Before streaming, independent films bought by major distributors were offered limited release in theaters or obscure art-houses, where viewership depended on a specific, dedicated indie film audience; one that frequented art houses and independent films already. Now, instead of being sold and distributed on a smaller scale to a smaller audience, independent films sold to an online distributor become instantly accessible to millions of viewers worldwide who do not fit the typical indie-audience profile.

With a subscription base of approximately 70 million, and growing, Netflix offers a diverse audience with a wide range of tastes, allowing a freedom to be bold with the movies they feature. Major distributors do not have this freedom because they are bound to the limitations of the box office and profitability which, ironically, is shrinking due to mobile streaming technologies. In 2013, it was reported in Variety that movie theater audiences between the ages of 18-24 shrank by 17 percent.

Conversely, streaming audiences are over 40 million, and growing. This is a monumental era for independent films because unlike major distributors, streaming services acknowledge the potential of films lacking widespread appeal because they have a stable audience and, in turn, are more financially stable. Their subscribers are not going anywhere, and there are so many of them, that there really is “something for everyone.”

This year, Netflix and Amazon proved that they value independent film when they were the biggest buyers at the Sundance film festival. Their grandiose offers influenced major theatrical distribution deals more than ever before, especially in the case of The Birth of a Nation, however, this is a special circumstance. The film sold for $17.5 million dollars but was produced for approximately 10 million dollars—an exorbitant budget for an independent film. While it is an independent film by origin, it aimed for the studio-award route, which not all independent films do. The online distributors may incite competition in relation to hot commodity films such as The Birth of a Nation, but, for the most part, their markets are completely different. As Roy Price, the head of Amazon Studios, told the New York Times, “We’re interested in distinctive films by artists who have something new and interesting to say.” Streaming services are popular because they are making all types of films accessible to audiences hungry for something different, and the industry is finally realizing that diversity in storytelling is something to be admired.

Maybe going to the movies by yourself isn\’t a big expense when you got a family of 4, it gets pretty darn expensive.

I recently went to see The Dark Crystal, through a digital film fest that is going on across Canada, and because it was an older film it only cost me $19.50 for me and my 2 boys to go. That\’s a reasonable price that would have me going to the movies more if that was the regular price. However it isn\’t so paying $16/month for Netflix but another Canadian streaming service just makes more sense for me.