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Sundance Institute Announces Films In Competition and NEXT for 2016 Sundance Film Festival
Park City, UT — Offering a first look at the year ahead in independent film, culture and new ideas, Sundance Institute announced today the 65 films selected for the U.S. Competition, World Competition and out-of-competition NEXT category set to premiere at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, January 21-31 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden and Sundance, Utah.
Breaking Down the 2016 Sundance Film Festival Competition Program
Editor’s Note: In light of today’s terrible and developing news of yet another mass shooting, this time in San Bernardino, CA, our thoughts are with the victims and their families and the San Bernardino community. We are reminded of the ways that independent film can add insight and nuance that help us understand people and situations unknown. Our selections this year include a few films related to gun violence in America, and it is our hope — more than ever — that these films will lead to greater awareness of this issue and amplify the need for change.
Throw Yourself Off Balance: Tips from Joan Tewkesbury on Building Characters in Your Screenplay
The morning of the Sundance Institute Detroit Screenwriters Intensive, 13 writers, including myself, gathered at the University of Michigan’s Detroit outreach office.
We came with anticipation, nervousness, and curiosity as to how the day’s events would unfold. As we nervously nibbled at the breakfast buffet and shyly introduced ourselves over coffee the same thought undoubtedly ran through many of our minds: How did I get here?
I never imagined I would ever attend a Sundance workshop, much less one held in Detroit.
From a Tree Stand to Sundance: How ‘Christmas, Again’ Is Thinking Creatively About Distribution
From day one, there wasn’t much about the making of Christmas, Again that you could describe as “traditional.” So when it came to releasing the film, it only felt natural to explore the less “traditional” routes. I use “traditional” in quotes because in 2015 I can safely say that nontraditional strategies are the new norm, if not the only viable option for any film, big or small (we’ve seen quite a few high-profile, big-budget “traditional” releases tank this year).
Spirit Awards: ‘Tangerine,’ ‘Diary of a Teenage Girl,’ ‘It Follows’ Lead Sundance-Supported Noms
Filmmaker Sean Baker has garnered applause and accolades year-round since premiering Tangerine, his “like-nothing-you’ve-ever-seen” film that channels relentless candor and realism in a refreshingly honest portrayal of transgender sex workers in Los Angeles. To kick off awards season, the film and its team received four Film Independent Spirit Awards nominations in an announcement that also saw Sundance favorites The Diary of a Teenage Girl and It Follows make plenty of noise. Below, we take a look at all of the Sundance-supported films and filmmakers nominated for the 31st Film Independent Spirit Awards.
Sundance Institute Announces First Nine Films for 2016 Sundance Film Festival
Park City, UT — Adrenaline junkies and genre film-lovers know the real fun at the Sundance Film Festival starts at midnight. Sundance Institute tonight offers a first look at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival by announcing the nine feature films that will screen in its iconic Midnight section, which has launched films including The Blair Witch Project, SAW, Super Troopers, The Babadook, Black Dynamite, What We Do In The Shadows, Dead/Alive, Delicatessen, The Descent and Hard Candy. Explore this year’s nine Midnight films — seven of which feature badass leading ladies — in more detail on the Festival’s Digital Program Guide.
Portraits of the Artist as a Young Woman: Saoirse Ronan Leaves Her Precocious Childhood Behind
Saoirse Ronan is ready for the second act of her career. Over a decade after first appearing on Irish television, and eight years after her take-notice performance in Atonement garnered Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations, Ronan is already a veteran movie actress. Yet somehow she’s also just 21 years old.
Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program Announces Projects Selected for 2015 Support
Thirty-three independent documentary films have been selected for Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program support in 2015, with grantees including original voices from around the world.
The Sundance Documentary Fund moved to a limited rolling open call in 2015, encouraging filmmakers to submit applications only when they feel their film is ready to share. Rahdi Taylor, Film Fund Director, said, “This past year was one of experimentation and change.
Christopher Abbott Melds Arrogance and Empathy in ‘James White’
For all the autobiographical narratives, in-depth profiles, and passion projects at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, James White may have been the most intimate film at Park City. From first scene to last, wherever James White (Christopher Abbott) goes, the camera follows, and closely. Whether he’s wandering through a crowded New York club, getting into a bar fight, bombing at a job interview, navigating his deceased father’s Shiva, or tending to his ailing mother (Cynthia Nixon), we’re right there to read his face, register his desperation or confusion, and ride his emotional rollercoaster.
Calling All Producers: 5 Reasons to Apply to the Creative Producing Lab & Fellowship
We’re thrilled to announce our call for submissions for the 2016 Creative Producing Lab & Fellowship. This marks the beginning of our eighth year of the program, which has supported 47 producers, 41 films (17 completed), and many awards spread among them. Although stats can be helpful markers of success, we want to recognize how our Labs can serve as incubators for the artist eager to learn, grow their career, and be part of a community.
Filmmaker Havana Marking Receives Sundance Institute and TED Award for Documentary on Corruption in Ukrainian Gov’t
Los Angeles, CA — The second Sundance Institute | TED Prize Filmmaker Award, including a $125,000 grant, has been awarded to Havana Marking for her short documentary Bloody Money about corruption in the Ukrainian government — featuring the work of TED Prize winner Charmian Gooch of Global Witness whose TED Wish was to end anonymous shell companies.
Bloody Money, currently in production, is a financial thriller that follows an extraordinary story from Kiev to London to Washington, D.C.
How a Convening in Utah Can Spark Ecological Change 8,000 Miles Away
Three-and-a-half days in the mountains of Utah exploring big ideas with documentary filmmakers and change-makers I deeply respect. What could be better?
I was there as a Storytelling Fellow at the Sundance Institute | Skoll Foundation Stories of Change Convening, a three-day immersive storytelling workshop focused on introducing Skoll Foundation-Awarded Social Entrepreneurs (SASEs) to effective storytelling strategies. This was my introduction to the program, but I soon realized this moment was giving shape and definition to something I have been engaged with since my first film.
6 Sundance Films to Watch for Native American Heritage Month
In 1990, November was officially recognized as National American Indian Heritage Month. The years since have proven to be both a political and artistic resurgence for Native Peoples. From the early support of Greg Sarris’s (Coast Miwok) Grand Avenue at Sundance Institute’s 1992 June Screenwriters Lab to the premiere of Chris Eyre’s (Cheyenne/Arapaho) Smoke Signals in 1998, supporting and celebrating Indigenous creativity has been a longtime mission of Sundance Institute.
Meet the 2015-2016 Women at Sundance Fellows and Their Mentors
Sundance Institute is delighted to introduce our six new Women at Sundance Fellows, a diverse group of filmmakers working as producers and directors in the documentary and narrative fields. Though they are at various stages in their careers, all are actively attempting to fulfill their potential and create sustainable careers in a highly competitive environment.
The Fellowship Program matches women filmmakers from Sundance Institute’s acclaimed programs with industry leaders and decision makers for a yearlong, individualized fellowship program.
Sundance Institute And Jaunt Studios Launch Sundance Institute New Frontier | Jaunt Vr Residency
Los Angeles, CA – Sundance Institute and Jaunt Studios announced today their collaboration to launch a groundbreaking cinematic virtual reality residency program designed to empower artists on the cutting edge of storytelling. The first artist selected to participate in the six-month Sundance Institute New Frontier | Jaunt VR Residency Program is Lynette Wallworth, and three additional artists will be selected to participate in the coming months. Through this collaboration, Sundance Institute’s New Frontier program will continue a long tradition of cultivating new voices and innovative stories from the independent storytelling community, with Jaunt providing resident artists with the most advanced resources in cinematic virtual reality production.