Don’t-Miss Indies: What to Watch in March
We’ve once again staggered into March by the skin of our teeth. Another awards season, confronted and conquered, the 2025 Film Independent Spirit Awards still ringing in our ears like the sonic remnants of Blue Angels flyover. But lo! There’s no rest for the wicked. The calendar begins anew right now, with a bumper crop of freshly hand-picked Don’t-Miss Indies for March. So! Whether you’re in the full bloom of Spring or grinding out the last gasps of winter, get ready–there’s a lot more to watch.
I LOVE YOU FOREVER
When: March 9, March 13 (Film Independent Presents)
Where: Film Independent Theater, Theaters,
Directors: Cazzie David, Elisa Kalani
Cast: Sofia Black D’Elia, Ray Nicholson, Jon Rudnitsky, Cazzie David
Why We’re Excited: Rom-com tropes are subverted in a big, big way in I Love You Forever–screening as part of Film Independent Presents on XXX. Law student Mackenzie’s (Sofia Black D’Elia) dating woes are momentarily relieved when she meets charming TV news reporter Finn (Ray Nicholson, son of Jack) at a friend’s birthday party. Initially swept off her feet, sweet quickly becomes sour when Finn reveals himself to be an obsessive stalker, utilizing all the tools of our digital era to make Mac’s life a living hell. An updated spin on the reliable Fatal Attraction and Fear blueprint for Gen Z, I Love You Forever leans into the black comedy of toxic relationships. Not a surprise coming from filmmakers Cazzie David and Elisa Kalani, the former of whom is the daughter of cringe king Larry David. Cazzie acts in the film alongside stand-up comedian Jon Rudnitsky, as Mackenzie’s quippy BFFs. Touch grass, folks!
DELI BOYS (SEASON ONE)
When: March 6
Where: Hulu
Creator: Abdullah Saeed
Cast: Asif Ali, Saagar Shaikh, Alfie Fuller, Poorna Jagannathan, Brian George
Why We’re Excited: In Hulu’s new crime comedy Deli Boys, spoiled Pakistani-American failsons Mir and Raj (Asif Ali and Saagar Shaikh, respectively) discover the shocking secret behind their family’s success after their father, Baba (Iqbal Theba), suddenly dies. Upon discovering that their paterfamilias and supposed convenience store magnate dad was, in fact, a drug kingpin merely using the retail operation as a front, the bickering brothers are drawn into a life a crime under the reluctant tutelage of their gun-toting Auntie Lucky (Jagannathan). The original series was created by former Vice contributor Abdullah Saeed, also a writer for the similarly cannabis-driven HBO original High Maintenance. Further HBO dramedy pedigree comes courtesy of EP Jenni Konner, one of the co-creators of Girls. The show’s writing staff features Film Independent Member Kyle Lau.
ON BECOMING A GUINEA FOWL
When: March 7
Where: Theaters
Writer, Director: Runango Nyoni
Cast: Susan Chardy, Elizabeth Chisela, Henry B.J. Phiri, Roy Chisha, Blessings Bhamjee
Why We’re Excited: Nominated for a 2018 Best International Feature Spirit Award for her arresting debut I Am Not a Witch, Zambian-English filmmaker Rungano Nyoni returns with an ambitious sophomore outing, utilizing disquieting touches of magical realism to tell the story of upheaval, denial and mythmaking within a seemingly representative modern Zambian family. Driving home from an unspecified outing (replete in fully-inflated Missy Elliott cosplay, no less), Shula (Susan Chardy) comes across the dead body of her uncle Fred. As funeral rituals get underway, the mystery of Fred’s ignominious death and–more importantly–the unsettling reality of his life and crimes begin to unravel, calling into question a familial legacy steeped in misogyny and abuse. The film premiered last year, in the Cannes Film Festival’s prestigious Un Certain Regard section.
BLACK BAG
When: March 14
Where: Theaters
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Cast: Cate Blanchett, Michael Fassbender, Regé-Jean Page, Naomie Harris, Pierce Brosnan
Why We’re Excited: A new Steven Soderbergh flick is always cause for celebration among cineastes, even coming a mere two months after the American indie majordomo’s last film, the formalist horror exercise Presence. Why, a kitten born the day that film was released would still, in fact, be a kitten as Black Bagexplodes into theaters this month courtesy of Focus Features. From an original script by A-list Hollywood screenwriter David Koepp (Panic Room, Spider-Man, War of the Worlds), Bag finds married intelligence agents Kathryn and George Woodhouse (Cate Blanchett and Michael Fassbender) suddenly at odds when George’s superiors suspect that Kathryn may be a mole working for rival powers. With elements of Hitchcockian suspense and Mr. & Mrs. Smith-eque romantic entanglement, Soderbergh’s expedient commitment to issuing classic Hollywood entertainments remains unbroken.
OPUS
When: March 14
Where: Theaters
Writer, Director: Mark Anthony Green
Cast: Ayo Edebiri, John Malkovich, Juliette Lewis, Murray Bartlett, Amber Midthunder
Why We’re Excited: Yet another ambitious A24 original, the basics of filmmaker Mark Anthony Green’s Opus suggest an unholy bouillabaisse of Willy Wonka, Velvet Goldmine and the “Teddy Perkins” episode of Atlanta. Playing hooky from his regular job as GQ’s “Style Guy,” first-time filmmaker Green enlists the help of Spirit Award winner Ayo Edebiri, playing Ariel Ecton, a young journalist invited to the isolated retreat of reclusive pop star Alfret Moretti–played with signature deliciousness by the great John Malkovich. Summoned to the retreat alongside a motley assortment of dubious invitees, Ariel soon finds out that Moretti has more up his sleeve than merely a listening party for his 30-years-in-the-making comeback album. As Moretti’s guests slowly become aware that their outing may be a whole lot more “cult” than “culture,” things begin to spiral violently out of control. The film premiered at Sundance in January, somehow without a single other resident of Bloom County in attendance.
MICKEY 17
When: March 17
Where: Theaters
Director: Bong Joon-ho
Cast: Robert Pattinson, Naomi Ackie, Steven Yeun, Toni Collette, and Mark Ruffalo
Why We’re Excited: In his first film since 2020 Best International Feature Spirit Award winner Parasite, superstar Korean auteur Bong Joon-ho’s new Mickey 17 is only the director’s second English-language feature, after 2017’s similarly speculative fictive Okja. Adapted from a 2022 novel by sci-fi author Edward Ashton, the upcoming Warner Bros. release features a hodgepodge of elements familiar to genre nerds from yesteryear cult favorites such as Moon (2009) and Edge of Tomorrow (2014). But what’s one-of-a-kind here is/are Robert Pattinson’s gonzo performance(s) as successive editions of the expendable “Mickey” clone–a sad-sack interstellar worker bee in a dystopian near-future, utilized as ever-renewable cannon fodder for the colonization of a far-off ice planet (fans of classic Hoth-ready fashion will eat, courtesy of costume designer Mayes C. Rubeo). Complications naturally arise when different Mickeys begin to overlap without being properly disposed of, thus presenting major supply-chain issues to Mickey’s frigidly capitalist overlords. The film premiered at Berlin in February. Film Independent Members involved in the film include producers Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner.
THE STUDIO (SEASON ONE)
When: March 26
Where: Apple TV+
Created by: Seth Rogan, Evan Goldberg
Cast: Seth Rogan, Catherine O’Hara, Kathryn Hahn, Ike Barinholtz, Chase Sui Wonders
Why We’re Excited: It’s hard to pinpoint when exactly it all may have all begun–Streaming? COVID? Strikes? AI?–but in recent years it seems like the most perilous Hollywood drama has been happening behind the scenes, as our industry rushes time and time again to reinvent itself in the face of existential threats both immediate and omnipresently looming. Add to that the perennial battle between art and commerce, and you’ve got some pretty rich material for a dramedy series. The latest product of star Seth Rogan’s fruitful creative partnership with Evan Goldberg, the co-creators’ new Apple TV+ series kicks off with Rogan’s Matt Remick taking the reins of (fictional) Continental Studios in present-day Hollywood. Though well-intentioned, as the practical realities and frustrations of making movies begin to pile up, Remick is nevertheless left to ponder: Am I the bad guy here? The series co-stars and who’s-who of famous faces, including Kathryn Hahn, Catherine O’Hara, Bryan Cranston and more.
BOB TREVINO LIKES IT
When: March 11 (Film Independent Presents), March 21
Where: Film Independent Theater, Theaters
Director: Tracie Laymon
Cast: Barbie Ferreira, John Leguizamo, French Stewart, Lauren “Lolo” Spencer
Why We’re Excited: Filmmaker Traci Laymon’s debut feature is a small-scale, feel-good dramedy based on an improbable true story. Starring the great Barbie Ferreira (Unpregnant, Nope) and the always welcome John Leguizamo, the story finds Ferreira as Lily Trevino–a sweet, somewhat adrift young woman in search of her estranged father. Searching “Bob Trevino” on Facebook leads not to her father, but to a different middle-aged man with the same name. Once connected, this auxiliary Bob finds himself drawn, paternally, to learn more about Lily’s messy life. Lily in turn begins to learn more about Bob’s tragic backstory, and soon an unlikely friendship is formed. With the other people in their respective lives struggling to make sense of the relationship, Bob and Lily find themselves drawn together, sweetly, as surrogate father-and-daughter.
ASH
When: March 21
Where: Theaters
Director: Flying Lotus
Cast: Eiza González, Aaron Paul, Iko Uwais, Beulah Koale
Why We’re Excited: Premiering just 10 days after its premiere at SXSW this month is musician/producer/DJ/artist Flying Lotus’s second feature Ash, which follows 2017’s gonzo gross-out omnibus Kuso. If things look a little more reigned in between FL’s unforgettable debut and this sophomore outing, it’s surely only relatively. Here, outer space explorer Riya (Mexican singer and actor Eiza González) wakes up to find all her colleagues mysteriously dead. With their off-world mission now aborted, rescue mission liaison Brion (Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul) arrives to bring her home. But Riya senses that something’s not right. Full of arresting visuals (check out the lighting, which is not only bisexual, but extraterrestrial) and–naturally!–great music, Ash comes ready-made for the “Mind-bending” vertical on your streaming service of choice.
DEATH OF A UNICORN
When: March 28
Where: Theaters
Writer, Director: Alex Scharfman
Cast: Paul Rudd, Jenna Ortega, Will Poulter, Téa Leoni, Richard E. Grant
Why We’re Excited: A veteran indie film producer whose credits range from progressive horror (Lyle, 2014) to gynocratic neo-noir (Blow the Man Down, 2019), Alex Scharfman’s feature debut as writer/director is an idiosyncratic mash-up of genres: fantasy, horror, satire, door-slamming farce–you name it. A slick-but-sympathetic crisis PR manager (smooth-faced favorite Paul Rudd) is summoned to the remote, sprawling estate of a Sackler-esque pharmaceutical family (Leoni, Poulter, and Film Independent Spirit Award winnerGrant) with his surly teen daughter (Wednesday’s Ortega) in tow. En route, father and daughter hit and kill (?) what appears to be–you guessed it!–an actual goddamned unicorn, magic horn and all. Torn between capitalizing on the medicinal properties of said horn to further their empire and, well, staying alive once the beast’s demise unleashes supernatural forces outside their control, our ensemble is promised an incident-rich one-hour-and-forty-minute runtime. Bonus: the film features an original score by none other than the legendary John Carpenter. Producer Theresa Page is also an active Member of Film Independent.
KEY
Film Independent Fellow or Member
Film Independent Presents Screening, Q&A
Microbudget
Filmmaker or Lead Characters of Color
Film Independent Spirit Award Winner or Nominee
Female Filmmaker
LGBT Filmmaker or Lead LGBT Characters
First-time Filmmaker
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