Category: Program Spotlight

A few months ago, I was standing in the middle of the New Frontier exhibition at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival with people swirling around me, clamoring to get into the virtual worlds our storytellers had created inside the various headsets offered in the space. The artists and technologists curated by Shari Frilot (co-director and curator, New Frontier) for this exhibition are some of the most exciting innovators of our time with intimate knowledge of the software and hardware that will shape our lives in ways we can hardly imagine today.
I was giving tours of the space from the moment the doors opened, until the moment they shut to artists, curators and producers; technology, gaming, and film executives; venture capitalists, major foundation and non-profits heads; even Ferguson activists…repeating my self-authored talking points over and over again.

There is a well-known refrain imparting that it takes some “breaking down” to build something (or someone) up—figuratively speaking, of course. At the Sundance Screenwriters Lab, that notion is nothing short of creed. It’s become a not-so-veiled secret of the lab that, contrary to its name, writing is strongly discouraged, if not altogether forbidden.

Earlier this week, editor Joe Bini presented a Keynote highlighting the role of an editor in the filmmaking process at Sundance Institute’s first-ever Art of Editing Brunch, where we announced a new partnership between the Documentary Film Program partnership and the Karen Schmeer Film Editing Fellowship, highlighted this year’s Sally Menke Editing Fellow and celebrated the achievements of all editors premiering work at Sundance. Below is Bini’s speech, followed by a cautionary fable titled “The Serf.”We are privileged to honor these two legendary editors, Karen and Sally, who left such an incredible legacy of great films and approaches to films.

In 2014 Sundance Institute celebrated the 20th Anniversary of the formal existence of its Native American and Indigenous Program though the commitment has been consistent since the Institute’s founding. Through sustained and continuous support of filmmakers with grants, Labs, mentorships and the platform of the Sundance Film Festival, great strides have been made in nurturing an Indigenous-created body of cinema which did not exist before the Institute’s involvement.
Twenty years later, we continue to support Native American and Indigenous filmmakers through grants, labs, fellowships and the platform of the Sundance Film Festival.

Twenty three independent documentary films have been selected for Sundance Institute support in Fall 2014. Filmmakers were chosen from 881 applications received worldwide from filmmakers working in 111 unique countries of origin. Selected grantees include original voices from in-country artists from People’s Republic of China, Romania, Syria, Russia, Kenya, Sierra Leone, Czech Republic, Pakistan, Israel, the U.

Over the past 40 years, the gaming industry has evolved to become one of the largest storytelling mediums in terms of revenue and consumption. Not only has the technology emerged to a point where users can literally embody the characters in the story worlds, but the integrity of the discipline as an artistic medium is undeniable. Games have done more work to pioneer best practices in interactive and participatory storytelling than any medium since the ancient theater traditions.

The film business is preoccupied with lists. What other industry spends half of the year doling out awards and rankings? There are the public lists: the top ten’s, the best of’s, the critics’ picks, the shortlists for awards, the awards themselves. The industry lists: X’s to watch, Y’s of the year.

After a week of inspiring statements regarding the importance of cinematic artistry in documentary by, among others, our fearless leader Tabitha Jackson and The Act of Killing director Joshua Oppenheimer, it’s evident that the conversation around the art of non-fiction storytelling is getting louder. That conversation was in full flow in Denmark recently as the DFP attended CPH:DOX to cheer on 11 DFP-supported films in the program, connect with filmmakers outside the orbit of our support, and find exciting new projects and artists at the CPH:FORUM. Joshua Oppenheimer accepts the DOX:AWARD.

Over the last six days the New Frontier Story Lab at the Sundance Resort has facilitated new conversations between an inspiring group of creative professionals about how to innovate the art and form of story.One of the biggest takeaways was the value of spending deep reflective time on story with artists coming from incredibly diverse disciplines. Many of the conversations focused on ways to evoke empathy in these new forms, how to give the audience presence or a feeling of being embodied, and how to co-create experiences within a community.

In October 2013, Joshua Frankel (Director) and Judd Greenstein (Composer)participated in the New Frontier Story Lab with the project  Untitled Opera about Robert Moses and Jane Jacobs.  This innovative opera explores the epic battles between Jane Jacobs and Robert Moses over the future of New York City. From Jacobs’ victory in stopping Moses’ destruction of Washington Square Park, to Moses’ efforts to build the Lower Manhattan Expressway across SoHo, this work catalyzes an important conversation about what principles and values our generation will use in building, managing and sustaining urban spaces in the 21st Century.

Since the early days of Sundance Institute, and true to the vision of Robert Redford, supporting Native Film has been an integral part of the work we do. The Native American and Indigenous Program at Sundance Institute boasts over 20 years of celebrating community and the exchange of ideas among Native American and Indigenous filmmakers and the global film community. To commemorate this milestone, Sundance Institute has partnered with multiple institutions which have a commitment to film and Native and Indigenous cinema.

Over eight years, New Frontier has cultivated a community of inventive minds, creative technologists, and talented storytellers from a variety of backgrounds. Just like the innovators at the dawn of the film age, New Frontier artists are creating language, forms, and methodologies that will become the standard for the future storyteller. To deepen this process, Sundance Institute recently launched the New Frontier Artist Residency program, designed to place New Frontier storytellers in resource rich environments to innovate the art and form of story.