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Indie HDR availability: September 2026 audit

This supports the Distribution Deliverables chapter. Checked 7 September 2026. These are catalog and documentation checks, not playback tests or access to the productions' finishing records.

Scope and result

The sample contains 12 films with reported production budgets below US$5 million and US commercial releases between 7 September 2021 and 7 September 2026. Festival premieres and copyright years may be earlier. The selection combines the entire five-film 2024 John Cassavetes Award nominee cohort with seven films whose budgets were publicly reported. The cohort's eligibility ceiling was US$1 million.1

Four of twelve (33.3%) have a verified HDR edition in the sources below. The other eight are unconfirmed, not proven HDR-free. The denominator includes all twelve, including unresolved availability. This is a minimum confirmed share of this convenience sample. It is not a random sample of independent film, and successful horror and award-selected films are overrepresented. It would be misleading to say “one third of all indie films receive HDR.”

Budget figures are reported production costs, not audited accounts or distribution expenditure. An HDR edition can be commissioned after acquisition, differ by territory, or coexist with SDR releases. None of these listings establishes who paid for HDR, when it was graded, or whether it earned back its cost. No future preorder was counted as an available edition.

Film-by-film check

Film (US commercial release year) Budget evidence Edition checked and HDR finding
Mass (2021) US$300,000, producer interview2 Apple US listing: HD; HDR not confirmed8
The Artifice Girl (2023) Below US$1 million, Cassavetes eligibility1 Apple US listing: HD; HDR not confirmed9
Cadejo Blanco (2023) Below US$1 million, Cassavetes eligibility1 Apple US listing: HD; HDR not confirmed10
Fremont (2023) Below US$1 million, Cassavetes eligibility1 Apple US listing: HD; HDR not confirmed11
Rotting in the Sun (2023) Below US$1 million, Cassavetes eligibility1 MUBI US listing; no verified HDR designation12
The Unknown Country (2023) Below US$1 million, Cassavetes eligibility1 Apple US listing: HD; HDR not confirmed13
Skinamarink (2023) Approximately C$15,000, filmmaker profile3 Apple US listing: HD; HDR not confirmed14
Terrifier 2 (2022) US$250,000, distributor executive interview4 HDR confirmed: Australian Umbrella UHD Blu-ray, Dolby Vision15
Terrifier 3 (2024) US$2 million reported in the same interview4 HDR confirmed: Australian Umbrella UHD Blu-ray, Dolby Vision16
Talk to Me (2023) US$4.5 million reported in an interview feature5 HDR confirmed: Australian Umbrella UHD Blu-ray, Dolby Vision17
Presence (2025) US$2 million, screenwriter interview6 HDR confirmed: Apple US listing displays HDR10+ badge18
The Last Stop in Yuma County (2024) US$1 million, filmmaker interview7 UK Arrow Blu-ray: 1080p; HDR not confirmed19

The Apple checks include the public page's accessibility labels for format badges. A text-only search excerpt can omit those badges. “HD” describes the checked listing, not every edition in every country. A 4K label alone was not counted as HDR. Targeted title searches were also checked for HDR and UHD editions, but absence from search is not evidence of global absence.

Streaming and TVOD outlets

This is a 13-outlet check, primarily of US-facing offerings, not a census of every service. Apple's subscription service and store count as one ecosystem; Google TV/YouTube movie purchases count as one. Prime Video includes its subscription and rental/purchase routes. Channel add-ons are not counted again as separate outlets.

Ten of thirteen document HDR film or television offerings (77%). Tubi additionally documents HDR-related support for a special live event: counting documented HDR use of any kind gives eleven of thirteen (85%), but does not establish an ongoing HDR movie catalog on Tubi. The other two are unresolved for HDR in the official guidance checked, not asserted incapable. These percentages describe this outlet list, not audience share or the fraction of titles in HDR.

Outlet Finding Important limit
Netflix HDR documented20 Selected titles; subscription and device requirements
Prime Video HDR documented21 Title, territory, device, and entitlement vary
Apple TV subscription / Store HDR documented2221 A store title can have different availability from a subscription listing
Disney+ HDR documented23 Device, plan, and territory restrictions apply
HBO Max HDR documented24 Selected titles and eligible plan/devices
Hulu HDR documented21 Selected titles and compatible playback
Paramount+ HDR documented25 Selected titles and eligible plan/devices
Peacock HDR documented26 Content and device support vary
Fandango at Home HDR documented27 Selected rentals/purchases and compatible devices
Google TV / YouTube Movies HDR documented28 Purchased/rented title and playback device must support it
Tubi Special-event HDR use documented; movie HDR catalog not confirmed29 Super Bowl LIX guidance is not a feature-film delivery policy
Shudder HDR not confirmed; official guide says most content is 1080p30 HD resolution alone does not settle dynamic range
MUBI HDR not confirmed; official guide promises HD/4K when available31 4K does not imply HDR

The practical conclusion is narrower than “HDR is standard everywhere”: many potential outlets can distribute it, but that does not make it mandatory for a small acquired film. Obtain the buyer's actual requirement and price the work against the film's creative and commercial plan.

Sources

  1. Film Independent, “These Are the 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards Nominees,” “John Cassavetes Award.” ↩↩↩↩↩↩

  2. Filmmakers Academy, “The Producers of MASS Film,” interview with J. P. Ouellette and Dylan Matlock, 17 February 2022. ↩

  3. NAIT, filmmaker Kyle Edward Ball profile, techlifetoday, 2024. ↩

  4. Jeremy Fuster, “‘Terrifier 3’ Box Office Success Explained,” interview with Chris McGurk, TheWrap, 2024. ↩↩

  5. Kevin Polowy, “‘Talk to Me’ Directors Explain the Horror Hit's Shocking Ending,” Yahoo Entertainment, 2023. Reported budget: $4.5 million. ↩

  6. Motion Picture Association, “‘Presence’ Screenwriter David Koepp on Writing a Ghost Story Told by the Ghost,” 2025. ↩

  7. Starburst, “Francis Galluppi and Jim Cummings: The Last Stop in Yuma County,” budget discussion. ↩

  8. Apple, Mass, US listing, format badges. ↩

  9. Apple, The Artifice Girl, US listing, format badges. ↩

  10. Apple, Cadejo Blanco, US listing, format badges. ↩

  11. Apple, Fremont, US listing, format badges. ↩

  12. MUBI, Rotting in the Sun, US listing. ↩

  13. Apple, The Unknown Country, US listing, format badges. ↩

  14. Apple, Skinamarink, US listing, format badges. ↩

  15. Umbrella Entertainment, Terrifier 2 (2022) Dolby Vision 4K, technical specifications and release date. ↩

  16. Umbrella Entertainment, Terrifier 3 (2024) 4K, technical specifications. ↩

  17. Umbrella Entertainment, Talk to Me 4K UHD, technical specifications. ↩

  18. Apple, Presence, US listing, HDR10+ accessibility badge. ↩

  19. Arrow Films, The Last Stop in Yuma County Blu-ray, “Product Features.” ↩

  20. Netflix, “How to Get the Best Video Quality,” HDR guidance. ↩

  21. HDR10+ Technologies, Latest Developments Concerning Compatible Content, Devices and Services, 8 January 2025, p. 2, “Major Streaming Platforms.” ↩↩↩

  22. Apple, “Find Movies with 4K, HDR, Dolby Vision, or Dolby Atmos in the Apple TV App,” format and device requirements. ↩

  23. Disney+, “Video Quality on Disney+,” 20 March 2026, HDR formats and device support. ↩

  24. HBO Max, “Watch HBO Max in 4K UHD & HDR10 or Dolby Vision,” supported formats and plans. ↩

  25. Paramount+, plan descriptions, Premium format footnote. ↩

  26. Dolby Laboratories, Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026, 6 January 2026, pp. 1–2, Peacock integration. ↩

  27. Fandango, “Fandango UHD: 4K, Dolby Vision, Dolby Atmos,” HDR10 and Dolby Vision support. ↩

  28. Google, “Watch HD, 4K UHD, HDR and 3D Videos,” Google TV Help. ↩

  29. Tubi, “Super Bowl LIX on Tubi,” 4K supported-device and dynamic-range troubleshooting guidance. Some locations redirect this page to a regional availability notice; the indexed official article includes HDR troubleshooting. This is historical event evidence, not a current film-catalog claim. ↩

  30. Shudder, “What Resolutions Are Titles Available In?” resolution guidance. ↩

  31. MUBI, “Are Movies Available to Watch in HD and 4K?” updated 13 May 2026. ↩