A24: the film studio with an “instinct for cool”

Indie entertainment company A24 has made a name for itself by creating quirky and occasionally controversial stories. As a part of our Annual 2019 coverage we look at how the studio works

A24 is a hot property in Hollywood at the moment. In the last year, it’s earned some serious column inches, hailed for everything from its uncompromising approach to storytelling and its support of up-and-coming directors, to the certain quirky flavour that it brings to the film industry. The fact that it’s just inked a deal with Apple for a series of original feature films (the first of which will reportedly be directed by Sofia Coppola) is further proof that it’s a brand to watch.

Readers might be familiar with A24 thanks to 2018 horror Hereditary. It also produced and distributed Lady Bird, Ex Machina and Moonlight. The studio was founded in New York in 2013 by Daniel Katz, David Fenkel and John Hodges, and quickly set about stamping its logo on indie films including The Bling Ring and Spring Breakers. GQ writer Zach Baron notes that it wasn’t just A24’s level of taste and “instinct for cool” that turned heads in Hollywood, but its approach to the way it put films into the world.