Choking Man Tagged Articles at Cinematical

You might not think that you know Steve Barron -- but I bet that you do. Before becoming an indie filmmaker, he directed both the 1990 version of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Coneheads, but that's not what I'm referring to. Before that, he brought us some of the most memorable, ground-breaking music videos out there. Michael Jackson's Billie Jean. Dire Straights' Money For Nothing (you know, the "I want my MTV" song). A-ha's Take on Me. The '80s wouldn't have been the same without him.

These days, he's making indie films, and his latest, Choking Man, was just released. Starring newcomers Octavio Gómez and Eugenia Yuan (and boasting supporting talent Mandy Patinkin), the film follows a shy Ecuadorian dishwasher who works in a Queens diner. In the shadow of a poster featuring the Heimlich Maneuver, he tries to bond with waitress Amy, and deal with life in the most culturally diverse neighborhood in the world.

Barron was able to spare a few moments to answer some questions about his new film, as well as his opinions on indie film for Cinematical Indie Chats. Be sure to also check out the first two installments -- a chat with Deliver From Evil filmmaker Amy Berg, and another with Billy the Kid filmmaker Jennifer Venditti.

Most of your work is light, funny fare. What inspired you to switch to drama, and what inspired you to write this story?

My tastes have changed. I've grown up. (I think!) I used to be first in line to Indiana Jones, now I'll search out the New York indies or obscure foreign films. I'm more captivated by innovation.

Perhaps host David Cross said it best when talking about the ever-present indie vs. studio issue currently shining a negative light on the Gotham Awards (a 16 year-old event that's supposed to honor low-budget indie flicks, yet somehow managed to include films with budgets close to $100 million): "We're here to celebrate the films that show you don't need a big studio, films with an untested director and cast -- films like The Departed. How that got greenlit I have no idea."

Of course, he's referencing the Martin Scorsese pic, which was one of five films nominated (Half Nelson, Little Children, Marie Antoinette and Old Joy being the other four) in the Best Feature category, despite it's $90 million budget. However, with its minuscule $1 million budget, Half Nelson came out victorious, taking home the award for Best Feature, while Ryan Fleck picked up the prize for Breakthrough Director and newbie Shareeka Epps won for Breakthrough Actor (an award she shared with Babel's Rinko Kikuchi). Babel also came out on top in the Best Ensemble Cast category, Iraq in Fragments won for Best Documentary and, last but certainly not least, Choking Man claimed the prize for Best Film Not Playing at a Theater Near You -- a category that specializes in honoring films that currently do not have theatrical distribution. For those of you interested in watching the ceremony (which took place last night), you can catch it on NYC TV next Wednesday, as well as on iFilm beginning this Monday.

So, what do you think -- do films like The Departed, Marie Antoinette ($40 million budget) and Babel ($25 million budget) belong at an event that's supposed to be geared toward indie flicks? Then again, the definition of "indie" was thrown out the window a long time ago, and is now used as more of a marketing tool than anything else.