When LB Entertainment founder Lee Broda first entered the entertainment industry, she wanted to be on stage.
“I grew up in Israel and I was more of a performer and an artist,” Broda told TheWrap, stressing that she grew up “dancing and acting and doing a lot of theater.” That dream followed her to the United States, where Broda joined a professional dance company and attended Los Angeles City College Theater Academy, where she was encouraged to write and direct her own projects.
It was this creator’s instinct that later paved the way for her professional career. Since founding independent production company LB Entertainment in 2015, Broda’s company has produced the success of over 50 ambitious independent films, including Antibirth starring Natasha Lyonne and Chloe Sevigny, The Trust starring Elijah Woods and Nicolas Cage, “The Trust,” Charlize Theron’s adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s “Dark Places,” director Andrew Ahn’s “Paths” and “The Kindergarten Teacher” starring Maggie Gyllenhaal.
The latest feather in Broda’s cap is Todd Hein’s Netflix release May December. She worked as an executive producer on Natalie Portman and Julianne Moore’s Oscar-nominated film. For Broda, the trick to staying relevant in a competitive blockbuster-dominated film space was to embrace both her creative and more financial skills, while combining ambitious ideas with top-tier talent.
Broda got involved in the executive production and finance side of the business after college while working for a producer.
“I always say I’m like 50/50 left-right brain,” Broda said. “It just became pretty obvious that things were happening really fast for me on that side, and I took a step back from creating and acting to really build my career as an executive producer.”
This transition generally left Broda feeling more balanced. She can both develop projects she is passionate about and have space for creative expression, whether she is writing poetry or participating in projects in Israel.
“I’m in a place where I believe that if you can do something well, you can be a multi-hyphenate person and create your own destiny,” she said.
Read Broda’s full Off With a View interview below.
What was the moment you realized you could start your own production studio?
It took me a while to feel confident enough to do things on my own. If I’m honest, I think the uncertainty of the business scared me. It took me a long time to give up all the side hustles I was doing and fully commit.
There was a moment – it was 2015, in the summer – when I discovered that I was running a company, but I was running it for someone else. I was already holding the meetings and raising the money and finding the projects. And I was like, “Why am I doing all this other stuff when I can do it for myself?” I also missed the creative world a lot. I wanted to be more involved as a producer and more actively involved creatively with writers, in publishing, in editing.
What are you looking for in a project?
History, obviously. Maybe it’s my background as an actor, but I like stories that impact, inspire and take the audience on an emotional journey. I look for them in the scripts. I’m also very attracted to projects that have actors that are inspiring and that I enjoy watching and I think are brilliant. Directors are usually the leading voices that dictate a project, but I also look at the talent and who I want to work with and what artists I want to collaborate with.
Would you say that your experience as an artist has given you an edge when it comes to producing independent projects?
Sometimes I think we say yes to projects and take chances, but they don’t turn out as great as we thought. And sometimes it’s the outsider or the projects we’re not sure about that prove us wrong. It is a very humbling experience. Whatever stage you’re at and whatever your position in the industry, it’s such a collaborative art. One thing can go wrong and affect the entire project.
But I’m just looking for things that speak to my passion and things that I can get excited about. I always find that passion is contagious, so if something gets me up and excited, I go for it.
We take risks. We’ve done a lot of films with first-time directors. They are unpredictable and can be a gamble, but a lot of them have turned out great and we’ve launched a lot of careers. I’m also very happy to discover new voices and support them, because I know how hard it is, from my experience, to get the first chance.
How do you find projects to navigate a very blockbuster, franchise heavy landscape?
We all feel the transition and how the industry has changed over the past few years and the challenges it has brought. Studios don’t take as much risk and stick with the safe bet. Space is a challenge, especially for dramas these days. Dramas are usually the projects I’m most passionate about. They are having a moment and hopefully things have changed. It feels like more people are coming back to theaters this year and there are so many great movies that have been nominated.
We, as a company, are growing and with ever-larger budgets. They’re not necessarily in the Marvel world, which is just not what I do, although it can be very successful for other producers. But we explore more grounded science fiction and bigger IPs and tell those stories on a larger scale. Sometimes it’s a longer process because when you’re dealing with bigger budgets, they usually take longer to come together. But we’re definitely adding them to our list for 2024 and 2025.
What first drew you to May December?
It was one of those projects that you get on your desk and you’re like, “I’ve got to help make it happen and I’ve got to be a part of it.” And frankly, there was a competition as to who was going to get the funding and how they were going to get it together.
For me it was a combination of the two Todds [Haynes] as a director — I watched Carol and I really fell in love with his work and how he works with actors and the type of actors he gets — both Natalie and Julian… It was a dream come true to be able to be a part of this project on this level. As producers, you don’t usually check all the boxes with every project. This is one of those projects that checks all the boxes, working with Gloria Sanchez Productions and Killer Films, both producers I haven’t had the chance to work with.
What’s the best piece of professional advice you’ve ever received?
One of my teachers actually told us this thing that I always carry with me: It’s not about who you know, it’s about who knows you.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
The post May December Producer LB Entertainment Shepherds Scores Indie Success Via Taking Chances appeared first on TheWrap.
