Knoxville continues to impact the film and production industry in new and sometimes surprising ways. a/b studios, founded and operated by Amelia Bartlett, has embarked on an audacious journey to bring indie films to the big screen from the heart of Knoxville. Currently producing a proof of concept film, the group plans to reach out to major studios this fall. I spoke with Amelia to learn more about the company, her background, and their current projects.
Originally from St. Petersburg, Florida, she helped run her parents’ Antique shop, dabbled in real estate, worked in photography, joined a consulting firm in health care emergency management, and made a couple of short films, and acted after graduation from high school. It’s a lot. She eventually attended college at the University of South Florida, where she studied Entrepreneurship. Amelia also published an Arts and Culture magazine in St. Petersburg.
She moved to the Knoxville area in 2017, connected with the Knoxville Entrepreneur Center, and became involved in the Maker City effort. She helped develop the directory and website, as well as helping with the Summit in 2017. By 2021 she felt she wasn’t doing anything she loved, and her creative side wasn’t being tapped. She’d written, made short films, and acted and the two came together during the pandemic. Wanting to learn more about screenwriting, she hosted a round-table (via Zoom) for herself and others who were interested featuring successful screenwriters.
She worked parttime at Union Avenue Books and other jobs while diving into writing a screen play. She met others who were interested and set her on her current path. She’s worked on a/b studios full-time since the beginning of this year.
a/b studios is a production company that makes indie genre films with hearts and smarts . . . films about people living their lives, maybe experiencing an extraordinary event, experiencing a life-change. We’re thinking feel-good movies . . . We wanted to create films in the region using the deep talent base and the deep crew base that we have here. Knoxville is an incredible production hub.
To her point, Moviemaker Magazine’s recent ranking of small cities for best places to live and make movies has Knoxville at number six. The article states, “Filmmakers are drawn by very professional, experienced crews, and by the many gorgeous locations . . .” It also mentions the financial incentives provided by local and state governments.
She said while production of commercials, reality tv, marketing content and more, much (though not all) of the feature film work locally came at the impetus of outside production companies. “I think there is a lot of quality film that could be derived from the region. We’re not trying to exclusively work here and with artists here, but we are building our foundation here. There is so much in the southeast that Hollywood sees as a parody, an accent, or a joke. They can’t really capture what it’s like to be an everyday person here.”
She mentioned Film Fest Knox and the “phenomenal proof of concept films” that were shown there. “That’s what we’re doing now, taking the proof of concept model, which is to make a small sample film of a larger film concept that accompanies the package when you are looking to make that feature film with larger partners.” She said the script for the longer film is already underway and says it’s part of what she calls the “story to cinema pipeline.” She says there isn’t a well established pipeline here and she hopes to help change that.
She points out that a lot of what Hollywood currently makes is extremely expensive films and many aren’t doing well. She said streaming companies have slowed their acquisitions. She said there is a lack of “smaller films” which she referenced as costing $10 million to $15 million, as contrasted with an Oppenheimer which costed $100 million to make and a similar amount to market. That, in many respects was considered a tight budget, with some films running budgets of three times as much. It puts the studios in a precarious spot because they can’t afford to lose with that much money on the line, making them more cautious in what they will fund.
The package for their movie, “Lavender Fields Forever,” in addition to the proof of concept footage, includes “a pitch deck, a script and smaller pieces of information that are easier to digest.” The plan is to take this package to the American Film Market in November. The five day conference, held in Las Vegas this year, is the place to be to present film ideas to the people who can make the deals to make them happen. a/b studios is currently polishing their package while contacting potential partners for meetings.
The focus package out the gate, designed to show the company’s capabilities, is a project called “Lavender Films Forever,” though they will also bring their “book,” or other projects they have to offer. The proof of concept in this case is, “essentially the first ten minutes of the longer movie.”
While they hope to make a deal, they, at the least look forward to networking with the people who will be there and with whom they could potentially work later. “It’s about connecting more people to this region . . . to see it as a film-making region, to see it as a place where authentic creativity can be found, not like trying to make content for a network, but good, meaningful cinema.
In addition to the focus project, she said they have parts of other projects assembled. “We have feature scripts for the three other films we have in our packages, and two of those have pitch decks.” She said she may be bringing more resources than most, but it’s what feels best to her entrepreneurial side. She hopes the preparation will help them find their “dream producing partners,” which she defines as “people who are excited about the same things that a/b studios is excited about: telling stories that are authentically rooted in a region that is still underrepresented in cinema. ”
“I think there is something to be said for films that have substance, that are in beautiful locations, that are aesthetically minded, that are intentional and unique, but also relatable. That’s what Hollywood is missing right now. We’re basically a business that sees a gap in the product and feels we can make a product to fill that gap.”
She’s joined in the venture by Kate Szekely, Producer, and Stephanie Hong, Creative Director. The group has also collaborated with Big Slate Media to develop “Outdoorsy,” a series, and is looking for distribution. Inspired by the Heartland Series, she describes it as “showcasing the region and hybrid tourism/quality of life, and a little bit of local storytelling.”
For now, the group is fundraising for their proof of concept film for “Lavender Fields Forever,” and have reached about 60% of their modest goal. Check it out if you’d like to support their work.