Independent film is going through tough times. This year’s Sundance Film Festival had a record-low number of sales in January. As the broader film industry battles contraction and a challenging box office environment, it’s getting harder for anything without IP or A-list stars to get made — especially without the backing of one of the major studios.
Which makes Topic Studios’ run this year so remarkable. The production company run by founder and CEO Michael Bloom was behind three indies that secured theatrical releases, all opening in theaters over the last month.
“Splitsville,” a screwball comedy from filmmakers Michael Angelo Covino and Kyle Marvin that stars Dakota Johnson and chronicles the fallout when a couple tells a friend they have an open marriage, is in limited release (it made $108,000 from 5 theaters in its first weekend) and expands wide via Neon on Sept. 5. Amy Berg’s music doc “It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley” was released in theaters by Magnolia Pictures in early August (it’s made $1.1 million in just shy of 200 theaters over three weeks); and the feel-good doc “Folktales,” about teens at a high school in Norway, was released by Magnolia in July after debuting at the Sundance Film Festival (it’s made $109,000 after playing in 29 theaters at its widest release).
The run of theatrical releases is noteworthy in an environment where most studios struggle to get one indie film made, let alone distributed. But the Magnolia deal for “Jeff Buckley” in particular means that doc will also eventually be on HBO and HBO Max — an added revenue stream. Topic Studios has also cemented its status as a production company to watch ever since it burst onto the scene with 2015’s Oscar-winning “Spotlight.” Its success begs the question: What do the folks there know that others don’t?
Bloom laughed at the query, but acknowledged the company was fortunate with “Spotlight,” which won both the Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay Oscars. “That obviously put us on the map,” he told TheWrap. “That kind of gave us instant cred to get started.”
Subsequent hits included the 2018 Ben Foster drama “Leave No Trace” that was picked up by Bleecker Street out of Sundance, Molly Gordon’s comedy “Theater Camp” which sold to Searchlight for $8 million, and — crucially — Jesse Eisenberg’s “A Real Pain” which sold to Searchlight for $10 million in 2024 after being made for $3 million. That film would become an awards season mainstay and won Kieran Culkin an Oscar for best supporting actor.
Bloom’s ethos has been guided by a simple philosophy: Value the art, and value the artist.
“My vision for the company and what I wanted to create was what I call a haven for artists and filmmakers and creatives to do what I hope would be their most ambitious work,” he said. “To really create a place that was a safe zone and let creative people take chances and be really bold and do things outside the traditional Hollywood system, and give them opportunities to do things they may not get elsewhere.”
Topic’s slate is a mix of co-financing, fully financing, producing and co-producing, and the aim is to make four to six films a year. Ryan Heller, Topic Studios’ EVP of Film and Docs, noted that the company has been “really financially disciplined” from the beginning and ensures that with each swing, they don’t need a home run in order to be successful.
“We don’t need to be out over our skis on those movies,” he told TheWrap. “We just need to get them made in a way that really supports what it is.”
Speaking to the changed indie film environment, Heller noted that most theatrical players are buying films earlier or making them themselves, leaving much less room on their slates to acquire completed films at festivals. “We see our role as providing that one movie they’re going to buy, as opposed to something they need to fill their slate,” he said, adding that Topic now has more films going into production with distribution secured ahead of time.
But with so many indie filmmakers looking to get their projects off the ground, how does the Topic Studios team choose which to make?
It starts with the script.
“We have to be really, really confident and excited about the material,” Bloom said, before revealing the second key component: “We like people with a vision. We like filmmakers and storytellers that have a real point of view, and we like filmmaker-driven opportunities where you can tell, if you’re in the audience, that this is a marquee director.”
They felt that confidence when reading Eisenberg’s script for “A Real Pain,” to the point that Bloom made the decision to fully finance the dramedy himself instead of bringing on co-financiers. But the CEO said he was particularly confident in that film because Topic was producing it.
“When we produce we can be in better control of the outcome, both creatively and financially. And that, to me, makes all the difference,” he explained. “If you’re just co-financing with someone and they’re driving the bus, you’re sort of betting on their ability to execute.”
That’s why, despite working with “wonderful partners” like A24, Bloom said his preferred model is to produce and finance. “I know what we’re capable of, and I’m willing to bet on ourselves,” he added.
The bet worked with “A Real Pain” — it’s a point of pride for Bloom that when Eisenberg began developing his next project, a musical comedy starring Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti with the working title of “No One Cares,” he returned to Topic and they got the whole band back together. Similarly, Topic is behind Molly Gordon’s next film “Peaked” at A24 after working with her on “Theater Camp.”
“Having someone like Jesse come back and work with us again when he could go anywhere in the world says everything to me,” Bloom said. “It tells me we’re doing something right on behalf of our creative partners.”
Building relationships with filmmakers is also how “Splitsville” came to be. Topic had made filmmakers Covino and Marvin’s previous film, “The Climb,” but its release was hindered by the pandemic. They struck a first-look deal and when “Splitsville” came about, they were ready to bet on Covino and Marvin again, with Johnson and Adria Arjona giving the starpower needed to get the film off the ground.
Bloom acknowledged that the traditional rom-com has been a tough sell in the marketplace, indie or not, but was drawn to the “edge” and “punch” that “Splitsville” has that sets it apart. It’s a raucous, surprising film about relationships that goes to some wild places – a centerpiece is a physical fight between Covino and Marvin’s characters that feels like something out of a “Bourne” movie. That film’s release also speaks to the diversification of Topic’s business, as Heller saw it as a marketing-driven film so was eager to bring Neon in as marketing and distribution partner before production began.
Topic’s bet on ambitious filmmakers also extends to the documentary space, and led to “It’s Never Over, Jeff Buckley,” a particular risk given the challenges facing the doc market.
“It’s a hard space right now,” Bloom said. “We pass on a lot more than I want to, just because it’s so hard to make them work in the doc space. But there are a few where we just have to do it.” That included the Buckley film, which Berg had been trying to get made for years until she finally gained the trust of Buckley’s mother, Mary. The result is a heartbreaking chronicle of the tender musician, whose death at the age of 30 by drowning has always been shrouded in mystery.
And then there’s “Folktales,” an even harder sell in the doc space – a film about struggling Norwegian kids who learn survival skills and train sled dogs. Bloom agreed to make the movie “within seven seconds” of one of his team members pitching it. After premiering at Sundance earlier this year, the film secured distribution from Magnolia and will be on HBO and HBO Max sometime after its theatrical release.
Looking ahead, Topic has Eisenberg’s next film, David Lowery’s “Mother Mary” musical starring Anne Hathaway with A24, and just premiered the third season of their docuseries “100 Foot Wave” on HBO earlier this year. Plus plenty more in the works.
So what does a healthy indie marketplace look like to a team that’s found sustained success?
“It looks like films being made for a number that allows them to be profitable at the point of sale and still allows the distributors to make money releasing the films,” Heller said.
But quality control remains the heart of Topic Studios’ winning recipe.
“You just have to be really sober about if you’re going to take a big swing and make an independent movie, it better be great,” Bloom said. “You’ve got to have the goods, or else you might find yourself in a tough spot.”
