Sundance Institute Announces 2009 George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation Directors Lab Fellow Andrew Okpeaha MacLean Selected for His Project About Friendship, Murder, and Turmoil in the Arctic
Park City, UT– Sundance Institute announced today that Andrew Okpeaha MacLean, with his distinctive project, On the Ice, will be the 2009 George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation Directors Lab Fellow. MacLean is attending the 2009 Sundance Institute June Directors Lab at the Sundance Resort, June 11 – 26, 2009.
The George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation has provided significant funding over the past two decades for the Sundance Institute’s Feature Film and Theatre Programs. The Foundation’s support has enabled theatre and filmmaking fellows to nurture their independent vision and expand their storytelling skills at the Institute’s summer labs. Located in the shadows of Mount Timpanogos, the Labs draw on the transformative atmosphere of Utah’s Wasatch Mountains to support emerging artists and give them room to take risks and push boundaries.
Last year, Darci Piccoult was named the first George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation Theatre Lab Fellow for her compelling Lil’s 90th, a play that celebrates life while exploring the vulnerability of the elderly. After receiving mentorship and guidance last summer, Lil’s 90th is currently in production at Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, Connecticut.
Over the course of the Labs, Andrew Okpeaha MacLean will work with a group of Creative Advisors on shooting, editing, and writing key scenes from his script, On the Ice. A feature film about two Iñuit boys who try to get away with murder, On the Ice is a project based on MacLean’s short film, Sikumi (On the Ice). The first film ever made entirely in the Iñupiaq language, Sikumi premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Jury Prize in Short Filmmaking and went on to win awards at other festivals around the world. Born and raised in Alaska, MacLean is a recipient of a United States Artists Rasmuson Fellowship, the John H. Johnson Film Award, and the 2007-2008 Riese Award, among other honors. MacLean holds his MFA in film directing from NYU.
Founded by Robert Redford in 1981, Sundance Institute is a not-for-profit organization that fosters the development of original storytelling in film and theatre, and presents the annual Sundance Film Festival. Internationally recognized for its artistic development programs for directors, screenwriters, producers, film composers, playwrights and theatre artists, Sundance Institute has nurtured such projects as Angels in America, Spring Awakening, Boys Don’t Cry and Born into Brothels.
The George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation is dedicated to serving the people of the State of Utah by carrying forth the philanthropic interests and goals of its founders. The Foundation supports projects and programs that have the potential to make a significant difference in bettering Utah’s communities and enriching the quality of life of its citizens.
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