JULY 2010
 | Even after 30 years involvement with the Institute, and two years as Chair of the Sundance Institute Utah Advisory Board, I am still amazed by the impact the Sundance Film Festival has on this state--in 2010, the Festival generated $62.7 million for Utah and supported over 1,500 jobs, according to the annual study released in June by the University of Utah. More impressive, this is only a part of the Institute's impact, which extends to programs fostering artists and connecting with audiences year-round, like the East Africa Theatre Lab taking place right now off the coast of Kenya. At the end of August, I will step down as Chair of the Utah Advisory Board and make way for Margaret Jacobs to take over the reigns. I have been blessed with the opportunity to work with the wonderful staff and volunteers of Sundance over three decades and hope to continue my relationship with the Institute for many years to come! |
FROM UTAH TO KENYA:
THE 2010 SUNDANCE INSTITUTE LABS
We've been very busy since the Festival, traveling all over the country and the world with programs designed to foster independence, discovery, and new voices in film, music, and theatre. With gatherings of emerging artists in the realms of documentary, feature, Native American film, film music, and theatre, everywhere from Utah to Kenya, we know it's hard to keep track of all we do. Here are links to more info and photos from the 2010 Sundance Institute Labs...we hope they give you a sense of what we've been up to this year!
East Africa Theatre Lab
July 9-29 on the island of Manda off the coast of Kenya
Learn more by visiting the East Africa Theatre Lab blog or by reading the press release.
Theatre Lab at MASS MoCA
March 28 - April 11 in North Adams, Massachusetts
Click here to learn about the Theatre Lab at MASS MoCA.
Native American and Indigenous Film Program Lab
May 24-28 on the Mescalero Apache Reservation in New Mexico
Click here to read about our four Native Lab fellows and their projects.
Theatre Lab on Governors Island
June 1-12 in New York
Click here to learn about the Theatre Lab on Governors Island.
Directors and Screenwriters Labs
June 1-25 in Sundance, Utah
Click here to learn about the 2010 June Directors and Screenwriters Labs.
Documentary Edit and Story Lab
June 19-27 in Sundance, Utah
Click here to learn about the Documentary Edit and Story Lab.
Composers Lab: Documentary Film
June 27-July 2 in Sundance, Utah
Click here to learn about the Film Composer and Documentary Lab.
HELP US PRESERVE INDEPENDENT FILM:
JOIN THE COLLECTOR'S CIRCLE
Despite their historical, artistic, and cultural value, good prints of far too many indie films - even some made within the past decade - no longer exist! To create a living record of the history of independent film, Sundance Institute and UCLA Film and Television Archive initiated the Sundance Collection at UCLA in 1997. The Collection's holdings have since grown to include 600 film prints from the Festival and the Sundance Institute Labs including sex, lies and videotape, Reservoir Dogs, The Living End, Smoke Signals, Amores Perros, Love & Basketball, and Welcome to the Dollhouse. 
You can help us continue to expand this library of important films as a member of the newly formed Collector's Circle. In collaboration with John Nein, Sundance Institute senior programmer in charge of the Collection, we have created a new level of the Patron Circle that will participate directly in the selection process of films to be preserved by the Sundance Institute Collection at UCLA. As a member of the Collector's Circle with an annual contribution of $10,000, you will help us choose which films will be added to the Collection each year. You'll also be invited to a special "From the Archive" Festival screening and private reception and, of course, continue to get all the VIP Festival access we offer our valued Patron Circle members!
Please contact Hathaway Jakobsen at (310) 492-2321 or hathaway_jakobsen@sundance.org to join this important group of supporters.
PROGRAMMER PICKS 
John Nein, senior programmer of the Sundance Film Festival, shares his favorite films from the Sundance Institute Collection at UCLA and what films he hopes we can soon add to the Collection. Read our article on the Collector's Circle above to see how you can help make this happen!
Five Great Films from the Sundance Institute Collection at UCLA
1. High Art (1998)
Lisa Cholodenko's beautifully-realized first feature is a subtle reflection on love and art with Radha Mitchell, Patty Clarkson, and Spirit Award winner Ally Sheedy.
2. The Station Agent (2003)
An actor for many years, Tom McCarthy's first film won the Festival's Audience Award and is a touching and funny story of three lonely souls coming together.
3. In the Company of Men (1997)
Bursting into film with his deviously stylized story of love and misogyny, Neil LaBute went on to make Your Friends & Neighbors and Shape of Things, among others.
4. Chameleon Street (1990)
Wendell Harris' Grand Jury Prize winner is a rarely-seen, but intelligent, layered, and funny story of a disenfranchised black man who cons his way to notoriety.
5. Next Stop, Wonderland (1998)
A thoughtful, smartly-constructed romantic comedy from Brad Anderson featuring Hope Davis, Adam Gelfant, and Philip Seymour Hoffman in early roles.
Five Great Films not yet in the Collection
1. You Can Count on Me (2000)
Already a successful playwright, Kenneth Lonergan turned to filmmaking with this deeply-observant character piece about estranged siblings, which won a Grand Jury Prize.
2. Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001)
John Cameron Mitchell's breathtakingly original film went through Sundance's Feature Film Program on its way to a Festival Audience Award.
3. Hoop Dreams (1994) One of the most unforgettably and moving documentaries in the Festival's history, Steve James' portrait of two teenage basketball players struggling to pursue their dreams won an Audience Award.
4. All the Real Girls (2003) David Gordon Green's second film employs a beautiful, lyrical naturalism to tell this small-town love story with Paul Schneider and Zooey Deschanel.
5. The Living Museum (1999) Academy Award-winning documentary filmmaker Jessica Yu moves past a state mental health facility and into the vibrant, expressive realm of an art class created for patients.
Do you want to help preserve one of these classic indie films in the Sundance Institute Collection at UCLA? Please contact Hathaway Jakobsen at (310) 492-2321 or hathaway_jakobsen@sundance.org for more information.
CONTACT US
Please feel free to contact us should you have any questions about the Patron Circle or ideas that may help us improve the program! Call Jamie Lattman, Manager of the Patron Circle, at (310) 492-2327 or email her at jamie_lattman@sundance.org. Copyright © 2010 All rights reserved.
RENEW/JOIN/GIVE
Renew your Patron Circle Membership
Join the Patron Circle
Make a Gift
BE PART OF HISTORY:
JOIN LIFE IN A DAY WITH YOUTUBE
What does your Life in a Day look like? Everyone has a story. Every day has a story. And we want you to share your story with the world. Get your cameras ready.
Sundance Institute joins YouTube and filmmakers Kevin Macdonald and Ridley Scott to create the first-ever user-generated film shot in a single day.
Film your own Life in a Day on July 24 and submit your footage by July 31 here. If your footage is selected for the completed film, you'll get the chance to attend the premiere at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival. Be part of cinematic history!
Visit www.youtube.com/lifeinaday for the full details.
UPCOMING EVENTS
July 21 in Salt Lake City, Utah
Sundance Institute Film Series screening of Once at Red Butte Garden Amphitheatre at 9:00 p.m.
July 31 in Los Angeles, California
Sundance Institute presents ShortsLab: L.A., an all-day educational workshop followed by a screening at the Downtown Independent Theater. Click here to purchase tickets!
August 6 in Park City, Utah
Sundance Institute Film Series screening of Mary and Max at City Park at 9:00 p.m. on the Opening Night of the 41st Park City Kimball Arts Festival.
August 18 in Santa Fe, New Mexico
The Sundance Institute Native Program and the Southwestern Association for Indian Arts will host a public screening of Bran Nue Dae at The Lensic Performing Arts Center at 8:30 p.m.
August 25 in Salt Lake City, Utah
Sundance Institute Film Series screening of Motorcycle Diaries at Red Butte Garden Amphitheatre at 9:00 p.m.
October 6 in Los Angeles, California
Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program "Work In Progress" screening of featured scenes from Cesar's Last Fast, a moving account of the final days of Cesar Chavez, at the Hammer Museum at 9:00 p.m.
January 20 in Park City, Utah
Save the date for the 2011 An Artist at the Table, the Festival's premier opening night celebration. Click here to reserve your tickets!
NOW PLAYING
Jonah Hill, Marisa Tomei and John C. Reilly in the film Cyrus, a 2010 Festival Premiere
8: THE MORMON PROPOSITION
CYRUS
I AM LOVE
JOAN RIVERS: A PIECE OF WORK
THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
THE KILLER INSIDE ME
PLEASE GIVE
RESTREPO
SPLICE
WINTER'S BONE
COMING SOON
ANIMAL KINGDOM (August 13)
BURIED (September 24)
CATFISH (September 17)
COUNTDOWN TO ZERO (July 23)
THE DRY LAND (July 30)
ENTER THE VOID (September)
THE EXTRA MAN (July 30)
GET LOW (July 30)
HOWL (September 24)
I LOVE YOU PHILLIP MORRIS (July 30)
JACK GOES BOATING (September 17)
NOWHERE BOY (October 8)
THE TILLMAN STORY (August 20)
TWELVE (July 30)
WAITING FOR SUPERMAN (September 24)
A TRIBUTE TO HARVEY PEKAR (1939-2010)
In honor of Harvey Pekar, we've resurrected a very special comic series by the veteran comic writer. After the 2003 Festival premiere of American Splendor, Pekar returned to Sundance to tell the film's story with an original comic. See it here.
JOE BERLINGER VS. CHEVRON:
WHY WE MUST ALL DEFEND INDEPENDENT FILMMAKING
By ROBERT REDFORD
I have devoted a significant part of my life's work in support of the independent artist -- independent referring not to the size of a project, its funding, or subject matter; rather, to the singular vision and voice of that artist. I founded Sundance Institute 30 years ago out of the belief that it is vital to ensure that the artist's voice remains vibrant, valued, and heard in civil society at large. It is with this in mind that I ask you to join me in bringing wider attention and broader support to a critically important case currently in play in U.S. courts.
On May 6, 2010, Judge Lewis A. Kaplan ordered filmmaker Joe Berlinger to turn over to Chevron Corporation all raw footage -- some 600 hours -- from the making of his documentary, Crude: The Real Price of Oil. Chevron has sued to use this footage to bolster its legal proceedings in the very same case that is the central subject of Berlinger's film. The potential ramifications of this for the journalist community, film world, and society in general are both shocking and profound.
His stellar career includes such landmark documentaries as Brothers Keeper, Paradise Lost andMetallica: Some Kind of Monster, all of which premiered at our Festival. But even if there were not these connections, I would strongly call for his support. Here's why.
Continue reading this article on The Huffington Post.
