We explain what the term indie means and what its origin is. In addition, we tell you what indie music and indie cinema are like.
What does it mean that something is indie?
The word indie is used to refer to cultural products that do not come from large companies, but from alternative initiatives that do not seek to be governed by market logic. It is a term that comes from English and arises from the abbreviation of independent, which means “independent.”
This concept has been used since the 1980s to distinguish between what is produced for a mass audience (such as mass-market music and film, which is aimed at commercial success) from other initiatives that are more committed to art and quality. Thus, “indie music” or “indie film” are often used to refer to proposals outside the large circuits of cultural distribution and consumption. You must read about Hashtag once.
Thanks to the success of the indie label, the trend ended up becoming a subculture, which is now associated with cultural productions of a certain quality. Followers of the so-called indie culture aspire to distance themselves from the tastes, lifestyles and consumption patterns of the great masses.
Thus, indie culture embraces the ideals of autonomy, DIY (do it yourself) and the intention of achieving one’s own style, outside the trends of mainstream culture, that is, conventional, majority or dominant culture. Originality, uniqueness and irreverence are aspirations of the indie way of life.
Indie music
Indie or independent music is understood to be music that does not come from major record labels and responds more to the artists’ genuine aesthetic searches than to fashions, mass trends or patterns of the dominant music industry. Therefore, it is not a specific musical genre or movement, with common aesthetic features or recognizable sound trends, although many artists who identify with indie have an experimental spirit.
In general, for an artist or band to be classified as indie, they must have one of the following characteristics:
- The performers are not part of the commercial music circuit. Indie musicians do not usually have the support of large marketing and advertising companies, so they reach their audience through marginal or alternative spaces.
- The musical project does not aspire to commercial success. The priority of an indie musician is to make a quality artistic proposal according to their own artistic parameters, instead of reproducing commercially successful formulas.
- Their projects are published by small record labels. Indie music is often produced, distributed and marketed through independent, minority, emerging and even artisanal or niche labels, with narrow distribution circles, at least initially.
- Musicians are in charge of their own artistic process. Indie musicians are generally in full control of all stages of their projects, without interference from marketing departments or commercial distribution policies.
Some notable examples of indie music include:
- Juana Molina: She is an Argentine composer and singer who combines elements of electronic music with folk and rock.
- Sigur Rós: They are an Icelandic band formed in 1994. They are known for their atmospheric sound, their soundscapes and their emotive and unique melodies.
- Devendra Banhart: He is a Venezuelan-American musician who fuses elements of folk and Latin American music with psychedelic rock. His eccentric style and unique arrangements have positioned him as an indie icon.
- PJ Harvey: She is a British composer, singer and multi-instrumentalist whose intense lyrics and musical explorations of various genres are combined with a bold experimental spirit.
- Aphex Twin: He is a British electronic music producer who stands out for his tendency to challenge the conventions of the styles he frequents, which range from techno to IDM (Intelligent Dance Music).
- Squirrel Nut Zippers: This is an American band founded in 1993 that combines jazz with a wide variety of genres, ranging from swing to calypso.
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Indie cinema
Indie cinema or independent cinema is that which is made outside the major production, promotion and distribution channels for films and audiovisual projects, such as Hollywood and its associated companies. In general, these are low-budget productions, which do not have the resources of so-called official cinema or mainstream cinema, and which are often financed through cooperative or alternative investment models.
As in the case of music, indie cinema is extremely diverse and does not have common or distinctive aesthetic or thematic features, other than the distance from the typical formulas of commercial cinema and the large circuits of the film industry. However, this marginal condition offers greater creative freedoms, so it tends to explore more daring, hybrid or experimental themes and aesthetic forms, which might not be admitted in mass circuits.
On the other hand, the absence of large resources and capital usually also implies less fear of commercial failure, greater imaginative efforts and openness to new artistic languages. Conventional cameras are often used instead of professional equipment, closed sets and few actors, which allows for bolder bets. Maybe you should definitely read about Selfie once.
Some examples of notable indie films are:
- Primer (2004): It is a science fiction film by the American director, producer and actor Shane Carruth.
- The Paranoids (2008): It is a comedy and drama film, directed by the Argentine Gabriel Medina.
- Kung Fury (2015): It is a martial arts comedy, written and directed by the Swedish director David Sandberg.
- Translúcido (2016): It is an Ecuadorian drama film, by the Venezuelan director Leonard Zelig.
- Come Away (2020): It is a fantasy drama directed by the American writer, producer and director Brenda Chapman.
