Explore

News & Stories

Search

Retracing Ryan Coogler’s Sundance Institute Journey

Feature Film Program Founding Director Michelle Satter recalls Sundance Institute’s journey with and support of Ryan Coogler and his feature directorial debut Fruitvale Station.I met Ryan Coogler in the fall of 2011 when he came in to have a conversation about his script, Fruitvale Station. As I listened to Ryan speak about why he needed to tell this story, his deep, personal commitment to the project became evident.

The Latest

Retracing Ryan Coogler’s Sundance Institute Journey

Feature Film Program Founding Director Michelle Satter recalls Sundance Institute’s journey with and support of Ryan Coogler and his feature directorial debut Fruitvale Station.I met Ryan Coogler in the fall of 2011 when he came in to have a conversation about his script, Fruitvale Station. As I listened to Ryan speak about why he needed to tell this story, his deep, personal commitment to the project became evident.

Festival

Festival Highlights

News

Retracing Ryan Coogler’s Sundance Institute Journey

Feature Film Program Founding Director Michelle Satter recalls Sundance Institute’s journey with and support of Ryan Coogler and his feature directorial debut Fruitvale Station.I met Ryan Coogler in the fall of 2011 when he came in to have a conversation about his script, Fruitvale Station. As I listened to Ryan speak about why he needed to tell this story, his deep, personal commitment to the project became evident.

Artist Spotlight

From the Labs

Retracing Ryan Coogler’s Sundance Institute Journey

Feature Film Program Founding Director Michelle Satter recalls Sundance Institute’s journey with and support of Ryan Coogler and his feature directorial debut Fruitvale Station.I met Ryan Coogler in the fall of 2011 when he came in to have a conversation about his script, Fruitvale Station. As I listened to Ryan speak about why he needed to tell this story, his deep, personal commitment to the project became evident.

Now Playing

Alexis Chikaeze as Kai in 'Miss Juneteenth,' coming to digital platforms June 19

Channing Godfrey Peoples on a Bittersweet ‘Miss Juneteenth’ Release and the Urgency of Portraying Black Humanity on Screen

After premiering at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, Channing Godfrey Peoples’s debut feature is hitting digital platforms this Juneteenth—the day for which the film is named and which is very close to the director’s heart. “I feel like I’ve been living Miss Juneteenth my whole life,” she says.
The June 19 holiday—which commemorates the day slavery was finally abolished in Texas (more than two years after the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation was issued)—is celebrated in her hometown of Fort Worth with a deep sense of reverence and community, with barbecues, a parade, and a scholarship pageant for young Black women.

Collab

Creative Distribution

Default missing

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

Retracing Ryan Coogler’s Sundance Institute Journey

Feature Film Program Founding Director Michelle Satter recalls Sundance Institute’s journey with and support of Ryan Coogler and his feature directorial debut Fruitvale Station.I met Ryan Coogler in the fall of 2011 when he came in to have a conversation about his script, Fruitvale Station. As I listened to Ryan speak about why he needed to tell this story, his deep, personal commitment to the project became evident.