As the independent film market continues to face headwinds, a new feature film financing and production group has emerged with the aim of guiding emerging filmmakers from development to distribution.
Daniel Loder’s Act 4 Artists is officially entering the feature film sphere, launching with the SXSW premiere of director Will Robb’s high school comedy. Brian. The company financed and produced the film from writer Mike Scollins, which is set to debut in the festival’s narrative competition, and follows an accident-prone teen who decides to run for class president to get closer to the teacher he admires.
“Film does not exist in isolation,” Loder said in a statement. “We are interested in building lasting ecosystems around the work, supporting filmmakers creatively while also thinking carefully about how they bring their projects to the world.”
In addition to Lauder, who is the granddaughter of cosmetics giant Estée Lauder, Act 4 Artists is run by Casey Hanley and Steven Sachs, who serve as co-presidents of development and production, and Camilla Keller Sarmiento, head of event programming and creative producer.
Beyond feature filmmakers, Act 4 Artists is also supporting other visual artists, with plans to release shows by Pablo Stein, Anton Connelly and Donald Robertson. In the movie, the company supports selfstarring psychological horror Hamnet Stars Noah Jupe and Isabella Merced.
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