Join us for a conversation with producer Joel M. Gonzales, whose recent film The Long Game held the #1 spot on Netflix for three weeks, surpassing Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F. With over 24 produced films across genres—from faith and family to urban horror—Joel brings a no-nonsense, real-world approach to producing.
We’ll dive into what made The Long Game successful from development through distribution, and explore what’s realistic when producing indie films on budgets ranging from micro to $6 million. Expect inspiring and practical insights for anyone navigating the indie film space.
Joel M. Gonzales
Producer
About Joel M. Gonzales:
Joel M. Gonzales is a creative producer and founder of Untold Content Group, known for championing bold, culturally-rooted stories with global appeal. He most recently produced The Long Game, which held the #1 spot on Netflix for three consecutive weeks. With a background spanning development, budgeting, and packaging, Joel brings both creative vision and business strategy to every project. His no-nonsense approach to indie producing is both motivating and refreshingly real.
Helena Sardinha
Creative Producer
About the moderator:
From the South Coast of Brazil and based in Los Angeles, Helena Sardinha is a creative producer with her work recognized at festivals such as Sundance, Tribeca, SXSW and DOC NYC. In 2018, she co-founded Driven Equation, a boutique production company bridging Los Angeles and São Paulo, alongside Rafael Thomaseto. Helena’s work has garnered awards at the Humanitas Prize, Outfest, the Imagen Awards, and the UNESCO Award for Awareness and Sustainability.
A Sundance Producing Lab and Film Independent fellow, Helena continues to push boundaries with projects like Piratas, supported by the SFFILM Rainin Grant and Angel in Retrograde, a finalist in the AT&T Untold Stories at Tribeca. On streaming, she has Barry and Joan, now on Netflix, and Beautiful, FL, available on Disney+.
Helena is in post-production with the Ukrainian novel adaptation The Eternity Man, a Ukrainian-Canadian-Finish co-production and preparing to go into production on Jill Takes a Break, directed by Liz Cardenas, which participated in the Austin Film Society Artist Intensive. Her latest feature Satisfaction, just premiered at SXSW and showcases a stellar cast including Cannes winner Zar Amir (Holy Spider), BIFA nominee Fionn Whitehead (Dunkirk), British model Adwoa Aboah, and Scottish actress Emma Laird (The Brutalist). Her latest short, Villa Encanto, a collaboration with Tribeca, The Miranda Family Fund and Hispanic Federation will premiere at Tribeca this June as part of the inaugural year of the Colectivo fellowship.
IMPORTANT DETAILS:
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