Festivals & Events
Festivals & Events
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Eight Recommended Short Films at Sundance 2016
Features premiering at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival tend to receive the most media attention and press coverage, but there are a number of short works making their debut this week that deserve equal or greater consumer attention. Documentary filmmakers trying their hand at narrative work, established producers getting behind the lens for the first time: many of the shorts in this year’s Sundance lineup feature filmmakers stepping outside of their comfort zone to expand their careers and diversify their storytelling output. The short form is an ideal place to try new things, of course, and it’s encouraging to see filmmakers of […]
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“Don’t Eat the Clam Chowder on Main Street” and Nine Other Sundance Mistakes to Avoid
In 2015, there were about 2,300 dramatic features, 1,800 documentary features and around 8000 short films submitted for Sundance for a total of 184 slots (79 for features, 45 for docs, and 60 for shorts). Getting into Sundance is an achievement in itself, but then what? How do you ride that wave and make the most of the experience for your project and also for your career? We interviewed Sundance filmmakers and industry insiders and got their honest and unfiltered opinions about how to make the most of the film business’s most anticipated festival. Struggling to articulate what your film […]
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The Sundance Insider’s Guide to Park City Eating
During the Sundance Film Festival the Park City population goes up from 8,000 to 50,000, so how on earth does one navigate the food scene? “Open Table! Definitely make reservations in advance!” says an established film producer who chose to be anonymous. “The lines can get kinda nuts, so even go during the off hours, but remember that this isn’t like New York City where restaurants stay open late. Go early, it’s healthier for you anyway!” One thing to note is that meals are not inexpensive and even if you are sharing entrees in a group, you will often be […]
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The LGBT Sneak Peek at Sundance 2016
The annual Park City, Utah showcase of independent cinema — the Sundance Film Festival, kicks off this Thursday and runs through Sunday January 31st. As always, the festival includes a substantial number of LGBT interest films, many of which will be making their way to you over the course of 2016. Here’s our annual A-Z preview with descriptions courtesy of the Sundance Film Festival. Click through for more info on all the films on the Sundance website, including video interviews with many of the filmmakers. Stay tuned for future coverage about this year’s exciting slate. This year also marks the […]
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Sundance Announces New “Art of Nonfiction” Initiative Supporting Innovative Documentary Filmmaking
“There has been a very vibrant conversation over the last several years about content in documentary,” says Tabitha Jackson, Director of the Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program. “And when I came to Sundance two years ago, I said, ‘I want to help make a conversation about form and process as loud and vibrant as the one going on about content.’” Announced today by the Sundance Institute is the first step in that process, a new “Art of Nonfiction” initiative that, over the course of a year, supports a curated group of filmmakers exploring creative formal, story and craft possibilities in […]
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A Year in 13 Film Festivals
In 2015 I went to 13 film festivals, the year before it was 12, and what’s interesting is how different my experiences were in ’15 as compared to ’14 at the same festivals, even when those festivals were at the same venues. At a time when Star Wars seems like the only story in the mainstream cinema, it’s interesting to also note a similarly blinkered view on the festival circuit, where only Sundance, Berlin, Cannes, Venice and Toronto seem to matter. It’s a sign of limited freelance budgets and the desire by editors to only cover events certain to get […]
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Mike Nichols Documentary and Dazed and Confused Event Added to Sundance 2016 Lineup
With just a little more than a month to go until The Sundance Film Festival, the festival has announced additions to the lineup, including the premiere of Douglas McGrath’s documentary Becoming Mike Nichols and three “From the Collection” archival screenings. Becoming Mike Nichols is slated to air on HBO on Feb. 22. Also on the program is a new Special Event featuring Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused along with live commentary from the filmmaker and his pal Jason Reitman. The archival screenings include John Sayles’ City of Hope, Kelly Reichardt’s River of Grass and Nicole Holofcener’s Walking and Talking. The festival runs January 21-31, 2016. Below are the […]
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2016 Tribeca Film Festival Unveils New Storytellers Program
The Tribeca Film Festival (TFF) doesn’t take place until April 13-24, 2016, but the festival is already planning ahead. Today TFF announced that it will launch a new platform, Tribeca Talks: Storytellers, a series of in-depth conversations with leading creators, during next year’s festival. Tina Fey and Tom Hanks are the first two creators announced. The panel series will take place at the Tribeca Festival Hub, which will return to Spring Studios this year and will host a series of virtual reality and immersive storytelling experiences, panel discussions and musical experiences. On April 19, Imagination Day, powered by the Hatchery, will […]
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Kickstarter Announces Sundance-Bound Projects
The countdown to Sundance 2016 has begun with a slew of recent announcements of film selections for the festival, which runs from January 21-31. Earlier this week, the crowdfunding platform unveiled the list of Kickstarter-funded works which made the cut for this year’s festival, including new documentary features from Dawn Porter (Trapped), Penny Lane (NUTS!) and Chris Hegedus and D.A. Pennebaker (Unlocking the Cage). Read the full blog post here and check out highlights below: This year at Sundance, we’ll be crossing our fingers for a great roster of docs and dramatic features in competition for major awards: NUTS!, Spa Night, Trapped, and When Two Worlds […]
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Rooftop Filmmakers Fund Grant Winners for 2015 Announced
Rooftop Films, which is heading into its 20th season, has awarded 13 cash and service grants to alumni filmmakers. The GarboNYC Feature Film Grants were awarded to directors Kitty Green and Sebastian Silva. Green will receive a monetary grant of $15,000 to help finish her new film, Casting JonBenet, and Silva will receive a $10,000 grant to support his film, Demon Me. Casting JonBenet, a documentary about the infamous murder of child model JonBenet Ramsey, marks Green’s second feature after her 2013 documentary debut Ukraine Is Not a Brothel. Among the films Silva has directed are Crystal Fairy & the Magical Cactus and Nasty […]
