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| Scene from American Honey |
In case you didn't know, A24 is one of the great purveyors of modern cinema. Since 2013, the studio has found a way to innovate independent cinema by turning each release into an event. As a result, A24 A-to-Z will be an ongoing series that looks at every release from the studio by analyzing its production history, release, criticisms, and any awards attention that it might've received. Join me on a quest to explore the modern heroes of cinema by exploring every hit and miss that comes with that magnificent logo. They may not all be great, but they more than make A24 what it is and what it will hopefully continue to be for ears to come.
Released: September 30, 2016
Release Number: 41
Directed By: Andrea Arnold
Starring: Sasha Lane, Shia Lebouf, Riley Keough
Plot: A teenage girl with nothing to lose joins a traveling magazine sales crew, and gets caught up in a whirlwind of hard partying, law bending and young love as she criss-crosses the Midwest with a band of misfits.
While there were still four months of the year to go, A24 had pretty much established 2016 as their best year yet with a wide array of films that appealed to various demographics. With exception to their previous film, Sea of Trees, their track record that summer was almost impeccable. So, how does the studio that reinvented indie cinema distribution break into the Fall season? The answer lies somewhere in the unexpected charm of director Andrea Arnold's American Honey, which was a lengthy film nearing three hours that may have featured known actors Shia Lebouf and Riley Keough, but was predominantly known for a cast that was often pulled out of parking lots and beaches. It was a film based on a New York Times article and a Lady Antebellum song (guess which one), and it became one of the most hypnotic and effective films in the studio's history. It was also evidence that the road trip movie was far from dead.
The story begins with Arnold herself. As a teenager, she was known to roam around and find ways to pass the time. It's something that's present in her work, most notably the acclaimed 2009 film Fish Tank, which helped to get her international exposure. Still, the wandering spirit was lodged deep in her and would drive her to her first film outside of Europe. It all started when the New York Times did an undercover story on magazine crews, or "Mag Crews" for short. They would travel around the country selling magazines door-to-door, which was considered controversial. Still, it was what attracted Arnold to the story and she sought to gain the rights from the New York Times, then under the name Mag Crew. The project would prove to be one that almost mirrored the actual mag crew spirit, as she too went to a metaphorical door-to-door in search for casting.
Arnold traveled from California to Miami, Florida after announcing the project in 2013. Her plan was an ingenious one, which was to "street cast," or basically find random people on the street whom she felt would be right for the part. This often happened in an impromptu fashion, with interviews happening in parking lots within seconds of meeting them. Arnold went to where the youth was, such as locations that allowed teens to sleep on the beach. It was around a place like this that Arnold found her lead actor, Sasha Lane. Lane was initially opposed to the idea of being in the film because the shady nature of Arnold's street casting convinced her it was for porn. She would become convinced in time, and soon she would become the main lead to a cast that was predominantly found in similar circumstances. Even if the people that Arnold had met weren't in the film, their influence was as she played into specific behaviors that these people had, as well as filling the soundtrack with recommendations she acquired over the trip.
The film was shot in Midwest America starting in 2015, specifically in the states Oklahoma, Kansas, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, and North Dakota. It was also shot over 56 days. With plenty of experience pulled from her previous trip, Arnold sought out to shoot the film in chronological order, and often with limited scripts. This also meant that the actors had limited access to what scripts there were, as Arnold felt it would keep them from preparing too much for the role. It also helped them to improvise in the moment and create something more organic. A lot of the action came from the ways that the actors related to each other, and the mag crew mentality helped to give them a nuclear family vibe that played well in the film. The only major conflict came from Shia Lebouf, who would both acquire 12 tattoos throughout the shoot as well as end up in the hospital upon injuring himself during a stunt involving a broken window. Beyond that, the film was largely a chance for the story to play out in its meditative, organic fashion.
A24 would buy the distribution rights to the film in It of 2016. Following that, the film would play at various festivals, most notably the Cannes Film Festival where it screened in competition. It would go on to win the Jury Prize. It also would play at Fantastic Fest as well as the Toronto International Film Festival, all receiving high acclaim for Arnold and the actors. The film did a modest job at the box office, earning $1.8 million on a $3.5 million budget. The film would receive a solid 78% on critics aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes. Barry Hertz of Globe and Mail would capture the sentiment best when he suggested that "It's bold, captivating cinema, with a soundtrack that threatens to never leave your head." The few that disagreed tended to side with Jim Slotek of the Toronto Sun when he suggested that "Too long by at least an hour, American Honey is a movie that would have had more to say if it said less. It is ultimately like a Jim Jarmusch movie without a sense of humour." Still, the film would become one of the few of A24's releases so far to win major awards, including five nominations for Independent Film Spirit Awards. The film would also receive a BAFTA nomination for Best British Film.
Whatever the case may be, American Honey was a film that could soar above the competition with an epic ode to Midwest culture. The film effectively captures the essence of the characters, in part due to Arnold's desire to be as authentic and grounded as possible. While most of the A24 films are risky in different degrees, this one is only matched by Krisha for amount of actors who aren't professionally trained It's a miracle that it worked so well and in the process showed that the indie spirit was still capable of producing something as captivating and awe-inspiring with nothing more than teenagers singing songs in a car. Up next is quite possibly A24's greatest achievement culturally to date, with a film that not only won Oscars, but would cement itself as a film of importance by portraying black culture in ways that were more than conventional dramas. It was a story about one man exploring his sexuality and in the process showing that cinema has so many more opportunities to explore than initially believed.
Up Next: Moonlight (2016)
While there were still four months of the year to go, A24 had pretty much established 2016 as their best year yet with a wide array of films that appealed to various demographics. With exception to their previous film, Sea of Trees, their track record that summer was almost impeccable. So, how does the studio that reinvented indie cinema distribution break into the Fall season? The answer lies somewhere in the unexpected charm of director Andrea Arnold's American Honey, which was a lengthy film nearing three hours that may have featured known actors Shia Lebouf and Riley Keough, but was predominantly known for a cast that was often pulled out of parking lots and beaches. It was a film based on a New York Times article and a Lady Antebellum song (guess which one), and it became one of the most hypnotic and effective films in the studio's history. It was also evidence that the road trip movie was far from dead.
The story begins with Arnold herself. As a teenager, she was known to roam around and find ways to pass the time. It's something that's present in her work, most notably the acclaimed 2009 film Fish Tank, which helped to get her international exposure. Still, the wandering spirit was lodged deep in her and would drive her to her first film outside of Europe. It all started when the New York Times did an undercover story on magazine crews, or "Mag Crews" for short. They would travel around the country selling magazines door-to-door, which was considered controversial. Still, it was what attracted Arnold to the story and she sought to gain the rights from the New York Times, then under the name Mag Crew. The project would prove to be one that almost mirrored the actual mag crew spirit, as she too went to a metaphorical door-to-door in search for casting.
Arnold traveled from California to Miami, Florida after announcing the project in 2013. Her plan was an ingenious one, which was to "street cast," or basically find random people on the street whom she felt would be right for the part. This often happened in an impromptu fashion, with interviews happening in parking lots within seconds of meeting them. Arnold went to where the youth was, such as locations that allowed teens to sleep on the beach. It was around a place like this that Arnold found her lead actor, Sasha Lane. Lane was initially opposed to the idea of being in the film because the shady nature of Arnold's street casting convinced her it was for porn. She would become convinced in time, and soon she would become the main lead to a cast that was predominantly found in similar circumstances. Even if the people that Arnold had met weren't in the film, their influence was as she played into specific behaviors that these people had, as well as filling the soundtrack with recommendations she acquired over the trip.
The film was shot in Midwest America starting in 2015, specifically in the states Oklahoma, Kansas, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska, and North Dakota. It was also shot over 56 days. With plenty of experience pulled from her previous trip, Arnold sought out to shoot the film in chronological order, and often with limited scripts. This also meant that the actors had limited access to what scripts there were, as Arnold felt it would keep them from preparing too much for the role. It also helped them to improvise in the moment and create something more organic. A lot of the action came from the ways that the actors related to each other, and the mag crew mentality helped to give them a nuclear family vibe that played well in the film. The only major conflict came from Shia Lebouf, who would both acquire 12 tattoos throughout the shoot as well as end up in the hospital upon injuring himself during a stunt involving a broken window. Beyond that, the film was largely a chance for the story to play out in its meditative, organic fashion.
A24 would buy the distribution rights to the film in It of 2016. Following that, the film would play at various festivals, most notably the Cannes Film Festival where it screened in competition. It would go on to win the Jury Prize. It also would play at Fantastic Fest as well as the Toronto International Film Festival, all receiving high acclaim for Arnold and the actors. The film did a modest job at the box office, earning $1.8 million on a $3.5 million budget. The film would receive a solid 78% on critics aggregate website Rotten Tomatoes. Barry Hertz of Globe and Mail would capture the sentiment best when he suggested that "It's bold, captivating cinema, with a soundtrack that threatens to never leave your head." The few that disagreed tended to side with Jim Slotek of the Toronto Sun when he suggested that "Too long by at least an hour, American Honey is a movie that would have had more to say if it said less. It is ultimately like a Jim Jarmusch movie without a sense of humour." Still, the film would become one of the few of A24's releases so far to win major awards, including five nominations for Independent Film Spirit Awards. The film would also receive a BAFTA nomination for Best British Film.
Whatever the case may be, American Honey was a film that could soar above the competition with an epic ode to Midwest culture. The film effectively captures the essence of the characters, in part due to Arnold's desire to be as authentic and grounded as possible. While most of the A24 films are risky in different degrees, this one is only matched by Krisha for amount of actors who aren't professionally trained It's a miracle that it worked so well and in the process showed that the indie spirit was still capable of producing something as captivating and awe-inspiring with nothing more than teenagers singing songs in a car. Up next is quite possibly A24's greatest achievement culturally to date, with a film that not only won Oscars, but would cement itself as a film of importance by portraying black culture in ways that were more than conventional dramas. It was a story about one man exploring his sexuality and in the process showing that cinema has so many more opportunities to explore than initially believed.
Up Next: Moonlight (2016)
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