Notable MICRO BUDGET movies by FIRST-TIME Filmmakers
by mikaelsmith | created - 01 May 2012 | updated - 24 Jul 2013 | PublicThis list is comprised of feature length narrative films that were made by first-time filmmakers with micro budgets (Less than $99,000).
Inflation not factored.
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1. Fear and Desire (1952)
Not Rated | 62 min | Drama, Thriller, War
Four soldiers trapped behind enemy lines must confront their fears and desires.
Director: Stanley Kubrick | Stars: Frank Silvera, Kenneth Harp, Paul Mazursky, Stephen Coit
Votes: 13,712
2. La Pointe Courte (1955)
Not Rated | 80 min | Drama, Romance
Follow the story of a couple who goes to a small French fishing village to try to solve the problems of their deteriorating marriage.
Director: Agnès Varda | Stars: Philippe Noiret, Silvia Monfort, Marcel Jouet, Albert Lubrano
Votes: 4,290
3. Pather Panchali (1955)
Not Rated | 125 min | Drama
Impoverished priest Harihar Ray, dreaming of a better life for himself and his family, leaves his rural Bengal village in search of work.
Director: Satyajit Ray | Stars: Kanu Bannerjee, Karuna Bannerjee, Subir Banerjee, Chunibala Devi
Votes: 38,520 | Gross: $0.54M
4. Shadows (1958)
PG | 87 min | Drama, Music, Romance
Cassavetes' jazz-scored improvisational film explores interracial friendships and relationships in Beat-Era (1950s) New York City.
Director: John Cassavetes | Stars: Ben Carruthers, Lelia Goldoni, Hugh Hurd, Anthony Ray
Votes: 12,550
5. The 400 Blows (1959)
Not Rated | 99 min | Crime, Drama
A young boy, left without attention, delves into a life of petty crime.
Director: François Truffaut | Stars: Jean-Pierre Léaud, Albert Rémy, Claire Maurier, Guy Decomble
Votes: 128,032
6. Breathless (1960)
Not Rated | 90 min | Crime, Drama
A small-time crook, hunted by the authorities for a car theft and the murder a police officer, attempts to persuade a hip American journalism student to run away with him to Italy.
Director: Jean-Luc Godard | Stars: Jean-Paul Belmondo, Jean Seberg, Van Doude, Jean-Luc Godard
Votes: 87,892 | Gross: $0.34M
7. Who's That Knocking at My Door (1967)
R | 90 min | Drama
A young man can't accept the girl he likes because of her bitter past.
Director: Martin Scorsese | Stars: Harvey Keitel, Zina Bethune, Anne Collette, Lennard Kuras
Votes: 10,111
8. Fando and Lis (1968)
Not Rated | 93 min | Adventure, Fantasy
Fando and his partially-paralyzed lover Lis search for the mythical city of Tar. Based on Jodorowsky's memories of a play by surrealist Fernando Arrabal.
Director: Alejandro Jodorowsky | Stars: Tamara Garina, Sergio Kleiner, Diana Mariscal, María Teresa Rivas
Votes: 6,363
9. Signs of Life (1968)
Not Rated | 91 min | Drama
Three wounded soldiers are removed from battle and given the task of looking after a fortress in a small coastal town. However, the pressures of isolation begin to take their toll on the men.
Director: Werner Herzog | Stars: Peter Brogle, Wolfgang Reichmann, Athina Zacharopoulou, Wolfgang von Ungern-Sternberg
Votes: 2,454
10. Eggshells (1969)
Not Rated | 89 min | Drama, Fantasy
Experimental allegorical story about a group of hippie students in Austin, Texas, who move into an old big house in the woods. However, something else is there and it's influencing them.
Director: Tobe Hooper | Stars: Mahlon Foreman, Ron Barnhart, Amy Lester, Kim Henkel
Votes: 495
11. Mondo Trasho (1969)
Not Rated | 95 min | Comedy
A day in the lives of a hit-and-run driver and her victim, and the bizarre things that happen to them before and after they collide (sexual assault by a crazed foot-fetishist, visions of ... See full summary »
Director: John Waters | Stars: Mary Vivian Pearce, Divine, David Lochary, Mink Stole
Votes: 1,530
12. The Last House on the Left (1972)
R | 84 min | Crime, Horror, Thriller
Two teenage girls heading to a rock concert for one's birthday try to score marijuana in the city, where they are kidnapped and brutalized by a gang of psychopathic convicts.
Director: Wes Craven | Stars: Sandra Peabody, Lucy Grantham, David Hess, Fred J. Lincoln
Votes: 40,265 | Gross: $3.10M
13. Dark Star (1974)
G | 83 min | Comedy, Sci-Fi
In the far reaches of space, a small crew, 20 years into their solitary mission, find things beginning to go hilariously wrong.
Director: John Carpenter | Stars: Dan O'Bannon, Dre Pahich, Brian Narelle, Cal Kuniholm
Votes: 27,228
14. Mala Noche (1986)
Not Rated | 78 min | Drama
A story of amour fou. Walt is madly in love/lust with a young illegal Mexican immigrant. However, the object of his unrequited affection doesn't even speak any English and finds Walt really... See full summary »
Director: Gus Van Sant | Stars: Tim Streeter, Doug Cooeyate, Ray Monge, Nyla McCarthy
Votes: 4,329
15. Slacker (1990)
R | 97 min | Comedy, Drama
A day in the life of Austin, Texas as the camera roams from place to place and provides a brief look at the overeducated, the social misfits, the outcasts and the oddballs.
Director: Richard Linklater | Stars: Richard Linklater, Rudy Basquez, Jean Caffeine, Jan Hockey
Votes: 23,461 | Gross: $1.23M
16. El Mariachi (1992)
R | 81 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
A traveling mariachi is mistaken for a murderous criminal and must hide from a gang bent on killing him.
Director: Robert Rodriguez | Stars: Carlos Gallardo, Consuelo Gómez, Jaime de Hoyos, Peter Marquardt
Votes: 71,267 | Gross: $2.04M
17. Clerks (1994)
R | 92 min | Comedy
A day in the lives of two convenience clerks named Dante and Randal as they annoy customers, discuss movies, and play hockey on the store roof.
Director: Kevin Smith | Stars: Brian O'Halloran, Jeff Anderson, Marilyn Ghigliotti, Lisa Spoonauer
Votes: 232,292 | Gross: $3.15M
18. In the Company of Men (1997)
R | 97 min | Comedy, Drama
Two business executives--one an avowed misogynist, the other recently emotionally wounded by his love interest--set out to exact revenge on the female gender by seeking out the most innocent, uncorrupted girl they can find and ruining her life.
Director: Neil LaBute | Stars: Aaron Eckhart, Matt Malloy, Stacy Edwards, Michael Martin
Votes: 14,284 | Gross: $2.86M
19. The Castle (1997)
R | 85 min | Comedy, Drama
A working-class family from Melbourne, Australia fights city hall after being told they must vacate their beloved family home to allow for infrastructural expansion.
Director: Rob Sitch | Stars: Michael Caton, Anne Tenney, Stephen Curry, Anthony Simcoe
Votes: 17,486 | Gross: $0.86M
20. Following (1998)
R | 69 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
A young writer who follows strangers for material meets a thief who takes him under his wing.
Director: Christopher Nolan | Stars: Jeremy Theobald, Alex Haw, Lucy Russell, John Nolan
Votes: 101,684 | Gross: $0.05M
21. Pi (1998)
R | 84 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A paranoid mathematician searches for a key number that will unlock the universal patterns found in nature.
Director: Darren Aronofsky | Stars: Sean Gullette, Mark Margolis, Ben Shenkman, Pamela Hart
Votes: 186,386 | Gross: $3.22M
22. George Washington (2000)
Not Rated | 89 min | Drama
A group of children, in a depressed small town, band together to cover up a tragic mistake one summer.
Director: David Gordon Green | Stars: Candace Evanofski, Donald Holden, Damian Jewan Lee, Curtis Cotton III
Votes: 8,664 | Gross: $0.24M
23. Funny Ha Ha (2002)
Not Rated | 89 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Marnie just graduated from college, drinks likes she's still in school, and is looking for a temporary job but a permanent boyfriend. She loves a guy who doesn't love her (?), ping-pongs ... See full summary »
Director: Andrew Bujalski | Stars: Kate Dollenmayer, Mark Herlehy, Christian Rudder, Jennifer L. Schaper
Votes: 2,954 | Gross: $0.08M
24. Primer (2004)
PG-13 | 77 min | Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Four friends/fledgling entrepreneurs, knowing that there's something bigger and more innovative than the different error-checking devices they've built, wrestle over their new invention.
Director: Shane Carruth | Stars: Shane Carruth, David Sullivan, Casey Gooden, Anand Upadhyaya
Votes: 114,115 | Gross: $0.42M
25. The Puffy Chair (2005)
R | 85 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Josh Sagers drives cross-country on a mission to deliver his father's birthday gift - a giant purple LazyBoy.
Directors: Jay Duplass, Mark Duplass | Stars: Mark Duplass, Katie Aselton, Rhett Wilkins, Julie Fischer
Votes: 5,260 | Gross: $0.19M
26. Shotgun Stories (2007)
PG-13 | 92 min | Drama, Thriller
Set in Arkansas, this poetic and powerful film directed by Jeff Nichols (Mud, Take Shelter) tracks a blood feud that erupts when two sets of half-brothers come to blows at their father's funeral.
Director: Jeff Nichols | Stars: Michael Shannon, Douglas Ligon, Barlow Jacobs, Michael Abbott Jr.
Votes: 11,238 | Gross: $0.05M
Budget: http://www.emanuellevy.com/review/shotgun-stories-8/
27. Heaven Strewn (2011)
Not Rated | 78 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Mickey's looking to recover his losses from a botched counterfeiting transaction but must convince his best friend to help him under the ruse of meteorite hunting.
Director: J.T. Gurzi | Stars: Wyatt Denny, Rob Tepper, Alexandra Williams, Magdaleno Robles Jr.
Votes: 223
28. Bellflower (2011)
R | 106 min | Action, Drama, Romance
Two friends spend all their free time building flame-throwers and weapons of mass destruction in hopes that a global apocalypse will occur and clear the runway for their imaginary gang "Mother Medusa".
Director: Evan Glodell | Stars: Evan Glodell, Tyler Dawson, Jessie Wiseman, Rebekah Brandes
Votes: 8,088 | Gross: $0.17M
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