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“Fairyland” Delves Deeply Into the Tragedy of the AIDS Crisis
From left, Scoot McNairy, Andrew Durham, Nessa Dougherty, and Emilia Jones attend the premiere of “Fairyland” at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Photo by Jemal

Nonfiction Films Ensure That We Are Seen and Our Stories Told
By Kristin Feeley (In my sleep I dreamed this poem)Someone I loved once gave mea box full of darkness.It took me years to understandthat this,

“If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” Immerses You in the High Stakes of Emotional Burnout
Conan O’Brien and Rose Byrne (photo by Andrew H. Walker / Shutterstock for Sundance FIlm Festival) By Bailey Pennick “This is the first time that

Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Geeta Gandbhir, the Filmmaker Behind “The Perfect Neighbor”
By Lucy Spicer One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival is having a front-row seat for the bright future of independent

Screenwriter Tory Kamen on the Confidence Sundance Institute Gave Her, “Eleanor the Great,” and More
By Bailey Pennick Growing up in New York City, Tory Kamen wasn’t sure what line of work she wanted to get into, but she knew

“The Alabama Solution” Is Required Viewing
Charlotte Kaufman and Andrew Jarecki at the premiere of The Alabama Solution (photo by Michael Hurcomb / Shutterstock for Sundance Film Festival) By Bailey Pennick
The Latest

“Fairyland” Delves Deeply Into the Tragedy of the AIDS Crisis
From left, Scoot McNairy, Andrew Durham, Nessa Dougherty, and Emilia Jones attend the premiere of “Fairyland” at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Photo by Jemal

Nonfiction Films Ensure That We Are Seen and Our Stories Told
By Kristin Feeley (In my sleep I dreamed this poem)Someone I loved once gave mea box full of darkness.It took me years to understandthat this,

“If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” Immerses You in the High Stakes of Emotional Burnout
Conan O’Brien and Rose Byrne (photo by Andrew H. Walker / Shutterstock for Sundance FIlm Festival) By Bailey Pennick “This is the first time that
Festival

“Fairyland” Delves Deeply Into the Tragedy of the AIDS Crisis
From left, Scoot McNairy, Andrew Durham, Nessa Dougherty, and Emilia Jones attend the premiere of “Fairyland” at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Photo by Jemal

“If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” Immerses You in the High Stakes of Emotional Burnout
Conan O’Brien and Rose Byrne (photo by Andrew H. Walker / Shutterstock for Sundance FIlm Festival) By Bailey Pennick “This is the first time that

Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Geeta Gandbhir, the Filmmaker Behind “The Perfect Neighbor”
By Lucy Spicer One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival is having a front-row seat for the bright future of independent
Festival Highlights
News

“Fairyland” Delves Deeply Into the Tragedy of the AIDS Crisis
From left, Scoot McNairy, Andrew Durham, Nessa Dougherty, and Emilia Jones attend the premiere of “Fairyland” at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Photo by Jemal

Nonfiction Films Ensure That We Are Seen and Our Stories Told
By Kristin Feeley (In my sleep I dreamed this poem)Someone I loved once gave mea box full of darkness.It took me years to understandthat this,

“If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” Immerses You in the High Stakes of Emotional Burnout
Conan O’Brien and Rose Byrne (photo by Andrew H. Walker / Shutterstock for Sundance FIlm Festival) By Bailey Pennick “This is the first time that
Artist Spotlight

Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Mathias Broe, the Director Behind “Sauna”
By Jessica Herndon One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival is having a front-row seat for the bright future of independent

Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Shoshannah Stern, the Director of “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore”
By Jessica Herndon One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival is having a front-row seat for the bright future of independent

Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Astrid Rondero and Fernanda Valadez, the Co-Directors of “Sujo”
By Jessica Herndon One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival is having a front-row seat for the bright future of independent
From the Labs

Nonfiction Films Ensure That We Are Seen and Our Stories Told
By Kristin Feeley (In my sleep I dreamed this poem)Someone I loved once gave mea box full of darkness.It took me years to understandthat this,

Screenwriter Tory Kamen on the Confidence Sundance Institute Gave Her, “Eleanor the Great,” and More
By Bailey Pennick Growing up in New York City, Tory Kamen wasn’t sure what line of work she wanted to get into, but she knew

Directors Lab at 45: Sterlin Harjo Thinks Back to Gaining a Seat at the Table During the 2004 Lab
Director Sterlin Harjo and creative advisor Mike White at the 2004 Screenwriters Lab. By Jessica Herndon As the Sundance Institute Directors Lab turns 45, we’re
Now Playing

Release Rundown: What to Watch in October, From “The Alabama Solution” to “Kiss of the Spider Woman”
Tonatiuh and Diego Luna star in Bill Condon’s musical feature “Kiss of the Spider Woman,” which premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. By Lucy

Get to Know This Fall’s Filmmakers Through These 27 Sundance Institute–Supported Titles
Steve Zahn, Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke, and Janeane Garofalo star in Ben Stiller’s “Reality Bites,” which premiered at the 1994 Sundance Film Festival. By Lucy

Release Rundown: What to Watch in September, From “Twinless” to “Eleanor the Great”
June Squibb stars in Scarlett Johansson’s “Eleanor the Great,” which was supported by Sundance Institute’s Feature Film Program. By Lucy Spicer Fall is just around
Collab

How the Sound of Celine Song’s “Materialists” Elevates Every Beat
By Jessica Herndon Sound and music aren’t embellishments in film — they’re storytelling tools that can shape emotional beats and signature settings. Think of the

Take 5: Sundance Collab Instructor K.D. Roeder Daza on the Benefit of Being “Humble, Not Hidden”
By Jessica Herndon Welcome to the second edition of Take 5, where we invite you to get familiar with the talented instructors behind our Sundance

“Social Studies” Director Lauren Greenfield on the Art of Documenting America’s Most Connected Generation
By Jessica Herndon Lauren Greenfield has always had an eye for America’s obsessions. For over two decades, the Emmy Award–winning filmmaker has focused her lens
Creative Distribution

From the Archives: The 3 Things It Takes to Be an Independent Producer
As the spiritual closing of Sundance Institute’s Creative Producing Summit, Sundance Film Festival director John Cooper wrapped up the weekend with the “One Word Challenge.”Cooper’s challenge to his three keynote guests was simple: “It is 2011, and the most important thing a producer needs to survive is …” Panelists were given this one-word task by email before arriving in Utah and told to bring their best thinking to the audience of creative fellows and advisors. The experiment is both simple and profound, and audience members were invited to play along with cards of their own.

‘I Knew People Wanted to See It’: The ‘In Reality’ Team on Why and How They Self-Distributed
In part one of this interview, In Reality writer/director/star Ann Lupo and producer Holly Meehl shared how they got their anti-romantic comedy feature off the ground. In this second and final part, we explore how they navigated self-distribution.
Were you building an audience along the way? How did you keep people engaged?
AL: During post-production I took on a side project editing a short for Casey Neistat called “Filmmaking is a Sport,” and it completely changed my perspective on YouTube.

From Short Film to Unexpected Feature: How ‘In Reality’ Came to Life
Liz Manashil is a filmmaker and former manager of Sundance Institute’s Creative Distribution Initiative.
A few months ago, before I had a baby, I encountered the anti-romantic comedy feature film In Reality, which I immediately fell for. As I told the filmmakers later, it was the movie I needed when I was in my early 20s.
From the Archives

“Fairyland” Delves Deeply Into the Tragedy of the AIDS Crisis
From left, Scoot McNairy, Andrew Durham, Nessa Dougherty, and Emilia Jones attend the premiere of “Fairyland” at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival. Photo by Jemal

Nonfiction Films Ensure That We Are Seen and Our Stories Told
By Kristin Feeley (In my sleep I dreamed this poem)Someone I loved once gave mea box full of darkness.It took me years to understandthat this,

“If I Had Legs I’d Kick You” Immerses You in the High Stakes of Emotional Burnout
Conan O’Brien and Rose Byrne (photo by Andrew H. Walker / Shutterstock for Sundance FIlm Festival) By Bailey Pennick “This is the first time that

Sundance Institute and Islamic Scholarship Fund Select Filmmakers for Third Building Bridges Fellowship Cohort Amplifying U.S. Muslim Stories
Funded by the Doris Duke Foundation, Fellows will receive financial, creative, and career support, including participation in the Building Bridges Artist Retreat at the Doris