Category: News

“Through the act of watching a film about Cuba, in Chinese or in English, we are one audience. We are finding a space for one dialogue. I left China with a renewed belief in art as a way to find common ground for constructive discussion.

On the eve of the year’s most devious day, and in deference to the spirits, creatures, and other nocturnal dwellers of our world, we’ve nominated five Sundance-supported films for your Halloween viewing pleasure. And if that’s not enough, check out Gowatchit.com’s curated channel featuring the best films culled from the Sundance Film Festival’s Park City at Midnight category.

Below, filmmaker Razelle Benally—known for shorts like I Am Thy Weapon, Raven, and Te Kaitiaki—recounts her experiences at Sundance Institute’s NativeLab. Driving to the airport the morning before my departure, I stared aimlessly at passing cars, my thoughts focused on the forthcoming workshop intensive. It was no surprise how anxious and almost diffident I had become because of my selection into the NativeLab.

Anyone who starts their presentation, full-suited, gingham shirt, and purple-checkered tie, by renaming it Aesthetics #FTW, has my full attention. A game designer, teacher, artist, and second-time New Frontier Story Lab Advisor, Nick Fortugno’s pretty much a perfect human. With a passion for creating emotion through experiences, his work designing video games for interactivity is perfectly suited for a #transmedia Lab such as this one.

The post-Summer torpor at the box office is well underway, a seasonal trend that has hit studios and filmmakers with increased force in recent years. But our Sundance alumni remain undeterred in their efforts, continuing to invest their talents in several noteworthy projects for the upcoming year—some seemingly more prolific than others, but all warranting attention. Check out what director Spike Lee, actor David Oyelowo, and other alumni have planned for the next year in this edition of Sundance Alumni Updates.

The 2012 New Frontier Story Lab takes place at the Sundance Resort in Utah, where six creative teams and projects undergo an intensive residential retreat focused on creative support, which includes individualized story sessions, conversations about key artistic, design and technology issues, and case study presentations. Below is a recap of creative advisor Lance Weiler’s presentation of his latest work, “Wish For the Future.”“I like to disrupt.

New York, NY — Sundance Institute today announced that it has established a first-of-its-kind Tennessee Williams Award to honor emerging playwrights who have participated in its Theatre Program Labs. Permission was given by The University of the South, the beneficiary of the Williams’ estate.
The first Tennessee Williams Award will be presented at a benefit for the Institute’s Theatre Program, April 8, 2013 in New York.

The O2, London, 22 October 2012 — Robert Redford, Sundance Institute and AEG Europe announced today that following the success of the first-ever Sundance London film and music festival in April 2012, the event will return to the world famous London venue, The O2, for a further two years, in 2013 and 2014. Passes and ticket packages for the 2013 event will go on general sale on 9 November online.

A reflection on my experience with the film Grbavica during the Film Forward visit to Puerto Rico:Fortunately I was assigned to go see the screening of Grbavica by one of my professors. This movie was in a foreign language and a foreign country I am not familiar with. However I was able to empathize and understand all the universal aspects of the film.

Michael Cain is a documentary filmmaker and the director of the 2006 Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize Winner TV Junkie. Cain is seeking funding through Kickstarter to acquire music licensing for his new documentary, The Starck Project.“Scientists have proven music evokes memory.

Los Angeles, CA — Sundance Institute today announced the four documentary film projects and composers that have been paired together for the tenth Composers + Documentary Lab, October 26 through November 1 at Sundance Resort in Sundance, Utah. The Lab is a joint initiative of the Institute’s Documentary Film Program and Fund (DFP) and Film Music Program.
Built upon the Sundance Institute Lab model launched in 1981 by Robert Redford, Fellows participate in an unique residential retreat focused on the role of music and sound design in documentary film.

It may be a while before a clear victor emerges in the enduring battle between the advent of video-on-demand and the timeless tradition of moviegoing, but the former’s convenience is only becoming more difficult to trump. A pair of Sundance-supported films make their digital premieres today through the Sundance Institute Artist Services initiative, which provides Institute artists with exclusive opportunities for creative self-distribution, marketing, and financing solutions for their work. First up is Andrew Berends’ taut documentary Delta Boys, recipient of a 2008 Sundance Institute Documentary Film Grant.