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“The Python Hunt” is that rare case where an indie film easily raises financing, grabs upbeat response from audiences and critics at a film festival, wins a prize, and launches multiple sales bids. After a rousing response at the big Alamo Drafthouse Lamar screening at SXSW, this colorful, populist portrait of a swath of python hunters — and by extension, America — could hit a commercial nerve.

Here’s how the filmmakers did it.

Work with your friends.

Filmmaker Lance Oppenheim brought an idea to his old Florida buddy Xander Robin (“Are We Not Cats”). They had been trying to make a movie together for years, and Robin had labored on his own film about the pet trade in the Florida Everglades that never got off the ground. The concept: cover the annual Python Challenge, a competition that pays $10,000 to the one hunter in 1,000 who brings in the most Burmese snakes, which...

“Fries! The Movie,” a documentary created by Anthony Bourdain’s Emmy-award-winning production company Zero Point Zero and Chrissy Teigen’s Huntley Productions banner, will debut on Peacock in the U.S. tomorrow, Aug. 10.

The movie, which premiered earlier in the year at the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival, is described as a lively exploration of what makes fries so ubiquitous and beloved throughout the world. The documentary scours the globe uncovering local flavors and untold stories from well-known chefs, celebrities, food scientists and farmers, along with an eclectic mix of fry aficionados from all walks of life.

Celebrities in the culinary landscape and beyond are featured throughout the documentary, including Teigen, in which she shares her fanatical love for the fried potato side dish. Other well-known participants include best-selling author and host of the hit podcast “Revisionist History” Malcolm Gladwell, world-renowned Michelin Star chef Eric Riper and founder and president of the...

Chrissy Teigen is hitting the big screen, signed on to produce a documentary about French fries, called “Fries! The Movie.”

The documentary dives into the reasoning behind the universal love for fried potatoes and will include appearances by Teigen, best-selling author and podcast host Malcolm Gladwell, chef Eric Ripert and founder and president of the Museum of Food and Drink Dave Arnold. The film, produced by Teigen’s Suit & Thai Productions company, will follow chefs, celebrities, farmers, food scientists and more as they tap into the stories and flavors behind the French fry.

“I always knew my love of fries and years of experience in the field were meant to serve a higher purpose. Thrilled to work alongside this incredible team and share our findings,” said Teigen in a statement.

Zero Point Zero Productions’ co-founders Christopher Collins and Lydia Tenaglia are also producing the documentary with Unilever Entertainment’s Kelly Mullen,...