Queering Distribution, Joe Swanberg: Collected Films 2011

Another new film distribution model? Much ike Radiohead's in-store-only vinyl collector's edition of Hail to the Thief and its game changing pay-what-you-want distribution model, filmmaker Joe Swanberg is again breaking the distribution mold by releasing a free film Marriage Material and then a subscription service to Joe Swanberg: The Collected Films 2011, his "most intimate and personal films in their most intimate and personal presentation;" that is, on the smallest screens in your home - as Swanberg would have intended them. His self-distribution model has channelled his films accross a combination of digital platforms, distributed On Demand by cable providers, via Amazon Instant Video, and to niche markets by TLA Releasing (i.e. Blackmail Boys, 2011).

Joe Swanberg: Collected Films 2011 from factory twenty five on Vimeo.

In Marriage Material Swanberg and his wife play young parents who entrust their infant child with their friends in Memphis while the couple enjoys some alone time. This one night favor turns the other couple's mundane straight relationship on its head. A conversation about having a baby becomes a question of committment and whether a straight couple can be partnered for the long-term without the sanctity of marriage, something everyone knowns presents more obstacles to splitting up, but protects noone from infidelity. The film stars Kentucker Audley, Caroline White, Joe Swanberg, Kris Swanberg, Jude Swanberg, Adam Wingard and Amanda Crawford.

Though filmmaker Joe Swanberg has been married since 2007 to his muse Kris Williams, who often stars in his films, her recent pregnancy seems to have figuratively given birth to Marriage Material following Williams' actual birth to their son, Jude Swanberg. Marriage and child-rearing are probably the most serious of Swanberg's subjects, yet not without humorous effect in the opinion of this queer reviewer. It would be only natural for Swanberg's first born to have his small screen debut in his father's film.

Joe Swanberg: Collected Films 2011 are available now from Factory 25, a Brooklyn-based film & music label founded by Matt Grady (Helvetica, Style Wars, and I Am Trying to Break Your Heart: A Film About Wilco). The Swanberg collection spans his prolific, yet critically debated year. Will the quality match up with the quantity? Autoerotic (2011) and Marriage Material (free until the end of Janauary on Vimeo) are good indications of how the other subscription-only titles on the collection will compare. The collection of limited release films will be delivered exclusively to 1,000 buyers over each quarter of 2012. Included in the box set are award-winning films Silver Bullets, Art History, as well as yet-to-be-released The Zone (Summer 2012) and Privacy Settings (Fall 2012). The 7" box set signed and numbered by Swanberg also includes a vinyl single featuring music from the film and a small book featuring photographs by actress Jane Adams from the set of Silver Bullets.

- Sawyer Lahr