Selena and Ashley had no issue with this. And David cannot stop perspiring. And we werent thinking about that. The photo has been . I thought it would get a distributorI thought it was good enough for that. But A24 has the money to acquire a steady slate of releases, the model to support them, and the chutzpah to make nearly each one into a mini-phenomenon. Sacco: It was my first festival ever. We wish Hodges the best of luck with his next endeavor, since the indie landscape has certainly benefited from his contributions. But I think she saw this, and it hijacked her image and personality, and we didnt ask her. Nathan (Oscar Isaac) and Kyoko (Sonoya Mizuno). Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted. Since its inception in 2012, A24 has become one of the hottest destinations for indie filmmakers, ushering such edgy films to theaters as The Bling Ring and Spring Breakers. Activity. No one cared about our language or our clothes. And although it describes itself as Midnight Madness, the film didnt start until close to one oclock in the morning. James Franco (actor, Spring Breakers, The Adderall Diaries): This is one of the things theyre great at: taking something small and delicate and giving it the kind of support that other people cant. Hodges, along with Katz and Fenkel, largely shunned the spotlight, giving few interviews even as A24 made a name for itself by releasing edgier, filmmaker-driven fare from directors such as Lenny Abrahamson, Alex Garland, and the Safdie Brothers. Katz: People say, Oh, Barry, why didnt you bring us Moonlight?As if that was the most obvious Best Picture! Katz: Harvey Weinstein called the agent and said, How could you give a Sofia Coppola movie to this new? I can only imagine. Jennifer Kents drama is a psychological heavyweight that examines how parents feed their demons to quell the pain. Fenkel: More than 50 percent chance La La Land. With Hodges leaving, the. Stay plugged in to the industry with our free newsletter. I just trust, you know, Drag City or Merge or SST or Dischord. And we just hounded him. All contents 2023 The Slate Group LLC. Despite lacking any pre-defined structure, episodes generally contain discussions around recent works of the two guests, allowing for branching discussions to other areas. There are exceptions to this rule, such as Miramax, the company that upended indie cinema in the 90s, backing then unknown filmmakers like Steven Soderbergh and Quentin Tarantino. And, I mean, there was one moment in the movie when my character was booed and hissed so vociferously, I felt as though I was in a Roman arena and my life was at stake. None Of Us Thanked Them. A24 has also been nominated and won many Golden Globes, British Academy Film Awards, and Critics' Choice Movie Awards. Sacco: I show up at the airport. Were putting together a gift basket of glass guns and a gift basket with munchies. Itd be very unlikely for that to happen. I liked the fact that they had never made a doc. So everything had to be explained to me, and by the time it was explained, it was over. Katz: We broke the record that weekend. Drinking champagne at nine in the morning. And I think it is down to companies like A24. Notable guests on the show have included Bo Burnham, Paul Schrader, Sofia Coppola, Alia Shawkat and Martin Scorsese. Or a director. And the interns are running around trying to find a glassblower. In September 2013, A24 struck a partnership valued up to $40 millionwith satellite television provider DirecTV. I dont think that switch in psychology is supposed to happen that dramatically, or that abruptly. All the actors had taken the risk. A24 may not yet inspire the same kind of blind devotion in theatergoers that the Criterion Collection does in home video obsessives, but its the only indie distributor that feasibly could. Franco: I would bet that [Alien] was one of the biggest, most popular Halloween costumes that year. Sasha Lane (actress, American Honey): They were like, You guys are who you are and were not going to change that. No one had to be perfected for anything. John Hodges is Head of Film for Jax Media, where he heads Jax's feature film development and production. Fenkel: It actually went very well, for what the movie was. Prior to joining Jax in 2019, John was a founding partner of A24, where he helped oversee acquisition and distribution on some of the company's roster of more than 70 films, which includes Spring Breakers, Ex Machina, Amy, Lady Bird, and Best . A24 is not like other entertainment companies. With Hodges leaving, the company behind the Oscar-winning best pictureMoonlight made it clear that no additional changes in management will be made. Steven Spielberg publicly predicted the implosion of the film industry, which is sort of like God telling you to brace for rain. John Hodges is leaving A24, the Oscar-winning indie studio that he co-founded. The next day it was like, Anythings possible.. Filmmakersoften the toughest audiences for their own films marketing campaignsrecognize the companys real excitement for their films. Fenkel: Look at The Witch. A24 was founded in 2012 by Daniel Katz, David Fenkel and John Hodges. A24 Co-Founder John Hodges Exits - Variety A24, which was founded in 2012, said that no additional changes in management will be made. Jenkins: We shot for five weeks, and they came down during the first week. Films distributed by A24 ended up getting nominated for seven Academy Awards that year, including Best Picture (Room), Actress (Brie Larson), Documentary (Amy), and Original Screenplay (Ex Machina). And so anytime you speak with someone whos not a pure accountant, is not a pencil pusher? Fenkel: And the Spring Breakers trailer dropped the first day of Sundance, and MTVs servers fucked up, because we gave them the exclusive, and they stopped serving the video. The outfit is new enough that the same people have been working there from the very beginning, and the consistency of their titles reflects that of their tastes. Garland: Under the Skin is exactly the kind of movie that you would not see distributed by a major studio. Johnny Hodges Biography, Age, Height, Wife, Net Worth, Family With how bad it tested. [23], On March 26, 2018, co-founder John Hodges announced that he was exiting the company. A24 is responsible for such films as Lady Bird, Moonlight, Eighth Grade, Hereditary, The Witch, The Lobster, Ex Machina & more. Its funny. Like Under the Skin, Locke, Enemy. Distribution: Theatrical, TV, DVD-video, VOD, USA. Coppola: I was a little nervous about not going with a company that I knew had a track record, but I knew that they were going to really do their best. Its exciting. When it happens again and again, thats very, very intelligent work and planning. Sacco: And people on planet Earth, you know, they go see movies that they need to want to see or hear about. GQ Style. And theyre aiming at them. I think when movie companies get started, people want to define you immediately. It wasnt just that, for a new distribution company, it seemed to have a level of taste and an instinct for cool that is atypical in Hollywood. And then you meet Barry and hear Barry talk, and its like, Of course! So everyones wrapping up this gift basket that Im supposed to deliver to Megan [Ellison, one of the producers of Spring Breakers, who was on location in Pittsburgh] and say, like, This is why you should go with us. Buying and burying not-great movies isnt necessarily a problem if it grows the business without harming the brand. It would cost too much to buy Mississippi Grinda fighting chance in theaters, so the film is making its way into the world through 20 million smaller screens rather than a few dozen large ones, and more viewers will have a chance to appreciate it as the sublime hangout movie that it is. TV production powerhouse Jax Media is expanding into film and tapped John Hodges, one of the founding partners of A24, as its new head of film. I think what theyve understood is theres a sufficient number of people out there who want more challenging or different material. Fenkel: We may have had to fire a fake intern for that. A24 co-founder John Hodges is exiting the indie company to "focus on future opportunities," he and the company jointly announced on Monday. If I had to guess, Id wager that Hodges was simply ready to move on after reaching the top of the mountain winning Best Picture for Moonlight. [16] The company, with cooperation from Bank of America, J.P. Morgan & Co. and SunTrust Banks, also raised its line of credit from $50 million to $125 million a month later to build upon its operations. It was crazy. Wouldnt call us back. Since then his contributions to growing the company have been invaluable and we cant wait to see what he does next, said A24 in a statement. Mr Katz had worked in film financing at Guggenheim Partners, and . And it was like. And Im not saying theyre magicians. But I think in experiences since then, doing mid-budget or relatively low-budget movies, if you try to do a toned-down version of thatIve just seen it not work, again and again and again. Colin Farrell (actor, The Lobster, The Killing of a Sacred Deer): They have such a great eye for these small little films and rich and unique stories that may have not found it to the big screen if it wasnt for them. And so with [The Rover], they took that into account, and instead of blowing loads of money, [they did] more targeted marketing and also really sophisticated online campaigns and stuff. Spring Breakers had a whole Oscar campaign: Consider This Shit.Zoe Beyer. The company said he will exit to focus on "future opportunities," but did not clarify beyond that statement.. They dont have the personality of movie executives. Also Read: Sundance, SXSW Comedy 'Never Goin' Back' Sells to A24, John has been a trusted partner who helped conceive A24 and for that we will always be grateful, the studio said in a statement. The division of labor is clear, but there arent any titles for the companys employees, who all work elbow to elbow in a single room. Hodges has been an integral part of the studio since its inception in 2012. Photos courtesy A24, by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images, and Janette Pellegrini/WireImage/Getty Images. Aizenberg: We had a couple movies in there that we tried to force into making, like, event-y theatrical, and they werent. Thats the chief message of an A24 campaign, really, from elegant design to sharp social media to clever co-branding choices: This is a company that gets it. 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Rowling More Grace and Listen to Her, Britain's $4 Billion Boss: ITV Chief Carolyn McCall Bets It All on Talent, 2023 Music Festivals: How to Buy Tickets to Coachella, Governors Ball, Lollapalooza and More. And we broke records. Thats an achievable budget number for me. You know what I mean? What are you working on? It Follows takes the horror trope of getting punished for having sex to a new level. They didnt have a ton of movies, you know? Company Details: Focus and Fox Searchlight had become kind of isolated in what they did. Katz: We did great movies. Worst case, youll get the trench-coat crowd. You know what the trench-coat crowd is? Hodges: The office literally looked like a pump-and-dump stock operation. I kept calling the guy. I didnt think it was terrible. And check out the haunting synth score by Disasterpiece. @ After a brief flurry of acquisitions gossip, and Monday's announcement that A24 co-founder John Hodges will exit the company, A24 and/or Apple "insiders" let it be known that Apple wasn't. And that was our communication for booking theaters. Theyre super-smart people. We had to get a second one. Other companies wanted to do stuff with it. [8] In October 2012, Nicolette Aizenberg joined as head of publicity from 42West where she was senior publicity executive. Theyre just on it. Katz: They were kind of comfortable with the Under the Skin release. You know more than me.. They became better known after picking up the U.S. rights to Ex Machina and Room, and worldwide rights to The Witch, growing substantially since then. The films were darlingsincluding David Michds The Rover, starring Robert Pattinson; Denis Villeneuves Enemy, starring Jake Gyllenhaal; and Jonathan Glazers Under the Skin, starring Scarlett Johanssonand, by and large, box-office underperformers. But we got A Glimpse Inside the Mind. Many of the countrys most vital filmmakers, unwilling to accept that their next movie would have to be either shot on an iPhone or connected to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, have begun to abandon ship. I agree with TheWrap's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy and provide my consent to receive marketing communications from them. (Joy, Annapurnas only 2015 title, arrives in theaters on Christmas Day.). How A24 is Disrupting Hollywood. For a start, it was founded on the wrong coast - New York, not Los Angeles - by three relatively young arthouse film executives, Daniel Katz, David. It was social media. Judging by the fact that the trailer racked up more than 3 million views in its first week online, the crowds are ready with their pitchforks. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED | TERMS OF USE|SUBSCRIBE|CONTACT. Fenkel: And they were like, You cant do that! The fact theyre vampires might just be an excuse for them to wear sunglasses indoors. Variety is a part of Penske Media Corporation. For the company's filmography, see, 20142017: Television and later productions, 2018present: Management changes, partnerships. TV production powerhouse Jax Media is expanding into film and tapped John Hodges, one of the founding partners of A24, as its new head of film. John has been a trusted partner who helped conceive A24 and for that we will always be grateful, noted A24 in a statement. Which, if you look two years back, theres just no way in hell anybody would have thought that A24 would finance a film like Moonlight and release it in the way they did, to the tune of a Best Picture and $55 million in international box office. Katz: We have a better relationship with him now. We took a risk on the movie, and it fucking paid off, so why should we cut down our back end? As one of the founding members of the New York-based company, Hodges played a key role in putting A24 on the map, culminating with last years best picture winner, Moonlight, just five years after it was launched. The End of the Tour freed Jason Segel from the succubus of network sitcoms by allowing him to inhabit the image of an iconic American writer. We get movies. And the only thing we could put it in was a cardboard box with duct tape. Contrast that with its embrace of every grimy detail of demented dubstep nightmare Spring Breakers, for which the company went so far as to mount a sincere consider this sh*t awards campaign for James Franco. Three were winners. Fenkel: In LA, every meeting is about the hot air. Dont get left behind. [He won at least six.] By the end of its opening weekend, it had raked in more money than all of Korines other films combined. The whole thing was really intense. A24 is an American independent entertainment company that specializes in film and television production, as well as film distribution. Katz: That was a good learning experience for us. 10001 NEW YORK, USA. Katz: In LAwhatever just transpired last month, you feel it in LA. Katz came from a film finance group, while Fenkel and Hodges both left positions at other independent film companies. Sacco: We probably saw 20 versions. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA Enterprise and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. When an A24 acquisitions exec pitched the story to me, excitedly laying out the plot in broad but heartbreaking strokes, he asked if it sounded like an A24 film. A24 has only managed to turn each of its main-slate films into an event because the companys been ruthless and visionary when it comes to determining the difference. For instance, an actress. All rights reserved. I Just Raised The Oscar At Them. Over the past six years I have been fortunate to work with a diverse group of talented storytellers across film and TV and look forward to continuing those collaborations in my future endeavors, added Hodges. You prepare like for your dissertation at Harvard. Sacco: To engrave the Spring Breakers logo onto the glass-gun bong. Far left, from left: A24 founders David Fenkel, John Hodges, and Daniel Katz. A24s biggest success, Lady Bird, grossed $49 million domestically, so can that ceiling support the duos ambitions, or will a larger distributor make them an offer they cant refuse? Deploying for Major CAT Events, tornadoes . In 2016, films distributed by A24 won Academy Awards for Best Actress (Brie Larson in Room), Best Documentary Feature (Amy), and Best Visual Effects (Ex Machina). Like, there was one that was like the shotit was [Francos character] Alien with the two girls, and hes holding machine guns or something. But I do remember finally looking over, because I didnt know where they were sitting, and I spotted Dan Katz and Dave Fenkel, and, man, the smile on their faces! Aizenberg: I think we knew we had something at South By. Lets go wide! Katz: David and I are sitting next to each other. PARK CITY, Utah At the Sundance Film Festival here in January, executives at A24, the upstart movie and television studio, stood in the back of a makeshift theater looking as if . 2023 Variety Media, LLC. That broke the film out., For Room director Lenny Abrahamson, working with A24 on his films campaign has been a dramatic change. The photo has been replaced. a24 john hodges net worth. Hollywood is run by accountants at this point. If anything, it was the bastard stepchild at that point. Korine: I dont think I was there, but I heard people were walking out. They were thinking in a different way, trying something newer and maybe more radical with their approach. John Hodges is leaving A24, the Oscar-winning indie studio that he co-founded. John Hodges. Fenkel: Well, it wasnt a heartbreak, because they wouldnt actually call us back. I was thrilledwhen the news broke that A24 had acquired the domestic rights, and then gutted to learn that it was part of the DirecTV pact. [14], In May 2015, A24 announced that it would start a television division and began producing the USA Network series Playing House, as well as working to develop a television series that would later become Comrade Detective, produced by Channing Tatum. Aizenberg: That first private plane didnt make it to Austin. Im dying. At the same time, we get a call saying that Selena and Ashley [Benson], their hair and makeup team hadnt gone on the private jet we had got for them, because they didnt think it was big enough or secure enough. Theres aesthetic and political values to the people behind the company. That company and the old Miramax and Fox Searchlight had a real brand and a hold on their audience. I love Moonlight, said as much before it won the Oscar, and Ill say it again now - I showed it to my daughters early and they loved it. Anything in between is dead in the water. But youre like, Why didnt other people see that? I have no idea. An A24 project is far more likely to be female-driven than a film released by another company, and it is typically directed by a major filmmaker (Sally Potter, Sofia Coppola, Noah Baumbach) or a filmmaker on the cusp of becoming one (J.C. Chandor, James Ponsoldt). Their whole point was, We dont know this world. You were in the A24 offices. In pretty decent seats, actually. No one in the office is older than 42, including co-founders John Hodges, David Fenkel, and Daniel Katz. Aizenberg: I remember that Sunday we all got on the phone and were like, Were going over a thousand screens.. 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[18] In June, the company, along with Oscilloscope and distributor Honora, joined BitTorrent Now to distribute the work of their portfolio across the ad-supported service. I think theatrical will always be there, but most of my biggest experiences of cinema have been in front of a TVno one was screening Fellini films in Ireland when I was 19 or 20.. Jon Hodges - Chief Executive Officer/Founder - LinkedIn You lost. On a notepad and Post-Its. I think Spring Breakers really put them on the map, as far as I could tell. Karyn Kusama is a rapidly rising female director, and for good reason. That was the first time it screened for U.S. audiences. A24 was founded on August 20, 2012, by film veterans Daniel Katz, David Fenkel, and John Hodges. Daniel Katz, David Fenkel and John Hodges have unveiled New York-based A24 as a distribution, financing and production company with plans to release eight to 10 titles annually. Were passionate. And it was on the A24 [motorway]. [Sofia] was like, Oh, will you at least partner with Harvey? We were like, No!. Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Were always cognizant of trying to sell the film by not selling it, said marketing exec Jesse Patrone-Werdiger, speaking to A24s rare faculty for promoting around the product its trying to push, shifting the tectonic plates of culture in the hopes of giving rise to a mountain. There is no Tinder for Room! We are thrilled to have someone of Johns pedigree join the Jax Media team and lead our expansion into the film world, Jax Media partners Tony Hernandez, Lilly Burns, John Skidmore, and Brooke Posch said in a joint statement. Since the small blast of trade articles that greeted the companys inception, theyve remained unusually quiet. While there is speculation in the trades that A24 may be on the block, I get the impression that sale rumors are just that rumors. When I saw Robert Eggers The Witch at that same festival, I stumbled out of the 9 a.m. press screening convinced that I had just seen a masterpiece. A mile and a half. So we ran there. There has been speculation for the past six months that the company is for sale. Subscribe to Deadline Breaking News Alerts and keep your inbox happy. It was another way of getting the message out there. Key grip. People are like, Oh, I would have green-lit that! Im like, Come on!, Sacco: We had been talking about finding a person to produce for a long time. But I remember vividly that they had chosen some specific movies, one of which was Under the Skin.