Kristen Stewart Thinks the Studio System is "Devastated"—That Might Be a Good Thing

It feels like every week since COVID began and in the time after, I've written an article about how Hollywood is in a state of flux. Between the contraction of streaming, rising production costs, and the literal disappearance of middle-class filmmaking, the "old way" of doing things is dead.

As I've said many times before, we're in the Wild West, and every day we're deciding how a new Hollywood will be erected.

And Kristen Stewart is ready to build something new.

In a recent, unfiltered interview with Variety at the Cannes Film Festival, Stewart laid bare the frustrations that many independent filmmakers have felt for years with the studio system.

Let's dive in.

The "Golden Ticket" Trap

For decades, the dream for indie filmmakers has been the "Cannes-to-Oscars" pipeline. You spend years making a lower-budget gem, it gets bought by a prestige studio, and suddenly you have a career.

That was the pipeline for a lot of your favorite filmmakers. And it felt like it worked. But that well is dry.

And Stewart argues that this "Golden Ticket" mentality is actually killing the art form.

"What, are we going to like, wait to be chosen like a fcking golden ticket? Like, 'I got the golden ticket! I can make one fcking movie!' We need to make more work. There needs to be more work, more output, more connection and less fear."

Careers in film and TV have become a lottery, and way more of us are losing than winning, and yet we're all putting our blood, sweat, and tears into the mix.

This pipeline stops focusing on the craft and starts focusing on the gatekeepers.

Stewart’s point is this: If the system only allows for a handful of "chosen" artists to succeed once every five years, we aren't building a culture, we’re building a bottleneck.

'Personal Shopper'Courtesy of Cannes

The "Bro" Problem and Capitalistic Parameters

Stewart didn't mince words when it came to who is actually greenlighting projects and picking who gets to have careers. Her problem is that the industry is still largely dominated by a "bunch of bros" who have come up under other "bros."

The result? A system that prioritizes "capitalistic parameters" over radical expression.

"I just don’t think that it’s possible to create sort of radical, vital work under capitalistic parameters," Stewart said. "Those people don’t really identify with the type of things that I personally want to say, that the people I align with want to say."

Look, there will be pushback on these quotes, but she's not wrong. We're not looking for artists; we're looking for people who can fit into a system driven by cash and marketing, not necessarily truth.

For the No Film School community, this is the core of the struggle that I think we talk about all the time.

It would be nice if Hollywood were like the NBA, and the best players got shots. But instead, at times, it feels more like surfing, where you have to ride a certain wave to get noticed.

When you walk into a room and meet the people in power, there are times they don't share your lived experience or your aesthetic values; the work inevitably gets diluted to fit a "marketable" mold because you have to make a living.

The Death of the Home Base (L.A.)

Perhaps the most practical and painful point Stewart made was that Hollywood is supposed to be this Mecca of filmmaking, yet filmmakers struggle to work there.

"We can’t shoot in L.A., it’s absolutely impossible, and it’s where our f*cking entire business was born," she lamented. "There’s no way to play the game anymore."

Between the loss of tax incentives to other states/countries and the astronomical cost of living, the city that built cinema has become a "no-fly zone" for the very people who keep it alive.

Sure, there are candidates for office who say they plan to change this, but I'll believe their actions when I see them.

Why Devastation Equals Hope

So, you know I don't like to do doom and gloom with a little hope on top. And it's easy here, because Stewart isn't pessimistic.

In fact, she’s the opposite. She sees the system's breaking as a necessary pruning, like we're trimming back the buds so it can flower again.

"It’s OK, because guess what happens when things break or die? It’s good, I think... I see a horizon that doesn’t resemble anything that I’ve seen before. It’s so new because our industry is so utterly devastated. And so I think actually, there’s so much hope in that. We just have to grab it."

The Takeaway for Filmmakers

Keep your chin up and keep working on your craft. I still think the best way into Hollywood is writing something great or making a great indie that stands out. and as the business changes, keeping up with those ideas, too.

If the system is broken, we are no longer beholden to its rules.

Stewart’s "horizon" suggests a few things for the modern filmmaker:

1. Focus on Output over "The Break": Stop waiting for the one big deal. Focus on building a body of work that creates its own gravity. That means having a bunch of scripts or shorts or indies that show who you are as an artist.
2. Find Your Own "Bros" (or lack thereof): Build your own networks and collectives. If the gatekeepers aren't listening, find the people who are. Visit festivals, go to different cities, and try to meet people online.
3. Lean Into the New: The "devastation" Stewart mentions refers to the collapse of the traditional studio model. This creates a vacuum that can be filled by new technology, new distribution methods, and new voices.

Summing It All Up

All in all, this was a pretty interesting series of quotes out of Cannes, which has all of us questioning Hollywood.

The "Golden Ticket" might be gone, but as Stewart suggests, maybe we’re better off without it.

What do you think of Stewart’s comments? Is the industry "devastated" or just evolving? Let us know in the comments.