A24 Films has been making a breakthrough in mainstream media in the past few years. What made them stand out in an industry that is already so dense?

By Paul Arganda

From twisted psychological horror storylines that slowly gnaw at your psyche to heartwarming drama pieces, A24 is revolutionizing mainstream Hollywood by setting a new standard for previous studio titans.

What is this indie studio doing and why are they so different from these major Hollywood studios? What components do they implement in their film making process and what thoughts do they hope to provoke with the symbolism?

A24 is an independent film studio that enables creativity by giving gifted directors the opportunity to create grounded movies on personal issues. This while also creating a universe with endless possibilities in their films like, "Everything Everywhere All at Once".

Each actor appears to seamlessly create such an honest and pure relationship with their character, which in turn, creates relationships with audiences. The actors animate the screenplays and make characters' perspectives mirror reality. A24 is able to resonate with the humanity of its audiences in a way that has not been done before.

Whether they see themselves in the first generation experience of “Joy” from “Everything Everywhere All at Once," or with the plight of being a teenage girl demonstrated in “Ladybird” or even the themes of generational trauma touched on in “Hereditary,” the audience discover ways to see a piece of themselves in the story.

"Talk to Me", A24's newest film release, is their latest endeavor in championing new creative minds to produce what will soon be a cult classic. Remarkably, A24 production gave this opportunity to Youtubers "RackaRacka" to create this unique horror film that captivated audiences with its gripping plot and symbolism regarding grief and coping mechanisms.

“Talk to Me” follows the story of the cut off, embalmed hand of a medium that enters the lives of Australian teens as a simple party game. Their party host explains that the hand is used to contact the dead.

Just having lost her mother, the main character “Mia" played by Sophie Wilde, steps up to be the first to touch the hand. The sequence of events that succeeds this decision follows the main characters as their psyche begins to come apart as a result of spending too much time playing with the dead. “Talk to me” is not a story new to this blend of reality and fiction. This amalgamation is something key to A24’s style of filmmaking.

“Talk to Me” contains an enormous amount of symbolic easter eggs thrown into the terrifying plot, and backed with a talented new Australian cast. The cast captivated the audience with their gripping performance of angsty characters that had us unsure if they were going to make us laugh or jump with each passing scene.

A24’s ability to consistently employ previously unknown actors and filmmakers and turn them into industry names is what has allowed them to be regarded as a one of a kind studio. While this makes them unique, what truly makes this studio shine is the way they depict real life experiences in an artistic yet realistically expressive way. The audiences find themselves in the characters and their stories, allowing them to become connected and engaged to the movies A24 produces instead of passively consuming them. Ultimately, this is what has cemented A24's legacy as a studio icon.

A24 Films and What Makes a Production Company a Cult Classic?