Happy Fest, Doing the ‘Dance
Everyone was happy at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, this year. The sun shone brightly for the first eight days, while the moon in turn brightened each and every clear crisp star-filled night. Filmmakers, festivalgoers, volunteers, celebrities, and musicians were all smiling and convivial. Filmmakers were thrilled to have been accepted to the festival to promote their films; festivalgoers enjoyed the easy free bus system shuttling them around town to the high-caliber independent films; volunteers stationed at the bus stops and theaters were both helpful and enthusiastic; skiers and snowboarders hit the powdered slopes; partiers rocked ’round the clock; and A-list actors and musicians made the rounds on Main Street.
The Films
This year’s festival featured 119 films and rarely did I hear a negative review from anyone. People on the streets, in lines at the theaters, and on the buses were generally raving about the movies they had seen. It was a good year for the independent films, and many were bought for distribution early in the festival.
Some of the titles that will hopefully have theatrical release next year include: The Spectacular Now, Don Jon’s Addiction, The Rambler, Prince Avalanche, The Way, Way Back, jOBS, We Are What We Are, Mother of George, Kill Your Darlings, Lovelace, Austenland, Fruitvale, Concussion, Two Mothers, S-VHS, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints, Before Midnight, and Newlyweeds.
Yet obtaining a distribution deal alone doesn’t guarantee success. Of the 28 movies bought in 2012 at Sundance, only two of the non-documentary films–Beasts of the Southern Wild and The Sessions–have gained any popular traction. Both deservedly garnered multiple nominations for the 2013 Academy Awards, Beasts has been nominated for 4 Oscars including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress (the youngest ever) and The Sessions has been nominated for Best Actress for Helen Hunt.
Many fine documentaries from last year have garnered public attention (four of the five Best Documentary nominations for an Oscar screened at 2012 Sundance), and that should hold true again this year. The documentaries sold thus far from Sundance 2013 are: Cutie and the Box, Inequality for All, Twenty Feet From Stardom, Pussy Riot—A Punk Prayer, Blackfish, The Summit, Dirty Wars, and History of the Eagles.
Of the films I personally was able to watch amidst the multitude of activities at Sundance, my favorite was Escape from Tomorrow. Shot surreptitiously at Disney theme parks, the film tells the surreal escape into fantasy by a 40-something family man while with spending a day at Disney World with his wife and kids. The movie is creepily filmed in black and white with sexual and macabre fantasies woven into the story. Since the Disney Corporation has not yet reacted to the film, I (and the filmmakers) are curious to see what their response will be. Will a lawsuit prevent the sale and theatrical release of the film? I believe that Escape from Tomorrow is an instant cult classic, no matter what happens with Disney’s response.
2013 Award Winners
The 2013 Sundance Film Festival Awards were presented at the final night of the festival (January 26, 2013) Highlights are listed below.
Both the U.S. Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award for Documentary:
Blood Brother — Rocky went to India as a disillusioned tourist. When he met a group of children with HIV, he decided to stay. He never could have imagined the obstacles he would face, or the love he would find.
Both the U.S. Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award for Drama:
Fruitvale — The true story of Oscar, a 22-year-old Bay Area resident who crosses paths with friends, enemies, family and strangers on the last day of 2008.
World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Documentary:
A River Changes Course (Cambodia, USA) — Three young Cambodians struggle to overcome the crushing effects of deforestation, overfishing, and overwhelming debt in this devastatingly beautiful story of a country reeling from the tragedies of war and rushing to keep pace with a rapidly expanding world.
World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic:
Jiseul (South Korea) — In 1948, as the Korean government ordered the Communists’ eviction to Jeju Island, the military invaded a calm and peaceful village. Townsfolk took sanctuary in a cave and debated moving to a higher mountain.
My Mini Film Reviews
Pussy Riot, a Punk Prayer (documentary)
For a very recent documentary that flashes Tweets throughout and premiered with a live Skype video Q&A with one of the Russian stars, the subject matter covers an amazingly anachronistic contemporary witch hunt. Three young women were arrested last year for anti-church and anti-Putin punk performance in a state cathedral; and the movie follows their subsequent trial.
Blue Caprice (documentary)
Blue portrays the story behind the relationship of the two men who became the snipers who tortured the Washington DC area in 2007. It is a compelling and timely profile about the motivation behind disenfranchised mass shooters.
Anita (documentary)
This is a rambling film that covers the life story of the Anita Hill, the woman who famously testified against US Supreme Court justice nominee Clarence Thomas. Although the televised Congressional hearings were only in 1992, it is surprising to look back at how taboo it was to report sexual harassment merely 20 years ago.
Muscle Shoals (documentary) and Sound City (documentary)
Both of these films herald recording studios that, between them, produced some of the best albums in the history of rock and roll. Dave Grohl not only directed Sound City, but he purchased the infamous mixing board and has created a touring band of famous Sound City artists (Stevie Nicks, Trent Reznor, John Fogarty). The music of Muscle Shoals is memory lane of 60s and 70s hits, as the studio got its first success with Aretha Franklin sessions. Many of the backup musicians to the black artists that Muscle Shoals is known for were white local musicians who created the grooves, called the “Swampers.”
The Spectacular Now, a dramatic feature, was awarded Special Jury Award for Acting during Sundance for the young co-stars Miles Teller and Shailene Woodley (The Descendants). It’s a coming-of-age story about a directionless yet charming high school senior. This sweet tale should do well in the theaters later this year—look for it.
Wasjma (An Afghan Love Story) is an affecting story of a young educated Afghan girl who gets pregnant by a persistent boyfriend. Because of the culture she lives in, her fate is doomed. The film is moving and poignant.
Karen Henry is an Associate Editor at LA YOGA who volunteers in a variety of capacities for nonprofit organizations and artists around Los Angeles. She practices yoga as a counterbalance to her daily impact sports and is a mother of four grown children who also practice yoga . Now, she’s working on teaching yoga and joy of life to the grandkids!