Today, we think of Todd Field as one of the best filmmakers around. But back in the late-‘90s/early-‘00s, he was an actor attempting to direct his first film. Of course, eventually he’d get his first filmmaking break with the acclaimed feature, “In the Bedroom,” a film that would go on to not only earn five Oscar nominations but become a relative box office hit. That said, Field doesn’t believe that film would have nearly the success today.
Speaking to IndieWire, Todd Field talked about breaking into the filmmaking world with his feature debut, “In the Bedroom.” The film is a low-budget family drama about the relationships surrounding a New England family. Sure, there are fairly well-known actors, at the time, including Marisa Tomei and Sissy Spacek, but by and large, “In the Bedroom” is a microbudget family drama about the human condition. Not exactly the type of film that should go on to earn a healthy box office and become a hit for Field, especially nowadays.
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“There are so many advantages now, technically, for young filmmakers starting out,” Field explained. “But in terms of actually having people see the work, it seems much harder. The idea that [‘In the Bedroom’] got made, that it got into Sundance, that somebody wanted to distribute it, and that people went to see it is remarkable. I think that would be very challenging in this day and age.”
He added, “Back then there were plenty of films to go and see about human beings, which was always my attraction to movies — we go to them to watch ourselves. So it was a very exciting time.”
He’s not wrong, right? Sure, there are many avenues for a young filmmaker to make their debut film. However, most of them end up on a streaming service after a modest (or non-existent) theatrical release. And we all know what happens to many films when they hit streamers—they get buried.
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Clearly, Field believes his film, if released today, would struggle to get made without recognizable stars. Then it would really need the support of a Sundance-level film festival to raise its profile. Hopefully, after that, the film would get distribution. But there’s zero chance it would become a box office hit, as those types of movies just don’t get wide release. It would end up dumped on a Max or Netflix, lost in the library of thousands of films.
Sadly, we don’t really know how many “In the Bedroom”-esque films are being turned down today. But it’s definitely a real issue.