Has AFM Lost Touch With Independent Film?

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• And AFM needs to adapt with it.

When I bought a small packet of Doritos and a sandwich for $35, I had my answer.

Sure those prices were Fairmont prices, not AFM prices. And yes, the Fairmont was a massive upgrade from last year's Palm in Vegas. No half-hour queues for the lift. No wandering through a casino feeling like your film career depends on the spin of a roulette wheel. LA energy was back. Hollywood buzzed again.

But it was hard to shake the feeling that the whole event, the costs, the posturing, the price tags was weirdly out of sync with the reality of independent film in 2025.

Because if I had a dollar for every time I heard…

“The market’s brutal right now.” “Buyers aren’t buying.” “Distributors are only interested in rev share.” “Producers are furious about spending $1.4k for a platinum badge just to hear someone explain how to raise finance.”

…well, I could afford another bag of Doritos.

We’re in a climate where independent filmmakers are forced to think scrappier, smarter, and leaner than ever. Technology has lowered barriers, yes,  but it’s also raised expectations. Audiences expect £10M production value on a £1M budget.

So where was the talk titled:

“How to Make a £1M Film Look Like £10M Without Losing Your Sanity (Or Your Shirt)”?

Instead, we got another round of panels on how to raise finance through debt, irony being that half the people in the room couldn't afford the badge to hear it.

Here’s the truth few want to say publicly:

AFM is still operating like it’s 2012.But indie film is living in 2025.

How can a sales agent justify a $25,000 suite just to show trailers?It’s not the sales agents who pay that bill, it’s the filmmakers who signed with them.

And that trickle-down cost is starting to look a lot like a tidal wave.The market is slow. Buyers are cautious. The world economy is wobbly. And yet AFM pricing behaves like we’re in a gold rush.

Running a business gets a lot easier when you’re spending someone else’s money.

The independent film sector is built on resilience, creativity, chaos, and sheer bloody stubbornness. But we’re also an industry strangely happy to burn money in the name of tradition.

What would happen if:

Sales agents spent less on suites and more on watermarked screener rooms and audience data?

Producers spent less on badges and more on development?

Markets encouraged leaner, smarter ways to connect?

The winners in the next decade won’t be the ones who spent the most.They'll be the ones who spent the smartest.

Despite the overpriced snacks, AFM did have energy. Real conversations happened. Deals moved. Relationships strengthened. The ecosystem still matters.

But we’ve reached a point where the cost of participating threatens the very people AFM was built for -  the independents.

If we want this industry to thrive, not just survive, we need to do more for each other.We need to be less wasteful, more collaborative, and far more honest about where the money goes.

Because independent film isn’t dying.It’s adapting.