Frances Ha
Budget: $3M
This delightful simple story follows the chaotic life of a dancer living in New York who is forever between apartments. The film was created by indie king and queen Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig. The two made this film together with little publicity. By the time it came out, it had created a huge buzz and a few million dollars.
The film actually brought the now-married couple closer together. For a couple of years, the two would share drafts of the script. When it was ultimately done, Baumbach (the now Oscar-nominated filmmaker) directed the film.
Primer
Budget: $7,000
Made with the bare minimum and with a cast of five young actors, newbie director Shane Carruth practically made his film student's budget. In fact, in order to save money on the production, Carruth took on multiple roles and was the writer, director, producer, cinematographer, editor, and music composer. That's one talented guy. The actors were actually his friends and family, so he must have saved a fortune on the cast.
In the end, it really paid off, and the movie landed in a series of prestigious film festivals, most notably the Sundance Film Festival, for which it won the Grand Jury Prize in the year 2004. The film ultimately grossed $840,000 at the box office. Not too shabby.
El Mariachi
Budget: $7,000
A film about a traveling mariachi musician who finds himself entangled in the law by being mistaken for a murderous criminal. The film paved the way for film director Robert Rodiguez's gory obscure action films. As one of his firsts (made in 1992), the Spanish language film was both written and directed by Rodriguez and was made for only a $7,000 budget. Rodriguez, who was a film student at the time, made money for the film by being a human lab rat and getting medical tests done on him. That's commitment!
The film eventually made over $2 million worldwide, which was a huge surprise considering it was an extremely low-budget student film. The film consisted of not one professional — not in the crew and not the casts, so that is quite an accomplishment.
Home Alone
Budget: $15M
Probably the greatest Christmas classic of all time, "Home Alone" has been entertaining families for decades now. The reruns and screenings continue every year, making it one of the most beloved films in America and maybe even the world. From the look of it, it probably seemed like this was one big-budget film, especially with its great cast members including, Joe Pesci, Catherine O'Hara, and the legendary John Candy. But that was not the case at all!
This film, in fact, cost only $15 million to make, which, granted, in the late 80s' wasn't that cheap, but, considering that the film brought in almost half a billion dollars, it makes it all the more incredible. It also cemented child actor Mcauley Culkin as America's favorite kid.
Fahrenheit 9/11
Budget: $6M
Documentary filmmaker Michael Moore had already created a reputation for himself as a controversial figure with his film "Bowling For Columbine." But nothing could compare to the documentary "Fahrenheit 9/11." While most documentaries have a more niche appeal, this one gained attention on an international scale as it covered the events leading up to and post 9/11.
The film's message created a heated international debate and even rivaled some 2004 blockbuster comedies and hit films like "Dodgeball," "The Terminal," and "Lemony Snicket." In the end it made $222,446,320. Nobody expected this film to do as well as it did