Category: News

Park City, Utah — The nonprofit Sundance Institute today announced that its 2017 Sundance Film Festival, which took place in Park City, Salt Lake City and Sundance, Utah in January, generated a total economic impact of $151.5 million. These numbers come from an independent economic and demographic study conducted by Y² Analytics,which used updated methodology and technology to give a more complete picture of the Festival’s impact on the state of Utah’s economy.

Los Angeles, CA — Sundance Institute today announced the eight projects selected for its annual Documentary Edit and Story Labs, taking place in two sessions at the Sundance Resort in Utah from June 23-July 1 and July 7-15. An anchor point of the nonprofit Institute’s year-round work with filmmakers, the Documentary Edit and Story Lab creates an incubation space for nonfiction storytellers to creatively interrogate their projects during the later stages of post-production. Among the breathtaking scenery of the Sundance Mountain Resort, filmmakers take advantage of the Lab’s creative environment to intensively explore story, dramatic structure and character development, centering their work around their own original motivation and intention.

Photographer Credit: Jonathan Hickerson
Park City, UT — It’s a Utah summer tradition 20 years in the making: Sundance Institute will celebrate summer with free outdoor screenings of Sundance Film Festival favorites in Salt Lake City, Park City, Ogden and Kamas. These screenings will also feature food, special guests, fun activities and a few 20th anniversary surprises.
Betsy Wallace, CFO and Managing Director of Sundance Institute, said, “Enjoying these great films with friends, neighbors and colleagues, surrounded by Utah’s natural beauty, is a highlight of our year-round programming — and, now that we’re in our 20th year, it’s safe to say it’s a local tradition as well.

DinaCredit: Courtesy of Sundance Institute

Quentin Tarantino and Steve Buscemi at 1991 Directors LabCredit: Sandria Miller

Sleigh BellsCredit: Courtesy of Sundance Institute

Los Angeles, CA — Sundance NEXT FEST takes it to the NEXT level with the announcement of seven films direct from the 2017 Sundance Film Festival, paired with three energizing musical performances. The fest lights up Los Angeles August 10-13 at The Theatre at Ace Hotel Downtown Los Angeles, and this year will include presentation of the Institute’s Vanguard Awards to Quentin Tarantino and Dee Rees. This marks the fifth annual Sundance NEXT FEST and fourth consecutive year that The Theatre at Ace Hotel has hosted the festival.

Shamir, Credit: Frazer Harrison/WireImage

The Theatre at Ace Hotel Downtown Los Angeles Marquee, Credit: Ryan Kobane

Elizabeth Wood, Credit: Ryan Kobane

Los Angeles, CA — The Sundance Film Festival travels from the snow-capped peaks of Park City, Utah to the summer sun of Los Angeles for the fifth Sundance NEXT FEST, August 10-13. The movie and music festival celebrates the renegade spirit of independent artists in one of the most remarkable and historic gems in the city — The Theatre at Ace Hotel Downtown Los Angeles, a bold and loving reanimation of a 1920s movie palace. Each movie will be paired with exclusive, dynamic live elements, including musical performances and provocative conversations with filmmakers and cinema-world favorites.

Radha Blank

Aleem Khan

Francisca Alegria

Reinaldo Marcus Green

Tayarisha Poe

Brett Weiner

Emma Fletcher

Hannah Pearl Utt

Jen Tullock

Grainger David

Cory Miller

Colman Domingo

Amirah Tajdin

Clea DuVall

Marcos Díaz Sosa

Lyle Mitchell Corbine, Jr.

Los Angeles, CA — Thirteen new independent feature projects from Cuba, Chile, Kenya, the UK and the U.S.

Rosie Haber

Silas Howard

Charlotte Stoudt

Laura Wexler

Heather Dewey-Hagborg

Toshiaki Ozawa

Griffin Frazen

Sutu

Charles Henden

Callum Cooper

Amelia Winger-Bearskin

Los Angeles, CA — Sundance Institute announced today the six projects selected for the annual New Frontier Story Lab, which supports independent artists working at the cutting-edge convergence of film, art, media, live performance and technology.
The New Frontier Story Lab is a week-long intensive that empowers creatives with individualized story sessions, conversations about key artistic, design and technology issues and case study presentations from experts in diverse related disciplines. Past participants include Roger Ross Williams, Yung Jake, Chris Milk, Hasan Minhaj, Tommy Pallotta, Navid and Vassiliki Khonsari, Karim Ben Khelifa, Tracy Fullerton and Yasmin Elayat.

Los Angeles, CA — Two emerging Native storytellers, Erin Lau (Native Hawaiian) and Shaandiin Tome (Diné) will participate in the 2017 Sundance Institute Native Filmmakers Lab, continuing the Institute’s year-round work in the discovery and development of artists from diverse backgrounds.

The Lab takes place May 14-19 in Santa Fe, NM. During the Lab, Fellows work with a cast, crew, and supervising producer to shoot workshop versions of scenes from their short films under the expert creative mentorship of Program alumni and other established industry professionals and Program staff.

2013 Theatre LabCredit: Jonathan Hickerson

2015 Theatre LabCredit: Fred Hayes

2015 Theatre LabCredit: Jonathan Hickerson

Los Angeles, CA — Sundance Institute today announced a characteristically diverse and eclectic slate of projects that will be developed at their Theatre Lab, July 14-30 at Sundance Resort in Utah. The Lab is the centerpiece of the Institute’s year-round work with the theatre community, and for nearly four decades has creatively supported projects including Indecent, Appropriate, Fun Home and A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder.
Under the supervision of Artistic Director Philip Himberg and Producing Director Christopher Hibma, Fellows at the Lab enjoy a continuum of support from the theatre community, with dedicated time, space and resources for creative development, rehearsals and constructive guidance and feedback.

Columbus
Photographer Credit: Elisha Christian

Unrest
Photographer Credit: Jason Rothenberg

Los Angeles, CA — Sundance Institute announced today the films selected for its Creative Distribution Fellowship, a new initiative to support filmmaking teams seeking a more entrepreneurial approach to the release of their work. Chosen to receive support from the Fellowship are two acclaimed works from the 2017 Sundance Film Festival: Columbus, from director and screenwriter Kogonada, and Unrest, a documentary directed by Jennifer Brea.

Keri Putnam, Executive Director of Sundance Institute, said, “Columbus and Unrest are perfect examples of the creative spirit of independent filmmaking, and this new Fellowship will provide them with resources, mentorship and tactical support to pioneer independent pathways to audiences.

With Sundance Institute’s generous invitation, I had the privilege of attending the 2017 Skoll World Forum on social entrepreneurship as a Stories of Change Fellow.Our task was to meet with Skoll Foundation awardees to excavate stories and search for points of connection and to see what possibilities existed between our work as storytellers and the stories embedded in their work. Many of the awarded organizations are sitting on an ocean of stories, a dream for any filmmaker.

(Hong Kong – April 26, 2017) The Metroplex and Sundance Institute will host the 4th edition of the Sundance Film Festival: Hong Kong September 21 to October 1, celebrating Hong Kong audiences’ passion for independent films. In addition, on Friday nights starting May 26, a selection of films showcased in the Midnight section of the Sundance Film Festival in Utah, U.S.