A24: The Little Studio That Could

Jul 24
4 min read

Updated: Jul 25

Ari Aster's latest film Eddington (which is horrible, by the way), from A24, has just been released, so I thought I would take this opportunity to talk a bit about the one and only: A24. There’s never been a movie studio quite like A24.

In just over a decade, this little independent production and distribution company has gone from being an underground whisper in the ears of film nerds to becoming one of the most influential and talked-about studios in the entire world.

They’ve developed a rabid, almost cult-like fanbase, and I mean that in the best way, while managing to churn out some of the most original, audacious, emotionally resonant, and flat-out WEIRD movies of the modern era. I’m a fan. I’m a critic. I’m also not afraid to call them out when they make garbage. And trust me... they have.

But let’s start with the good.

A24 was founded back in 2012 by Daniel Katz, David Fenkel, and John Hodges, three guys with deep roots in film production and distribution who wanted to shake things up.

The name? Inspired by a highway in Italy. The logo? Slick, simple, and instantly recognizable. The mission? Make cool, weird, risky, sometimes brilliant movies that nobody else would touch.

And they did.

They started small with movies like A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III (meh...) and Spring Breakers (now we’re talkin’). Then they picked up American rights to future heavy-hitters like Ex Machina, Room, and The Witch.

Suddenly, A24 wasn’t just the weird kid at the party anymore — they were the host. And when Moonlight came out in 2016 and famously lost (and then won) Best Picture at the Oscars, it was official: A24 had arrived.

They followed it up with Hereditary, Lady Bird, Uncut Gems, The Lighthouse, and Everything Everywhere All at Once — the last of which took home seven Oscars, made over $100 million, and got everyone Googling "hot dog fingers" in 2022.

And that was just the beginning. They kept pushing boundaries. Taking risks. Spotlighting underrepresented voices. And working with some of the most interesting filmmakers of our time.

We’re talking directors like Ari Aster, Robert Eggers, the Daniels, Sean Baker, Joanna Hogg, Alex Garland, Barry Jenkins, Greta Gerwig, the Safdie brothers, Darren Aronofsky, Jonah Hill, David Lowery, Halina Reijn, Celine Song... the list goes on.

Even Joel Coen showed up with The Tragedy of Macbeth (it was terrible... but still). And it’s not just movies, they’ve dipped into television too, producing shows like Euphoria, Beef, Ramy, The Carmichael Show, and Ziwe.

A24 made being indie cool. They’re the hipster label, the boutique brand, the Criterion Collection of current cinema, stylish, artful, strange, sometimes pretentious as hell, but always interesting. Say what you want about them, and I do, but their films have a certain feel.

When you see that A24 logo pop up on screen, you know you’re about to get something offbeat, challenging, atmospheric, and usually unforgettable. That’s rare in this era of bloated IP and lazy remakes.

BUT, and this is a big but, they’re not invincible. Let’s be clear: A24 has made some absolute stinkers.

Free Fire? Garbage.

Everything Everywhere All at Once? I know it won everything — I absolutely hated it.

Dick’s the Musical? Unwatchable.

Janet Planet? Art house nonsense dialed to 11.

Sorry Baby? Soulless indie platitudes.

Bring Her Back? Offensive on so many levels I lost count.

Y2K, I Saw the TV Glow, We Live in Time, The Brutalist... all of them, for me, complete duds.

And yet… they still have this incredible streak of greatness, especially in the horror genre. Between 2015 and 2020, if you slapped the A24 logo on a horror movie, I’d walk in confidently knowing I’d see something fresh, creepy, and smart. Midsommar, Under the Silver Lake, The Monster, Lamb, In Fabric, and so many more, all brilliant in their own ways. That era of horror? Pure gold.

To me, A24 and NEON are the only studios today that even come close to having a distinct identity, and yes, they compete. Both distribute bold, artsy, award-winning, sometimes alienating work, often hyped by social media memes, cool trailers, and minimal marketing.

But A24 has that extra buzz. They’ve built a true brand. And like any great brand, they have their highs (A Different Man, The Green Knight, The Florida Project) and their lows (see: most of the above list I hated).

Still, no other studio has made a bigger splash in the last decade, not just in terms of output, but in shaping the cinematic landscape. They’ve launched careers, challenged audiences, and redefined what it means to be a movie studio in the 21st century.

So now, with all that said… let’s get to the good stuff.

Below is my list of the Top 20 Best A24 Films of All Time, ranked in order of my personal preference. Some are obvious, some might surprise you. But they’re all, in one way or another, examples of why A24 remains one of the most daring, frustrating, exhilarating, and essential studios working today.