Though the title of the program may at first inspire a confused chuckle, the value of Stephen King’s Dollar Baby initiative cannot be understated. Created way back around 1977, the King of Horror created the policy after he found himself receiving numerous letters from student filmmakers requesting to adapt his short stories. Wanting to give back to the fans who had given him so much, King decided he would grant the right to young directors to make a film out of his work. All he requested in return was that he would maintain the rights to the story, the film could not be exhibited commercially without approval, and he would receive a tape of the finished movie. Oh, and it would cost the filmmakers exactly one dollar to obtain the one-time right.
Thus, the Dollar Babies were born.
Since then, dozens of these Dollar Babies have been born into the world. Some great. Some not. But all of them filmed with a passion and adoration for the King stories that shaped them. One of the earliest films to emerge from the program—an adaptation of The Woman in the Room—was even made by a filmmaker named Frank Darabont in 1983. Perhaps you’ve heard of him? He only went on to direct three features based on King’s work in The Mist, The Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption. The latter was nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Picture. No big deal.
An Evening of King’s Dollar Babies With the Academy
Recently, on a chilly Los Angeles night, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures held a screening of six Dollar Baby films hosted by producer Chris Donahue to honor the program that has imprinted dreams on film for decades. Among them were:
Disciples of the Crow (dir. John Woodward, 1983) – A feverish adaptation of King’s Children of the Corn with shades of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre.
Paranoid (dir. Jay Holben, 2000) – The rare adaptation of one of King’s poems about a woman who believes she is the target of a conspiracy. Riddled with quick cuts and shadowy imagery, it lives up to the title by instilling a bone-deep sense of paranoia.
If You Tell Your Dreams (dir. Yonatan Weinstein, 2013) – Based on King’s Harvey’s Dream about a man who tells his wife of a nightmare he had, only to see it come to frightening fruition. A film reflective of King’s ability to create dread during what’s an otherwise average conversation we have with our loved ones.
Popsy (dir. Jon Mann, 2019) – A simple yet satisfying tale in which a child predator abducts a kid, only to learn that the boy is watched over by a terrifying guardian.
Beachworld (dir. Jackie Perez, 2019) – A hallucinatory take on King’s story about astronauts stranded on a planet covered in sand.
Dedication (dir. Selena Sondermann, 2021) – King’s tale about the length a woman goes to for her child, with a stomach-churning scene that’ll have most gasping.
Together, these films made up a collection of Dollar Baby shorts from four different countries, three different languages, and spanning over four decades. In attendance were filmmakers Jon Mann, Jay Holben, Jackie Perez and Yonatan Weinstein. As we watched the films, all from unique voices and filmed in various styles, I found myself thinking, how incredible. That despite all that separates the films, the words of King had united people from all over the world. For one night, in that screening room, we were all that dear reader in awe of the magic of Stephen King.
I’d buy that for a dollar. Again, and again, and again.
The Generosity of King
Perhaps Donahue put it best during his introduction for the night when he said, “How cool is that, that king offered this work for a dollar to help out filmmakers? An author rarely shares their work basically for free. Even rarer that an author does not want artistic control over the final product. But for over forty years, Dollar Babies have been made on 35mm film with big budgets, and on borrowed video cameras with big dreams and no budgets. Some have been great, while others have never been finished. Yet because of King’s generosity, countless people have had the opportunity to create alongside one of our greatest storytellers.”
Once a young filmmaker myself, I cannot possibly overstate the gift that King granted to those seeking a career in film. One of the most difficult aspects of being a filmmaker is in getting someone to watch your work. Even more difficult than that? Coming up with a great story. King’s Dollar Babies have allowed budding directors to get their movies in front of a built-in audience. And with King’s captivating words in hand, these filmmakers have been allowed to place their full focus on developing their visual storytelling skills. How cool is that, indeed.
While my filmmaking days are behind me, I’m still kicking myself for not taking advantage of the program. Personally, I would’ve chosen The Jaunt. King’s story about a future that has developed instant teleportation—but with a heavy risk—has haunted me since I first read it in what I consider to be his greatest collection of short stories, Skeleton Crew. It’s just one of many short tales from King that has left readers in jaw-on-the-floor awe.
That’s why it makes my heart heavy to remind you, dear reader, that the Dollar Baby program is no longer with us.
The End of the Dollar Babies…Or Just the Beginning?
Said Donahue, “There is no exact count of how many dollar babies have been made. Some say it’s well into the hundreds. Tonight’s films offer a rare glimpse into this world. A glimpse that will become even rarer after Stephen King’s simple tweet in December of 2023 when he tweeted ‘Margaret, the mistress of the Dollar Babies, is retiring’. Referring to his assistant Margaret who had, for many years, managed the program. That, combined with the growing complexity of rights management, rang the death knell for the future of Dollar Babies.”
As they say, all good things must come to an end.
Rather than wallow in disappointment, let’s instead be grateful that the program ever existed at all. The beloved author didn’t have to create the Dollar Baby initiative. He didn’t need to offer the rights to his words for practically nothing. But he did. And that incredible generosity has allowed filmmakers all over the world to create nightmares out of dreams; To contribute something special to a collection of shorts that will live on the way King’s work will live on long past our time on this Earth. For some, like Darabont, the program created an opening into a career that allowed another talent to share his dreams with audiences. A chain of stories eternally linked together, inspiring new generations of filmmakers, new links, on and on and on into infinity. That’s the influence of King. That’s the magic of the Dollar Babies.
The program may have ended, but the impact of the Dollar Babies never will. As Donahue put it in his closing remarks, “Thanks to places like the Academy Museum, film festivals and a few underground collections, these Dollar Babies will serve as a reminder of the importance of having a great story, and as a reminder of the generosity of Stephen King.”
Thankee-sai to establishments like the Academy Museum who assure that these dreams never die. And to Mr. King, for inspiring us all to dream in the first place.
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