indieWire

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The original IndieWire newsletter launched on July 15, 1996, billing itself as "the daily news service for independent film". Following in the footsteps of various web- and AOL-based editorial ventures, IndieWire was launched as a free daily email publication in the summer of 1996 by New York- and Los Angeles-based filmmakers and writers Eugene Hernandez, Mark Rabinowitz, Cheri Barner, Roberto A. Quezada, and Mark L. Feinsod.{{cite web |url=http://www.indiewire.com/article/first_person_indiewire_10_and_counting/ |title=Indiewire at 10 and Counting |date=July 15, 2006 |access-date=February 10, 2010 |archive-date=June 4, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604191518/http://www.indiewire.com/article/first_person_indiewire_10_and_counting/ |url-status=live }} (Press release)

Initially distributed to a few hundred subscribers, the readership grew rapidly, passing 6,000 in late 1997.{{cite news |first= Janelle |last= Brown |title= Indie Film News Service No Longer Free |date= December 22, 1997 |newspaper= Wired |url= https://www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/1997/12/9312 |access-date= 2011-05-22 |archive-date= 2012-10-24 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121024073648/http://www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/1997/12/9312 |url-status= live }}

In January 1997, IndieWire made its first appearance at the Sundance Film Festival to begin their coverage of film festivals; it offered indieWIRE: On The Scene print dailies in addition to online coverage. Printed on site, in low-tech black-and-white style, the publication was able to scoop traditional Hollywood trade dailies Variety and The Hollywood Reporter due to the delay these latter publications had for being printed in Los Angeles.{{Citation needed|date=July 2017}}

The site was acquired by Snagfilms in July 2008.{{cite news |last=Goldstein |first=Gregg |title=SnagFilms acquires IndieWire |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/snagfilms-acquires-indiewire-115818 |access-date=11 December 2019 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=16 July 2008 |archive-date=11 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191211134412/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/snagfilms-acquires-indiewire-115818 |url-status=live }} On January 8, 2009, IndieWire editor Eugene Hernandez announced that the site was going through a re-launch that has been "entirely re-imagined".

Penske Media acquired IndieWire on January 19, 2016. The financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.{{cite web|work=Variety|date=January 19, 2016|title=Penske Media Acquires Indiewire|url=https://variety.com/2016/biz/news/penske-media-indiewire-1201682719/|access-date=December 11, 2017|archive-date=December 19, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201219093011/https://variety.com/2016/biz/news/penske-media-indiewire-1201682719/|url-status=live}}

The focus of IndieWire initially was independent film, but has grown to encompass mainstream film, television, and streaming media.{{cite web |title=About IndieWire |url=https://www.indiewire.com/about-us/ |website=indiewire.com |date=25 May 2016 |publisher=Penske Media Corporation |access-date=11 December 2019 |archive-date=6 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206061908/https://www.indiewire.com/about-us/ |url-status=live }} IndieWire is part of Penske Media.

It has a staff of 26 people, including publisher James Israel, editor-in-chief Dana Harris-Bridson, editorial director Kate Erbland, digital director Christian Blauvelt, executive editor Ryan Lattanzio, and editor-at-large Anne Thompson.{{cite web |date=10 April 2024 |title=IndieWire Masthead |url=https://www.indiewire.com/team/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210309143116/https://www.indiewire.com/team/ |archive-date=9 March 2021 |access-date=28 February 2021 |website=IndieWire}}

In Wired, in 1997, Janelle Brown wrote: "Currently, IndieWire has little to no competition: trades like The Hollywood Reporter and Variety may cover independent film, but from a Hollywood perspective, hidden by a huge amount of mainstream news. As filmmaker Doug Wolens points out, IndieWire is one of the few places where filmmakers can consistently and reliably keep on top of often-ignored small film festivals, which films are opening and what other filmmakers are thinking."

In 2002, Forbes magazine recognized IndieWire, along with seven other entrants, in the "Cinema Appreciation" category, as a "Best of the Web Pick", describing its best feature as "boards teeming with filmmakers" and its worst as "glacial search engine".{{cite news |title= Forbes Best of the Web - IndieWire |work= Forbes |date= March 25, 2002 |access-date=2010-05-21 |url=https://www.forbes.com/bow/b2c/review.jhtml?id=6296|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120217131631/https://www.forbes.com/bow/b2c/review.jhtml?id=6296|archive-date=17 February 2012}} IndieWire has been praised by Roger Ebert.{{cite journal| title= Rule of Thumb: Best Indie Crossroads| first= Roger |last=Ebert| author-link=Roger Ebert| journal= Yahoo Internet Life - Summer Movies Guide| publisher= ZDNet| volume= 5 |issue= 6| date= June 1999| url= http://www.zdnet.com/yil/content/mag/9906/ebert7.html | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/19991113073103/http://www.zdnet.com/yil/content/mag/9906/ebert7.html| archive-date= 1999-11-13 |url-status=dead | access-date=2011-05-22}}

In 2012, IndieWire won the Webby Award in the Movie and Film category.{{cite web|title=Webby Awards 2012|url=https://www.webbyawards.com/winners/2012/web/general-website/movie-film/indiewire-website/|access-date=2018-01-15|archive-date=2018-01-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180116004520/https://www.webbyawards.com/winners/2012/web/general-website/movie-film/indiewire-website/|url-status=live}}

In 2022, IndieWire's entire staff was honored as the Best Website, Traditional News Organization by the Los Angeles Press Club at its annual Southern California Journalism Awards, with judges noting that the site is "full of analysis of entertainment issues, not to mention the depth of most of the pieces that immediately pop up on the site. Quite compelling and thought-provoking."{{cite web|url=https://secureservercdn.net/45.40.150.136/549.9fe.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/SOCAL-2022-WINNERS.pdf|title=WINNERS : 64th SoCal Journalism Awards Contest|website=Secureservercdn.net|access-date=2022-07-16|archive-date=June 27, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220627132355/https://secureservercdn.net/45.40.150.136/549.9fe.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/SOCAL-2022-WINNERS.pdf|url-status=live}}

{{main|IndieWire Critics Poll}}

The IndieWire Critic's Poll is an annual poll by IndieWire that recognizes the best in American and international films in a ranking of 10 films on 15 different categories. The winners are chosen by the votes of the critics from IndieWire and other invited critics from around the world.

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Category:Internet properties established in 1998

Category:American film websites

Category:American entertainment news websites

Category:1996 establishments in the United States

Category:Publications established in 1996

Category:News agencies based in the United States

Category:Penske Media Corporation

Category:Webby Award winners

Category:Independent films