin (Murder in Big Horn)
- Amanda Hollis-Brusky (Deadlocked: How America Shaped the Supreme Court)
- Ryan O’Dowd (Wrestlers)
- Dawn Porter (Deadlocked: How America Shaped the Supreme Court)
- Greg Whiteley (Wrestlers)
- Moderated by Diane Becker (producer, Navalny)
February 7 – The World’s a Stage: International Storytellers
Panelists:
- Lila Avilés (Tótem)
- C.J. “Fiery” Obasi (Mami Wata)
- Hlynur Pálmason (Godland)
- Moderated by Alison Dickey (producer, The Sisters Brothers; Terri)
February 7 – More Than Words: The Craft of Screenwriting
Panelists:
- David Heminson (The Holdovers)
- Laura Moss (Birth/Rebirth)
- Brendan J. O’Brien (Birth/Rebirth)
- Emma Seligman (Bottoms)
- Celine Song (Past Lives)
- Moderated by Daniel Waters (writer, Heathers)
February 12 – Cord Jefferson: Making Fiction a Reality
Directors Guild of America, Los Angeles, CA
Panelists:
- Cord Jefferson (writer/director, American Fiction)
- Jeffrey Wright (actor, American Fiction)
- Erika Alexander (actor, American Fiction)
- Cristina Dunlap (director of photography, American Fiction)
- Laura Karpman (composer, American Fiction)
- Hilda Rasula (editor, American Fiction)
- Moderated by Darrien Michele Gipson (executive director, SAGindie)
February 14 – The Spirit of Independence
Panelists:
- Minhal Baig (writer/director, We Grown Now)
- Andrew Haigh (actor, All of Us Strangers)
- William Oldroyd (director, Eileen)
- Moderated by Josh Welsh (president, Film Independent)
February 21 – Don’t Look Behind You: Directing Genre
Directors Guild of America, Los Angeles, CA
Panelists:
- Patrick Brice (director, Creep)
- Mimi Cave (director, Fresh)
- J.D. Dillard (director, The Outsider)
- Nikyatu Jusu (director, Nanny)
- Moderated by Imani Davis (writer/producer/film programmer)
March 1 – Lulu Wang and Expats: Storytelling on a Large Canvas
Directors Guild of America, Los Angeles, CA
Panelists:
- Lulu Wang (writer/director, Expats)
- Dani Melia (producer, Expats)
- Yong Ok Lee (production designer, Expats)
- Moderated by Karyn Kusama (director, Yellowjackets)
Film Independent Directors Close-Up 2024 is sponsored by SAGindie, Directors Guild of America, and IMDbPro.
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