The term “independent” as it relates to film has always felt a bit misleading to me.

Here’s an example to illustrate my point: Pulp Fiction is perhaps the most widely celebrated “independent” film in history, considered by endless legions of critics and cinema nerds to be a landmark in the genre. But a fact that many fail to recognize (or rather decide to gloss over) is that while creatively developed solely by Quentin Tarantino, the film was actually funded by Miramax LLC. Yup, your favorite movie of all time was made with 8.5 million of those slimy Weinstein dollars, and - perhaps even worse - was personally greenlighted by the man himself.

Don’t get me wrong, Pulp Fiction is obviously a masterpiece, I’m not bagging on it or other great films made with boatloads of corporate cash. There’s nothing wrong with that. But in order to properly honor the little guy who’s out there dumping his or her entire life savings into bringing their passion project to life, there should be at least some line of distinction between films that are creatively independent and financially independent. It could even be argued that to be truly considered “independent”, a film should be both, Cassavetes style.

Shane Carruth’s self-financed sci-fi flick Primer is probably one of the finer examples of this. Carruth developed the film with a skeleton crew of five and a budget of only $7,000, acting himself as writer, director, editor, producer, cinematographer, composer, and starred as one of its two leads. He even studied physics during Primer’s pre-production to ensure the science behind the film’s dizzying storyline was as authentic as possible.

As far as plot goes, I don’t want to spoil anything, but I’ll tell you this much: Primer follows two engineers who inadvertently create a machine of sorts that threatens to alter the course of human history. Moral complications arise, suspense builds, and shit hits the fan fast. The mood is certainly sci-fi, but between its scientifically accurate technical jargon, unglamorous shooting locations, and the impressive acting chops of Shane Carruth and David Sullivan, the film feels rooted in realism.

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Got some extra cash lying around? Primer is this week’s Friday night flick, a true landmark in “independent” filmmaking and proof that paired with the right vision and enough dedication, any budget can yield a cult classic. —Jackson Todd