You greenlight the show.
Vote for the independent movies you want to see in your town. When enough people reserve seats, the show happens at a real local theater — and nobody pays anything unless it does.
A bit like Kickstarter — but for a movie night instead of a movie budget.
Find movies I'd watchFree to vote. No account needed.
Made a film? Get it onto real theater screens →
How it works
A filmmaker posts their movie. People nearby say they'd go see it. Once enough people actually reserve a seat, the theater shows the movie. Everybody wins: the theater fills an empty night, the filmmaker gets paid without renting a screen, and you get to see a movie you'd never find on Netflix.
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Tell us what you'd watch — one tap at a time
Browse independent films and hit “I'd watch that” on anything you'd go see if it played nearby. It's free, it takes a second, and it's not a commitment — it's a vote. Enough votes in your area, and we take the film to a local theater and ask them to host it. You'll be the first to know when it's listed.
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Reserve your seat — free
When a showing near you is “filling up,” reserve with a saved card that's only charged if enough people join you and the show actually happens. If it doesn't, you were simply never charged. Nothing to cancel, nothing to refund, nothing to chase.
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Watch the meter climb
Every showing lists how many seats it needs — say, 60. 42 reserved, 18 to go. Bring two friends and you might be the reason a film plays in your town. (People remember being one of the 60. Nobody remembers being one of ten thousand streams.)
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Show up for more than a movie
These are events at your local independent theater: after the film, the director appears live on screen for a Q&A — and your phone is the microphone. A code on screen gets you 10% off the film's merch, shipped straight to your door. Decided to come last-minute? A QR at the door sells you a ticket in seconds.
What it costs
A normal movie ticket — usually $10 to $15 — plus a small, clearly stated booking fee. That's it. Most of your money goes straight to the filmmaker and your local theater. You're not funding a studio's marketing budget; you're keeping an indie filmmaker on the road and a neighborhood screen lit.
We built this because we needed it.
Indie Greenlight exists because of one movie. When the indie film Abductee was finished, the offer on the table was streaming-only — a theatrical run, everyone said, wasn't realistic for an independent film. So the filmmakers got in the car and booked independent theaters themselves, one phone call at a time.
That tour proved two things. Independent theaters want these movies — they have quiet weeknights and audiences hungry for something real. And people will show up — they just never find out the movie is in town. Indie Greenlight is the tool that should have existed all along: it finds the audience first, then books the show.
Made by independent filmmakers who are still out there touring one.
Not just here to watch?
Got a film ready to screen?
Tour it through real theaters with zero upfront cost — you get paid on every show.
Submit your film →
Need seats filled at your theater?
A show only lands on your screen after enough seats are already sold — on your terms.
Count your screen in →
Cover film? Get the press pass.
Early access and direct filmmaker interviews — podcasts and newsletters count.
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