Are Film Festivals Indie-Friendly Any More?

With Sundance behind us and Tribeca, Toronto and Cannes approaching quickly, we're entering the heart of film festival season. Time was, film festivals were a venue for independent filmmakers to show off their chops to an audience of professionals -- a chance to bring their work mainstream and find a modicum of success in such a brutal industry.

But for the past several years, this year being no exception, the buzz has all been focused on mainstream stars. At Sundance the big draws were Michel Gondry's Be Kind Rewind, which needed no further publicity given Gondry's credentials and the film's billing, and In Bruges, driven by A-listers Colin Farrel and Brendan Gleeson. At AFI Dallas much attention has been paid to Josh Brolin, the No Country for Old Men star whose short film X also played at South by Southwest. Even high-profile festivals like Cannes now tout the premieres of blockbusters like Indiana Jones in their lineup.

Do you think film festivals have become too Hollywood, or are they still accessible to independent filmmakers? Are festivals still valuable in showcasing independent films?