When the latest sequel, reboot, and/or adapted from some other work of art movie trailer is released, there is a phrase used that really gets to me....."Hollywood is running out of ideas." There are two reasons why that statement is false. For one, there is no movie making machine that sits in the bowels of the major Hollywood studios that generate ideas from random (although it does seem that there is at times). Secondly if you are the person who is saying this then you obviously are a casual movie goer who has absolutely no idea that there are hundreds of filmmakers out there that are creating new stories everyday. Even if that story is based on something that already exists, there is still a creative mind behind it that in some way makes it an original thought. If all you see is mindless sequels and reboots, then you need to start paying more attention and stop spreading your negativity to the rest of us. These are five directors that not only demand your attention but are also trying to prove that filmmakers are not running out of ideas anytime soon.
5. Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Don Jon)
If you are not already paying attention then you might not be aware of exactly what Joseph Gordon-Levitt is up to these days. Besides starring in some of biggest movies of the past two years (Inception, The Dark Knight Rises, Looper, and Lincoln) he is busy running his own production company and beginning to write, direct, and produce feature films and an upcoming television show. HitRECord is an online collaborative production company founded by Gordon-Levitt and his brother Dan. Their website encourages an online community of artists to create and share music, films, art, poetry, and basically anything you want to share with world. Other users can access the material that you upload to the site and collaborate with your, what they call, "record". HitRECord is a for-profit company which means that if the company makes any money from your "record" or something that you helped work on they will share a percentage of the profits with you. They are also producing a television variety show for the upcoming cable channel Pivot which Gordon-Levitt will also be hosting. Despite his seemingly time consuming endeavors he has also written, directed, and stars in the upcoming comedy Don Jon. The film is a modern day Don Juan story about a narcissistic porn addict who must deal with the love he has for two separate woman (played by Scarlett Johansson and Julianne Moore) and his obsessive lifestyle. It had premiered at the Sundance Film Festival this past January and is set to release in theaters on September 27th. Already some critics are giving the film high praise which makes Joseph Gordon-Levitt a filmmaker that we should definitely keep our eyes on.