Category: News

Last night we wrapped up NEXT FEST with a one-of-a-kind dance party at the Theatre at Ace Hotel, as Neon Indian and Toro y Moi jointly sent LA film fans off into the sunset. The part-film, part-music, part-special guest medley was hosted at a veritable movie palace (a beautifully restored 1920s United Artists) and offered a perfect backdrop for everything from an oddball documentary about a missing mummified leg (Finders Keepers) to sweet serenades from Sharon Van Etten. Take a look at some of our highlights from a great weekend of film and music at NEXT FEST.

Hong Kong – 11 August, 2015) With last year’s success of the Sundance Film Festival – Hong Kong Selects, which brought a series of curated American independent films to the city for the first time, Sundance Institute and The Metroplex will once again present the 2015 Sundance Film Festival: Hong Kong from September 17 to 27, screening 11 films featured in the Festival at Park City, Utah, U.S.A.

Los Angeles, CA — A tidal wave of new ideas washes ashore for Sundance NEXT FEST at The Theatre at Ace Hotel Downtown Los Angeles this weekend, including newly added special guests, three world premiere music videos and a full-body, mind-blowing virtual reality flight simulator, Birdly. Sundance NEXT FEST, August 7-9, is a weekend celebration of the renegade spirit of independent artists, featuring what’s new and next in film and music. Tickets ($15-25) are on sale now at sundance.

New York, NY — Six theatre directors will participate in the third Sundance Institute | LUMA Foundation Theatre Directors Retreat in Arles, France, July 31 through August 12. The Retreat is part of the Institute’s year-round work with the theatre community and is one of 24 residency Labs the Institute hosts each year for independent artists in theatre, film, new media and episodic content.
Under the supervision of Theatre Program Artistic Director Philip Himberg, Producing Director Christopher Hibma and Program Associate Anne Kauffman, the Retreat is the only theatre director-centered residency of its kind.

There is a millennial-borne obsession with “being real” that deserves to be checked, and Cronies is the perfect film to do the checking. Michael J. Larnell’s stark ode to St.

Los Angeles, CA — Sundance Institute today announced the participants for its weeklong Creative Film Producing Initiative at the Sundance Resort in Utah, July 27 – August 3, including nine feature film and documentary projects for the Creative Producing Labs and more than 50 industry leaders for the Creative Producing Summit. The Institute’s Creative Producing Initiative encompasses a year-round series of Labs, Fellowships, granting and events focusing on nurturing the next generation of independent producers and renewing the community of veteran producers who sustain the vibrancy and vitality of independent film.
The Feature Film Creative Producing Lab (July 27 – July 31) identifies emerging producers and, under the guidance of Creative Advisors, allows them to develop their creative instincts and evolve their communicating and problem-solving skills at all stages of their feature film project.

Park City, UT — Razelle Benally (Navajo/Oglala Lakota) and Randi LeClair (Pawnee) have been selected for the Sundance Institute Native Filmmakers Lab, where the two writers will receive grants for production and targeted support during a residential Lab  to prepare for production of their short films. The Lab takes place in Santa Fe, New Mexico July 10-14. The Lab is a highlight of the Institute’s year-round work with Native American and Indigenous filmmakers and is one of the 24 residential labs the Institute hosts each year to discover and foster the talent of emerging independent artists in film, theatre, new media and episodic content.

New York, NY — Sundance Institute today announced the acting company and creative advisors that are participating in its 2015 Theatre Lab, which kicked off yesterday and runs through July 26 at the Sundance Mountain Resort in Utah. Under the supervision of Artistic Director Philip Himberg and Producing Director Christopher Hibma, the Lab is the centerpiece of the Institute’s year-round work with the theatre community and is one of 24 residency Labs the Institute hosts each year for independent artists in theatre, film, new media and episodic content.
The Theatre Lab supports both emerging and established theatre-makers developing new work for the stage, with a focus on assuring that the playwright’s deepest impulses and visions can be realized.

New York, NY — Sundance Institute in collaboration with Kaufman Music Center will present An Anniversary Concert Reading of Hollywood Arms at Merkin Concert Hall September 21. Carol Burnett and Philip Himberg, Artistic Director of the Sundance Institute Theatre Program, will introduce the special concert reading of the Broadway production of Burnett’s autobiographical play, Hollywood Arms, written with her daughter Carrie Hamilton. The reading is directed by Sundance alum, Mark Brokaw, the recipient of Drama Desk, Obie and Lucille Lortel Awards, and stars Michele Pawk (Hairspray, Cabaret, Mamma Mia!) in her Tony-winning role as well as Tyne Daly, Emily Skeggs, Sydney Lucas and others to be announced.

Los Angeles, CA — Sundance Institute and Skywalker Sound today announced the independent narrative and documentary directors and composers selected for the Sundance Institute Music and Sound Design Labs at Skywalker Sound. This will be the third year the Music and Sound Design Labs take place at the Skywalker Ranch in northern California. The Labs are part of 24 residential labs the Institute hosts annually to discover and foster the talent of emerging independent artists in film, theatre, new media and episodic content.

You’ve likely heard—or yourself employed—the phrase “language of cinema.” It’s a nod to the power of story to foster understanding, to provoke change, or to simply assuage our pains and our sorrows. Last week, in yet another stark reminder that our headway toward “understanding” and “change” in the United States has been significant but not universal, we endured the racially motivated murder of nine Black Americans at a Charleston, South Carolina, church.

LOS ANGELES, CA — Sundance NEXT FEST, a new breed of cultural adventure, returns to The Theatre at Ace Hotel Downtown Los Angeles August 7-9 for a weekend celebration of the renegade spirit of independent artists. The film and music program, announced today, features some of the most talented filmmakers and music acts on the verge of breaking out. Tickets ($15-25) go on sale to Sundance Institute members today and all others tomorrow at sundance.