MAMGA: Make American Movies Great Again.
It might not roll off the tongue as easily as MAGA, but filmmaker Justine Bateman is calling on President Trump to help make it happen. Her proposal: Take a slice of the money the president and Elon Musk are cutting from the federal bureaucracy via the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and use it to finance a handful of feature films each year.
The new venture could be dubbed The American Film Fund, or TAFF, Bateman said. And the veteran director and producer, who first rose to fame while starring on “Family Ties” from 1982 to 1989, said she knows just the person to run TAFF –– herself. She raised the idea to TheWrap in an interview this week while discussing her upcoming Credo 23 Film Festival, which showcases movies that were created without artificial intelligence technology.
“Let’s start small — give me $100 million or $50 million, and I am going to get you five to seven fantastic, ‘Oh my God, America’s back’ kind of films,” Bateman said.
She argued it could be a great opportunity to jumpstart daring filmmaking after years of rehashed ideas, big-budget superhero flicks and uninspiring slop.
“I have never known the film business to be so completely out of touch with what is needed in society — with what they can supply society,” Bateman said. “I love the film business, and I love everybody who is called to it. But unfortunately, it’s been in the grips of a lot of fear for the last decade, for various reasons.”
Those reasons include concerns over what aggravated users will say on social media and the financial fear of keeping up with streamers like Netflix. She feels that has led to a lot of “box-checking films” being made that lack new and fresh viewpoints. That is a shame, because if America is going to be exporting culture, she said it needs to be top notch.
“Let’s be exporting that American spirit, because the American spirit is not fear. We have been exporting a lot of fear and timidity. Let’s get back to that rock n’ roll, get out of my way, cowboy [mindset],” she said. “There is really no other place on the planet like this.”
She noted that, while having the government involved in art may seem counterproductive, it has worked in the past elsewhere; Bateman pointed out the French New Wave movement, as well as great films from Eastern Europe, were financially backed by cultural funds.
Bateman’s idea comes as Musk has been spearheading the new DOGE effort for President Trump. The X owner has said several times in the past two months that his goal with DOGE is to cut at least $1 trillion in annual government spending — or about 15% of the yearly budget.
Musk, who is the chief executive of Tesla and SpaceX, has been the target of criticism from many left-leaning Americans and politicians of late for his work with the initiative. Notably, Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who called Musk “not smart” and “morally vacant” for his push to cut government jobs and spending.
Bateman said that President Trump, who has a background in entertainment between “The Apprentice” and his countless movie and late night appearances, is well-suited to launch TAFF. But the fund would be apolitical and able to thrive under both Republican and Democratic presidencies, she said.
What kind of films would she like to see backed? All types of films would be embraced, Bateman said, but focusing on funny movies would be worthwhile, since there has been a dearth of popular comedies in recent years. Original ideas akin to Sean Baker’s “Anora,” which just won Best Picture at the Oscars, would be TAFF targets as well, ideally, she said.
