Category: News

It is one thing to be a transmedia or interactive storyteller when you literally grew up on the Internet and are indigenous to creative coding, network logic and social media.  But, it takes a different level of courage to use these new forms when you have a vetted filmmaking career that started well before Google, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Smart Phones, Kickstarter, or even email and the World Wide Web.
“The big gap in the field is helping traditional storytellers gain access to technology and raising their comfort level with it.

Stacy Peralta, the director of Bones Brigade: An Autobiography, shares about his experience with FILM FORWARD in Bosnia and Herzegovina where he screened his film and engaged in dialogue with local audiences.
When I was 17 years old skating pools and being chased out of backyards and down alleyways by cops, I never imagined 40 years later I’d be welcomed to Bosnia and Herzegovina by the US Government’s American Embassy.  It just didn’t seem likely or in anyway possible that the US Government would ever host me for anything other than for the apparent trouble my friends and I were causing angry homeowners and general civilians during the skateboard revolution of the 70s and 80s.

Los Angeles, CA — Sundance Institute today announced four new members of the Institute’s Board of Trustees: Nadine Schiff, Ava DuVernay, Rob Epstein and Liesl Tommy.
Under the guidance of President & Founder Robert Redford and in close collaboration with Executive Director Keri Putnam, the 22-person Board is responsible for the governance of Sundance Institute. Wally Weisman continues as Chairman of the Board.

Musa Syeed, the director of Valley of Saints, documents his experience with FILM FORWARD in Bosnia and Herzegovina where he screened his film and engaged in dialogue with local audiences.
Some of my earliest memories as a kid are of going to political rallies with my family. Living in Washington, D.

www.sundance.org/theatreapp
New York, NY — The Sundance Institute Theatre Program is accepting submissions through November 15 for its 2014 Theatre Lab, July 7-27 at the Sundance Resort in Sundance, Utah.

Hispanic Heritage Month officially kicked off September 15, marking the anniversary of independence for five Latin American countries—Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. To boot, Mexico declared its independence on September 16 and Chile on September 18, making the month the de facto host for celebration among Hispanic cultures.
Independent film, for all its diversity of voices, still has the capacity to grow leaps and bounds in the context of Hispanic filmmakers.

2014 Marks the Festival’s 30th Anniversary
Park City, UT — Sundance Institute will once again offer exclusive events and priority pass and ticket availability for the approximately 15,000 Utahns who attend the Sundance Film Festival® each year. The Sundance Film Festival will be January 16 through 26, 2014.
Locals-only Festival pass and ticket package registration begins today (September 17) and will end October 9.

It’s been nearly a full week since leaving Los Angeles on my second trip as a field producer with #FILMFORWARD. Still, in some ways, it seems I’ve not yet left the classroom at Roosevelt High School in Seattle where the post-screening conversation led to a surprisingly well-informed discussion around the current situation in Syria. With an endless stream of tweets, breaking news headlines and even a Presidential address, suddenly it’s near impossible to ignore a place I’ve never been, thought much about, or connected with.

An hour before our screening in Tacoma’s Grand Cinema, runners have already begun to gather.  Screening Town Of Runners around the world, I’ve come to appreciate the strength and depth of the global running community. In almost any town, people organize themselves around their passion for running, forming groups that cut across boundaries of race, class, culture and wealth, which become a powerful force for connecting people in their community.

Los Angeles, CA — Sundance Institute and the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities announced today that FILM FORWARD: Advancing Cultural Dialogue will host free screenings of eight films with moderated discussions, panels and artist roundtables in Bosnia and Herzegovina. FILM FORWARD will collaborate with the U.S.

The Town Of Runners gives a unique insight into the ambitions of young Ethiopians living between tradition and the modern world, as they try to run their way to a different life. 
Here the film’s director, Jerry Rothwell, talks connecting with FILM FORWARD audiences and participating in dialogues around dreams—and how the support, or lack of, from a community can effect a person’s ability to achieve them.
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September 5, 2013The morning of September 5th is grey and rainy in the Pacific Northwest. I scroll through my twitter feed first thing, taking in the update on the Syria crisis. The photo that seems to be spreading all around the social media networks this morning is of a line of Syrian rebel fighters standing above a crouching row of Syrian soldiers who are shirtless and have guns pointed at their heads.