The Sundance Festival in Park City, Utah is a must-see for film-industry professionals, a film-buff's dream, and the ultimate opportunity for new filmmakers to have their shot at the big-time.
Reflecting the trends of the film festival scene as a whole in recent years, Sundance Film Festival has become so huge that it has spawned a whole sub-genre of alternatives (notably the Slamdance event in Park City and the Moondance women-in-film weekend). Admirable as those events may be, though, nothing can really compete with the excitement and film-business clout of Sundance itself. Come January, most of Hollywood heads for Utah to look for the next big thing.
The Sundance Institute was founded by Robert Redford in 1981 to support independent filmmakers, playwrights and composers. It's a non-profit organisation, running artists' communities and other programmes as well as the annual festival itself. The Sundance Film Festival is now attended by over 20,000 people every year, with more than 400 filmmakers benefiting from the Institute's other programmes.
The American Independent Dramatic and Documentary Competition, where great indie hopes can sometimes seem dime-a-dozen, attracts the near-hysterical attentions of buzz-junkies. There's usually more wheat than chaff, though, and any chance to get to the screenings should be seized with both hands and defended to the death.
The Sundance Institute was founded by Robert Redford in 1981 to support independent filmmakers, playwrights and composers. It's a non-profit organisation, running artists' communities and other programmes as well as the annual festival itself. The Sundance Film Festival is now attended by over 20,000 people every year, with more than 400 filmmakers benefiting from the Institute's other programmes.
The American Independent Dramatic and Documentary Competition, where great indie hopes can sometimes seem dime-a-dozen, attracts the near-hysterical attentions of buzz-junkies. There's usually more wheat than chaff, though, and any chance to get to the screenings should be seized with both hands and defended to the death.