PARK CITY, UT, June 13, 2024 — The nonprofit Sundance Institute announced today program details for the 2024 Sundance Film Festival: Local Lens, a free summer screening series designed specially for the local community of Utah, our longtime host state. Taking place July 17–21 at venues across Park City and Salt Lake County, the program will provide Utahns with free indoor and outdoor screenings of some of the 2024 Sundance Film Festival’s most acclaimed films, the majority of them not yet released. Park City locations include The Ray Theatre and City Park, and Salt Lake County locations include Red Butte Garden Amphitheatre, Broadway Centre Cinemas, and Gallivan Center in Salt Lake City, as well as Megaplex Theatres at Valley Fair Mall in West Valley City. Local Lens is part of Sundance Institute’s rich history in Utah supporting engaging new stories and groundbreaking independent artists by bringing audiences together.

See the full program lineup below with free tickets available to reserve now for screenings at www.sundance.org/local-lens. Be sure to check out titles featuring Aubrey Plaza, musician Brian Eno, Joan Chen, Maddie Ziegler, Meghann Fahy, Melissa Barrera, and more, in addition to breakout directing and performances from films that were discovered and premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival, which celebrated the 40th edition held in Utah. 

Earlier this summer, Utah film fans were part of the Local Lens programming process. The 2024 Sundance Film Festival marked a milestone 40th edition, and in honor of that audiences had the opportunity to select a movie from contenders representing four different decades of the Festival. The Audience Choice Screening winner is 20 Feet from Stardom, directed by Morgan Neville, which premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival and later won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. It will be shown outdoors at the Gallivan Center on the final day of Local Lens.

In addition to the screenings, local Utah filmmakers have the opportunity to participate in a “Filmmaking Deep Dive” event led by programmers from the Sundance Film Festival. Building on the success of our pitch event last summer, we are delighted to offer filmmakers seeking project feedback an opportunity to connect with fellow creatives, gain invaluable insights, and for a selection to pitch their projects to a panel of experts. Please find all details below.

“Each year, Local Lens connects our Utah community with Sundance films and filmmakers. We’re thrilled to be back presenting free summer screenings featuring a curated selection of extraordinary films from our 2024 Sundance Film Festival,” said Eugene Hernandez, Director, Sundance Film Festival and Public Programming. “The long relationship between Utah and Sundance Institute has built and nurtured a home base for our Festival and we look forward to welcoming returning and new audiences to experience this summer’s programming, as well as continuing that journey of discovery together at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival in January. This year’s Local Lens selection features true discoveries in every sense and will be presented as part of our indoor and outdoor screening series before they are released in theaters or on streaming. We can’t wait to see you there!”

Please see below for more information and the schedule of upcoming free events:

2024 Sundance Film Festival: Local Lens Screenings & Special Artist Event Schedule

Skywalkers: A Love Story

Wednesday, July 17, 2024, at 9 p.m. 

Red Butte Garden Amphitheatre – Outdoor Screening

2188 Red Butte Canyon Rd., Salt Lake City, UT 84108

Skywalkers: A Love Story / U.S.A. (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Jeff Zimbalist, Co-Director and Producer: Maria Bukhonina, Producers: Tamir Ardon, Chris Smith) — To save their career and relationship, a daredevil couple journeys across the globe to climb the world’s second-highest skyscraper and perform a bold acrobatic stunt on the spire. Distributed by Netflix. Documentary.

Daughters

Thursday, July 18, 2024, at 7 p.m.

The Ray Theatre

1768 Park Ave., Park City, UT 84060

Daughters / U.S.A. (Directors: Angela Patton, Natalie Rae, Producers: Lisa Mazzotta, Justin Benoliel, Mindy Goldberg, Sam Bisbee, Kathryn Everett, Laura Choi Raycroft, James Cunningham) — Four young girls prepare for a special Daddy Daughter Dance with their incarcerated fathers, as part of a unique fatherhood program in a Washington, D.C., jail. Distributed by Netflix. Documentary.

My Old Ass

Thursday, July 18, 2024, at 9 p.m.

Red Butte Garden Amphitheatre – Outdoor Screening

2188 Red Butte Canyon Rd., Salt Lake City, UT 84108

My Old Ass / U.S.A. (Director and Screenwriter: Megan Park, Producers: Tom Ackerley, Margot Robbie, Josey McNamara, Steven Rales) — The summer before college, bright-yet-irreverent Elliott comes face-to-face with her older self during a mushroom trip. The encounter spurs a funny and heartfelt journey of self-discovery and first love as Elliott prepares to leave her childhood home. Cast: Maisy Stella, Percy Hynes White, Maddie Ziegler, Kerrice Brooks, Aubrey Plaza. Distributed by Amazon MGM. Fiction.

Your Monster 

Friday, July 19, 2024, at 7 p.m.

The Ray Theatre

1768 Park Ave., Park City, UT 84060

Your Monster / U.S.A. (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Caroline Lindy, Producers: Kayla Foster, Shannon Reilly, Melanie Donkers, Kira Carstensen) — After her life falls apart, soft-spoken actress Laura Franco finds her voice again when she meets a terrifying, yet weirdly charming, monster living in her closet. Cast: Melissa Barrera, Tommy Dewey, Meghann Fahy, Edmund Donovan, Kayla Foster. Distributed by Vertical. Fiction. 

Sugarcane

Saturday, July 20, 2024, at 5:30 p.m.

Megaplex Theatres at Valley Fair Mall – Indoor Screening

3620 S. 2400 W., West Valley City, UT 84119

Sugarcane / U.S.A., Canada (Director: Julian Brave NoiseCat, Director and Producer: Emily Kassie, Producer: Kellen Quinn) — An investigation into abuse and missing children at an Indian residential school ignites a reckoning on the nearby Sugarcane Reserve. Distributed by National Geographic. Documentary.

Dìdi (弟弟)

Saturday, July 20, 2024, at 8:30 p.m.

Megaplex Theatres at Valley Fair Mall – Indoor Screening

3620 S. 2400 W., West Valley City, UT 84119

Dìdi (弟弟) / U.S.A. (Director, Screenwriter, and Producer: Sean Wang, Producers: Carlos López Estrada, Josh Peters, Valerie Bush) — In 2008, during the last month of summer before high school begins, an impressionable 13-year-old Taiwanese American boy learns what his family can’t teach him: how to skate, how to flirt, and how to love your mom. Cast: Izaac Wang, Joan Chen, Shirley Chen, Chang Li Hua. Distributed by Focus Features. Fiction.

Eno

Saturday, July 20, 2024, at 9 p.m.

City Park – Outdoor Screening

1400 Sullivan Rd., Park City, UT 84060

Eno / U.S.A., U.K. (Director and Producer: Gary Hustwit, Producer: Jessica Edwards) — Visionary musician and artist Brian Eno — known for producing David Bowie, U2, Talking Heads, among many others; pioneering the genre of ambient music; and releasing over 40 solo and collaboration albums — reveals his creative processes in this groundbreaking generative documentary: a film that’s different every time it’s shown. Documentary.

Layla

Saturday, July 20, 2024, at 11 p.m.

Broadway Centre Cinemas – Indoor Screening

111 E. Broadway 300 S., Salt Lake City, UT 84111

*Writer-director Amrou Al-Kadhi to introduce the film and participate in a Q&A following the screening.

Layla / U.K. (Director and Screenwriter: Amrou Al-Kadhi, Producer: Savannah James-Bayly) — When Layla, a struggling Arab drag queen, falls in love for the first time, they lose and find themself in a transformative relationship that tests who they really are. Cast: Bilal Hasna, Louis Greatorex, Safiyya Ingar, Darkwah, Terique Jarrett, Sarah Agha. Fiction.

Artist Event – Filmmaking Deep Dive: Honing Your Pitch With Industry Insights

Saturday, July 20, 2024, at 10 a.m.

Megaplex Theatres at Valley Fair Mall

3620 S. 2400 W., West Valley City, UT 84119

This event is geared to fiction or nonfiction directors, producers, editors, and other artists, but is also open to the general public upon RSVP.

The Filmmaking Deep Dive event offers an opportunity for filmmakers of all levels to learn about the pitching process, connect with fellow creatives, obtain invaluable insights, and for a select number to have the chance to pitch their projects to a panel of experts. The panel will include Layla writer-director Amrou Al-Kadhi, producer Mali Elfman, and producer Donna Gruneich. In addition to the pitching session, there will be a discussion offering best practices for a creative pitch led by Basil Tsiokos (Senior Programmer, Sundance Film Festival) and a Q&A with Eugene Hernandez (Director, Sundance Film Festival and Public Programming) and Basil Tsiokos, followed by casual networking with attendees. If interested in being considered for the pitching session, please provide information about your project when registering for the event.

20 Feet from Stardom (Audience Choice Screening)

Sunday, July 21, 2024, at 9:15 p.m.

Gallivan Center – Outdoor Screening

239 S. Main St. Salt Lake City, UT 84111

20 Feet from Stardom / U.S.A. (Director: Morgan Neville, Producers: Gil Friesen, Caitrin Rogers) — The untold true story of the backup singers behind some of the greatest musical legends of the 21st century. Documentary.

Sundance Institute’s Utah Community Program is supported by Host State State of Utah; Community Supporters Salt Lake County; Salt Lake County Zoo, Arts & Parks (ZAP); Peggy Bergmann; Summit County Restaurant Tax; Summit County Recreation, Arts, and Parks (RAP) Tax; George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation; The Kahlert Foundation; Paul T. Walton Jr. Charitable Foundation; and Salt Lake City Arts Council; Principal Sponsor Zions Bank; and Major Sponsors Acura; Adobe; and University of Utah Health.

Sundance Institute

As a champion and curator of independent stories, the nonprofit Sundance Institute provides and preserves the space for artists across storytelling media to create and thrive. Founded in 1981 by Robert Redford, the Institute’s signature labs, granting, and mentorship programs, dedicated to developing new work, take place throughout the year in the U.S. and internationally. Sundance Collab, a digital community platform, brings a global cohort of working artists together to learn from Sundance advisors and connect with each other in a creative space, developing and sharing works in progress. The Sundance Film Festival and other public programs connect audiences and artists to ignite new ideas, discover original voices, and build a community dedicated to independent storytelling. Through the Sundance Institute artist programs, we have supported such projects as Beasts of the Southern Wild, The Big Sick, Bottle Rocket, Boys Don’t Cry, Boys State, Call Me by Your Name, Clemency, CODA, Drunktown’s Finest, The Farewell, Fire of Love, Flee, The Forty-Year-Old Version, Fruitvale Station, Get Out, Half Nelson, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Hereditary, Honeyland, The Infiltrators, The Last Black Man in San Francisco, Little Woods, Love & Basketball, Me and You and Everyone We Know, Mudbound, Nanny, Navalny, O.J.: Made in America, One Child Nation, Pariah, Raising Victor Vargas, Requiem for a Dream, Reservoir Dogs, RBG, Sin Nombre, Sorry to Bother You, The Souvenir, Strong Island, Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), Swiss Army Man, Sydney, A Thousand and One, Top of the Lake, Walking and Talking, Won’t You Be My Neighbor?, and Zola. Through year-round artist programs, the Institute also nurtured the early careers of such artists as Paul Thomas Anderson, Wes Anderson, Gregg Araki, Darren Aronofsky, Lisa Cholodenko, Ryan Coogler, Nia DaCosta, The Daniels, David Gordon Green, Miranda July, James Mangold, John Cameron Mitchell, Kimberly Peirce, Boots Riley, Ira Sachs, Quentin Tarantino, Taika Waititi, Lulu Wang, and Chloé Zhao. Support Sundance Institute in our commitment to uplifting bold artists and powerful storytelling globally by making a donation at sundance.org/donate. Join Sundance Institute on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), and YouTube.

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MEDIA CONTACTS: 

Tammie Rosen, tammie_rosen@sundance.org; Tiffany Duersch, tiffany_duersch@sundance.org; Alex Courides, alex_courides@sundance.org; Sylvy Fernàndez, sylvy_fernandez@sundance.org