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For our first filmmaker season Deeper Movies is proud to introduce the hardest working man in indie cinema, Joe Swanberg, who has selected nine of his own films, including The Zone, Build the Wall and Silver Bullets, plus some contemporary films he loves, and wants you to see. The prolific director also joined us on the Deeper into Movies podcast to discuss his career, low-budget filmmaking, VHS, Netflix deals and making 6 movies in one year. Click here to listen

Ever since he hit the scene in the mid-2000s, indie film heavy-hitter Joe Swanberg has been synonymous with a brand of naturalistic, character-driven American cinema. Somewhat derisively dubbed “mumblecore” (a term Swanberg is characteristically chill with), this movement took advantage of new, more affordable digital technology and eschewed spectacle in favour of low-budget, intimate stories, with a keen sense of pathos and intelligence integral to the genre’s best entries.

Swanberg and co’s influence has been monumental, demonstrating that studio budgets need not be a barrier to entry, and pioneering a lo-fi aesthetic. They launched the careers of Greta Gerwig, the Duplass brothers, and Lena Dunham (among others). Even the Safdie brothers cut their teeth in this scene with early films, most notably Daddy Longlegs.

Swanberg’s intense productivity is indicative of an obsessive dedication to exploring the human condition onscreen, reaching its apex in 2011, when Swanberg directed six films, also serving as screenwriter, editor, producer, and cinematographer more often than not. These days, Swanberg runs a VHS rental store in Chicago called Analog Video and recently appeared in Mickey Keating’s Offseason. Whether or not we’ll see a return to the bountiful period of the previous decade remains to be seen, but Swanberg’s existing body of work has already cemented his legacy.

Collections

Joe Swanberg Season

Art History
1h 14m Drama, Esoteric, Films About Making Films 2011
The Zone
1h 10m Drama, Indie, Mumblecore, Sex 2011
Silver Bullets
1h 10m Horror, Drama, Mumblecore 2011
Build the Wall
57m Drama, Indie, Joe Swanberg 2020
All the Light in the Sky
1h 19m Drama, Indie, American Cinema 2013
Caitlin Plays Herself
1h 9m Romance, Indie, Art, Life, Film 2011
Marriage Material
55m Drama, Relationships, Babysitting 2012
Uncle Kent 2
1h 13m Sequel, Comedy, Drama, Indie 2016
Bloomin' Mud Shuffle
1h 15m Romance, Indie, Comedy, Mumblecore 2017

Guest Picks

I Blame Society
1h 25m Dark Humor, Horror, Documentary, Mockumentary, Gor 2021
Titane
1h 48m Thriller, Top Gear, Body Horror, Auto Erotic, JG Ballard 2021