Indie films, described as long or short form films produced and released independently from a major film studio, have faced a significant decrease in production since the 90s indie film boom. According to an article by Vanity, this is largely in part due to the rise in streaming services and smaller theatrical windows.
The theatrical window, which is a term used to describe the amount of time a movie spends in theaters before being released to the public, has been decreasing and doesn’t seem to be seeing any uptake. An article by the LA Times states that before COVID-19, theatrical windows were typically 90 days, which is significantly longer than today’s average of 30 days. This combined with the fact that the proportion of households in the US that have streaming services has increased from 52% in 2015 to over 83% by 2023 alone disincentivizes people from seeing movies in theaters. Indie films take the brunt of this decrease in viewership, as many don’t associate a particular novelty or experience with seeing them. Many consider watching movies at home on a streaming service as nearly the same thing as seeing it in the theater. If anything, some consider it a better experience due to the fact that there are no rules (no talking, no phones, etc.) The highest grossing films from the last 5 years [Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Top Gun: Maverick (2022), Barbie (2023), Inside Out 2 (2024), and The Minecraft Movie (2025)] are not only from large studios, they’re all sequels or continuations of an established franchise. This provides a sort of familiarity with the franchise, leading people to feel more comfortable spending their money on seeing it. But that’s not the only incentive to go see it as these movies typically have much more promotion.
Working at a movie theater, I’ve noticed that typically the small number of people who come to see indie movies on release are older guests. The younger generation (16-25) is typically seeing large studio releases rather than the indie films that are being released. I believe this is largely due to the fact that many long-form indie content can be found for free on social media and other media sharing services. Well-made short films can be found on YouTube especially. I believe that the unlimited access to free long-form content like that discourages them from seeing it in theaters.
While it’s not inherently bad that younger generations prefer to watch movies from the comfort of their own homes for free, getting a movie into theaters can be a big step in an indie film-makers career and can advance them a rung in the film-making ladder. It makes them eligible to receive awards and puts their content out to a larger audience, including potential investors. Not only that, but they receive more profit from viewership in theaters than viewership on social media platforms. Considering that most audiences would prefer their indie films for free in this format, most indie directors release them in that way. This leads to lower profits and an overall discouraging environment for a start-up. If more people would show interest in seeing indie films in theater, where the director and production team(s) receive a better compensation for their hard work, I believe that we would see an increase in indie movies released to theaters.
