Topic Studios’ Ryan Heller Returns to Cannes with Open Marriage Comedy ‘Splitsville’ starring Dakota Johnson

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Ryan Heller, Executive Vice President of Film & Documentary at Topic Studios, isn’t new to presenting a movie he produced at Cannes. Interestingly enough, this isn’t his inaugural time collaborating with director Michael Covino on a film either. Their earlier project together, “The Climb,” received the Heart Prize in Un Certain Regard at the festival back in 2019.

When Topic’s new film, “Splitsville” – an open marriage comedy featuring Dakota Johnson, Adria Arjona, Nicholas Braun, Covino, and its co-writer Kyle Marvin – premieres in Cannes’ Premiere section on May 19, it will be another significant milestone in a truly outstanding year for Heller. This achievement comes from someone who initially started his career in the entertainment industry as a guitarist with Aberdeen City, an indie rock band.

In January, two documentaries that Heller had produced (“It’s Never Over: Jeff Buckley” and “Folktales”) were met with tremendous acclaim when they debuted at the Sundance Film Festival. About two months later, Kieran Culkin won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in a film that Heller helped produce, titled “A Real Pain,” which was written, directed, and starred by Jesse Eisenberg.

Despite Heller enjoying a prosperous year, he’s not exempt from the industry-wide unrest, which has been intensified by President Trump. In fact, just before his discussion with EbMaster, Trump unexpectedly declared that he would impose a 100% tariff on all movies produced outside the U.S.

Productions are increasingly looking to shoot outside the U.S., where they can get cheaper labor as well rich incentives, and many are saying this is due, in part, to whatever wins IATSE and the Teamsters scored in their contract negotiations last summer. Have you noticed this trend? Is it affecting the way you choose your shooting locations?

It’s challenging to make sweeping assumptions about film production. Movie production costs can be steep, leading producers to seek funding opportunities globally. For instance, we’re currently filming Jesse Eisenberg’s upcoming musical comedy in New Jersey. We’ve also filmed “Theater Camp” and “Shortcomings” in New York. However, we don’t intentionally aim to film outside the U.S. The independent film industry is intricate with numerous international connections and incentives, and location choices are just one aspect of this complexity.

When you took “The Climb” to Cannes in 2019, you had no way of knowing that the COVID-19 pandemic would force the fest to cancel the following year. How has your professional world changed since then?

Emerging from the pandemic, the independent film industry was slower than anticipated to regain its momentum. The habit of casual moviegoing has changed significantly, with audiences preferring to attend films that offer a unique experience, feel like an event, or are best enjoyed in a communal setting. This shift has likely heightened our awareness of crafting our own movies as communal experiences or mini-events.

After the pandemic, independent films took longer to recover than expected. People now prefer watching movies that offer something special, are events, or require a group setting. This might make us more conscious about creating our films as unique events for audiences.

How did “Splitsville” happen? Obviously, you had a preexisting relationship with the filmmaker.

Our initial agreement was with Mike, Kyle, and their production company, Watch This Ready. We collaboratively created several screenplays, among them “Splitsville.” The creation of this script happened at a time when we felt we had the chance to bring the film to life by the end of 2024. Remarkably, it’s set to be released less than a year after we began shooting it last September, making it quite thrilling.

The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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2025-05-19 20:47