Down and Dirty Pictures: Miramax, Sundance and the Rise of Independent Film

Peter Biskind

Bloomsbury, 2004 - Independent filmmakers - 544 pages

In the late 1980s a generation of filmmakers inspired by the directors of the 1970s began to flower outside the studio system. In the following decade, the independent movement bloomed. Steven Soderbergh, Quentin Tarantino, and dozens of lesser known filmmakers began walking away with prizes at Cannes and eventually at the Academy Awards. Many of these directors were discovered at Robert Redford's Sundance Film Festival and were scooped up by Harvey and Bob Weinstein, whose company, Miramax, laid waste to the competition. In Down and Dirty Pictures, Peter Biskind tells the story of the filmmakers and the independent distributors who revitalised Hollywood over the past decade. As in Easy Riders, Biskind's incisive account is loaded with gossip and outrageous stories, all of it blended into a fascinating narrative.

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LibraryThing Review

User Review  - Ivegotzooms - LibraryThing

Fun and fascinating. I can't believe there aren't any other reviews of this here. If you've ever wondered why the films that get made - get made - even in passing, you should read this. It will also ...

Down and dirty pictures: Miramax, Sundance, and the rise of independent film

User Review  - Not Available - Book Verdict

It's embargoed: the rise of the indies, from the author of Easy Riders, Raging Bulls.

About the author

Peter Biskind is the author of three previous books. Currently a contributor to Vanity Fair, he was formerly the exectuive editor of Premiere and has written for numerous publications. He lives in Columbia County, New York.

Bibliographic information

• Title: Down and Dirty Pictures: Miramax, Sundance and the Rise of Independent Film
• Author: Peter Biskind
• Publisher: Bloomsbury, 2004
• ISBN: 0747568871, 9780747568872
• Length: 544 pages