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2024 Sundance Film Festival Summary

Sundance, Slamdance, what-a-chance to see a lot of movies and have a lot of fun!

I now have an idea of the evolution of the film festival in Park City, Utah. After attending both Sundance and Slamdance for the first time, I have come away with a new appreciation for the effort and challenges faced in making a film. I also have a better understanding of Michael Z. Newman’s claim in his book, Indie: An American Film Culture, stating that indie films cannot simply be defined in economic, stylistic, or thematic terms but rather, needs to be understood culturally. In his book Newman identifies three strategies to use when viewing films: characters as emblems, form is a game, and when in doubt, read as anti-Hollywood. Throughout my time watching here at the festival, I tried to engage with these films using these strategies.

Talking to people who have lived in Park City their entire lives, I have come to realize that the Sundance Film Festival has changed significantly over the years into what it is today. First off, the film festival scene has not fully recovered from the effects of COVID. Secondly, the 2023 writers’ and actors’ strike also had an impact on the filmmakers, some of which were not able to meet the Sundance deadline. In the years prior to COVID it was difficult to walk down the street due to the crowds. This year the crowds were definitely larger but did not get back to pre-COVID levels.

Sundance has grown over its forty-year history. It is still bringing indie filmmakers together, but often in a larger way in multiple areas. Whether it be star power, budgets, scope of the film, or trying to get studio or distribution support, it is definitely larger than it was. Additionally, there are now major companies sponsoring Sundance, setting up large tents, buildings, and erecting facades on the storefronts in the Main Street area during the festival. These included Adobe, Acura, Audible, Canon, Chase Sapphire, DoorDash, Dropbox, Shutterstock, United Airlines, and United Talent Agency (UTA) as well as media publications such as IndieWire, Variety, and Vulture.

Contrast this to Slamdance, which is held in three theaters right next to each other inside the same hotel. Having them close together along with lounges above provided convenient access for the production staff and created an atmosphere that makes it easier to speak and connect with the filmmakers. They were very willing to talk about the films, how they got there, lessons learned, and even to provide their contact information. Slamdance appears to be more like what Sundance started out as.

I also have a better understanding of some of the challenges that go into the business of independent filmmaking. The first is obtaining funding. Sources for funding include personal funding (like George Lucas who mortgaged his house to make Star Wars), state grants, crowdfunding, and major studio backing. The other challenges come from all directions. Planned and unplanned. Planned like trying to get the actors that you want to work with you such as the interviewees in The Greatest Night in Pop which was the “We Are the World” production. Unplanned challenges which can come from out of nowhere and are sometimes technical. For example, imagine losing part of the audio and having to later fill in the missing audio during editing and not having the actors available since they had already left. This happened to the filmmakers of Thirsty Girl.

Every film, regardless of size, will have its own goals. Some want to increase their funding to produce a larger project. Others want to make a political statement. Still, there are documentaries that may want to show the effort it takes to accomplish something like The Greatest Night in Pop or the film, Union.

When it comes to making indie films, Newman states, “It [independent cinema] is most centrally a cluster of interpretive strategies and expectations that are shared among filmmakers; their support personnel, including distributors and publicists; the staffers of independent cinema institutions such as film festivals; critics and other writers; and audiences. All of these different people are audiences who employ these [three viewing] strategies, and it is only because filmmakers are also film spectators that they are able to craft their works to elicit particular responses from the audience. Indie constitutes a film culture: it includes texts, institutions, and audiences. Indie audiences share viewing strategies for thinking about and engaging with the texts—they have in common knowledge and competence—which are products of indie community networks” (Newman 11).

While watching the films during the Sundance Film Festival I tried to analyze the films using Newman’s three strategies. For example, characters as emblems are used in Winner as the main character is symbolic of anyone that stands up for what they believe to be right but is in conflict with the law or society. Form is a game is another strategy of Newman’s that I saw used in the short film, Pasture Prime. This film transitions from a stalker to horror film with a twist at the very end as the snake slithers away. The third viewing strategy, when in doubt, read as anti-Hollywood, is identified as movies that do not have a happy or conclusive ending. Examples of this include Winner, where the hero goes to jail as well as the short film, The Lost Season, where people are indifferent to climate change. Anti-Hollywood movies also include films that leave you asking questions at the end. For example, in the instance of Winner, I am left wondering why there is such a difference in her punishment for crimes compared to others that were more serious. Also, in The Lost Season, I wonder if the next generations would care if they never got to experience winter. For short films, like Pasture Prime and The Lost Season, you have to wonder why they hit home for the director and how long they had this burning desire to make them. Newman’s three strategies are not mutually exclusive and often overlap as in Winner with the use of characters as emblems and when in doubt, read as anti-Hollywood.

As you can see, independent film is much more than inexperienced people with little money and unknown actors and directors producing a film. It encompasses films that are trying to send a message, provoke thought, think outside the box, or just be different.

Here is a list of the films I saw broken out between Sundance and Slamdance. My favorite film is Rob Peace, and my least favorite is I Saw The TV Glow.

Including both Sundance and Slamdance, I watched a total of 24 films (this is counting each short program as just one film).

Sundance:

Feature Films

A Different Man – Very well done. Psychologically the character in this film is crazed by the fact that he changed his appearance, but it did not make him who he wanted to be. This is because people preferred someone else that looked like he used to, begging the question, is personality or looks more important.

A Real Pain - Two cousins tour a concentration camp. They then have to rethink what they consider pain and suffering after seeing what the Holocaust victims experienced.

As We Speak - We have freedom of speech, however, the way our words are interpreted can be based on our skin color. This is a major problem when our words are used against us in court.

Freaky Tales - Based vaguely on real events, this movie intertwines the lives of four distinct groups in a very interesting and fun way. It reminds me of a live action anime, and I found myself engulfed in each story. The culmination was perfect.

How To Have Sex - An interesting take on consent and dealing with assault and the emotions that come along with it. Great cinematography and music selection. The director stated it was loosely based on personal experience.

Ibelin – A sad but heartwarming film about a boy who was born with muscular dystrophy and even though bound to a wheelchair he could still have friends online. It demonstrates that online communities should not be stigmatized and that you can find love, friendship, and be able to make a difference in others’ lives from across the globe.

I Saw The TV Glow – A strange film about a warped reality, where the TV show is the actual reality and not knowing you are trapped. It was very strange and confused me.

Krazy House – Krazy is a perfect title for this film, with it being a completely normal sitcom and then as the director says, “everything gets f****d up.” This film foreshadowed later events in the film very well. It is the only film I have ever heard people laugh when a dog dies. It is just so entertaining, and you are left thinking after the film is over, “what did I just watch?” It is so hard to explain this film, but I highly recommend seeing it.

Little Death – This film asks questions about wholeness and drug addiction. It manages to tell the stories of two different characters over the course of one film while only following each story for half the film, which I found really cool, interesting, and very much enjoyed.

Presence – A creepy horror film about just that: a presence in someone’s home. It ends up saving someone’s life, but at what cost? I found this film intriguing as the camera is handheld the entire time from, I assume, the presences’ point of view. I really enjoyed this film, and it gave me chills.

Rob Peace – This was my favorite film. The acting was amazing. The storytelling was great. It was able to keep the audience engaged and take artistic liberties without losing the true story of the film.

Suncoast – This is about a girl, Doris, taking care of her brother who is dying of cancer while at the same trying to navigate the teenage years.

The Greatest Night In Pop - This film did a great job in capturing the stress that went into the making of the song, as well as how much was unknown going into that night. It showed the seriousness of the process, and the comedy that lightened the mood, which had the whole crowd laughing throughout the film. It was a heartwarming film that brought laughter and joy to the entire crowd.

Thelma – A heartwarming and humorous film based on Thelma, the grandmother of the director, Josh Margolin, who was scammed out of ten thousand dollars and her journey to get the money back while also asking questions about when to ask for help and is being on your own always best?

Union – A documentary about organizing the Amazon Labor Union in New York. You may have to offer new incentives to get people to listen to your pitch. Would you like pizza or weed?

War Game -A documentary about a simulation held to help prep the government if something like January 6th were to happen again. I got the opportunity to talk to the producer of the simulation after and it was very interesting.

Winner - I gave it five stars. I thought it was thought provoking on the difference between what is right and wrong in that situation. It must have been difficult having that inner conflict about what is morally right but illegal in the eyes of the law and trying to make the decision of what to do.

Shorts Films

Midnight Short Film Program (3 of 6 shorts watched)

Bold Eagle – This was about a man named Bold who is struggling during the pandemic. He talks to his cat and engages in online sex. I did not enjoy this film. The Looming – This was a very interesting horror film about the elderly and their struggles with mental disorders and dementia.

Dream Creep – This was about a monster living in his partner’s ear, and while trying to help her, he accidentally sets the monster free and traps his partner.

Short Film Program 2 (3 of 7 shorts watched)

The Lost Season – This is a narrated view of an entire season, winter, disappearing due to climate change and no one really seems to care after it is gone. Thirsty Girl – This was about one person’s battle with sex addiction while also trying to help her sister who is battling drug addiction. Pasture Prime – This is about one person’s obsession with another and ends with an interesting twist.

New Frontier

Being (the Digital Griot) – This film uses artificial intelligence, dance, and poetry to speak about race and slavery.

Eno – A film based on the life of musician Brian Eno. It is unique because you can watch it repeatedly and have a different experience every time.

Slamdance:

Feature Films

Citizen Weiner - This feature is about the true story of someone running for City Council in New York and the trials and tribulations that come with running a campaign. They filmed the entire process to encourage other young people to get involved in politics and I think they did a great job. This movie had the whole audience laughing from start to finish, sometimes unable to believe that this really happened.

Shorts Films

Dumpster Archeology Short - This was about a man who dumpster dives for things for his house as well as mementos. He feels as though every item tells a story and he enjoys uncovering those stories after he finds the objects.

Slamdance Short Narrative 2 (3 of 6 shorts watched)

Hunter - This short was about role reversal if animals were to hunt humans and humans be the food. I thought it was very clever and the director also made it as a music video which I thought was very interesting.

Fettyland – This was filmed in Sarasota, Florida, not far from Eckerd College. It is based on the drug crisis in the Tampa area and in the USA in general. There are no “actors” so to speak in this film; everyone in it is basically doing things they would do in daily life as they are all in this drug life and live it every day.

Dissolution – This is a film about going through a divorce after so many years of marriage. I thought it was such a great description of what that is like. The filmmaker’s parents actually went through this, and he used them as the actors.

I can’t believe my time at the Sundance Film Festival is over. I really had a great time! I saw a lot of wonderful movies and throughout, I tried to implement what I had learned in class prior to heading out to Park City. I really hope to continue this journey in film and add to what I have learned so far.

I really hope to make it back to another Sundance Film Festival!!

Referenced Text link:

Newman, Michael Z. Indie: An American Film Culture. Columbia University Press, 2011.

Ryan McCormick

#sundance #sundance2024 #filmfestival #independent #filmreview

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