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Sundance Film Festival: Press Releases, November 29, 2007 Brooks Addicott and Emily Brunt Park City, UT—Sundance Institute announced today the lineup of films screening at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival in the out-of-competition sections of Premieres, Spectrum, New Frontier, and Park City at Midnight. The 2008 Sundance Film Festival runs January 17-27, 2008 in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden, and Sundance, Utah. A complete list of the films is available at Sundance Institute's website at www.sundance.org/festival. As previously announced, the Festival opens on January 17 in Park City with the world premiere of IN BRUGES, written and directed by first-time feature filmmaker and award-winning playwright, Martin McDonagh. With an international cast starring Ralph Fiennes, Colin Farrell, and Brendan Gleeson, IN BRUGES tells the suspenseful, twisted tale of two London hit men ordered to take a forced vacation in Bruges, Belgium, and how their subsequent time in exile goes awry. On Friday, January 26, the Closing Film screening in Park City signals the Festival's final weekend. This year's Closing Film is the world premiere of Neil Young's CSNY DÉJÀ VU which examines Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's connection to its audience in both political and musical terms, and the relationship between Vietnam-era sentiment and today's political environment. The Salt Lake City Gala on Friday, January 18 will feature the world premiere of THE GREAT BUCK HOWARD, directed by Sean McGinly and starring Colin Hanks, John Malkovich and Emily Blunt about a law school dropout who answers an advertisement to be a celebrity's personal assistant. "It is impossible to describe in one word the full tapestry of films presented in this year's Festival, particularly in the out-of-competition categories," said Geoffrey Gilmore, Director, Sundance Film Festival." In an enormously eclectic way these films reflect the role cinema can play as an international language transcending borders of class, race, culture, and religion." "This is going to be a festival rich in talent," said John Cooper, Director of Programming, Sundance Film Festival. "Independent film has reached a new plateau, from the filmmakers who tell stories that are fresh and unique, to a lineup of the best actors working today. Sundance audiences are going to see a range of work: both from those pushing the envelope of established careers and those soon to be discovered this January." # # #
SPECTRUM The films screening in Spectrum: Documentary Spotlight are: ANVIL! THE TRUE STORY OF ANVIL/ U.S.A. (Director: Sacha Gervasi)—At 14, best friends Robb Reiner and Lips made a pact to rock together forever. Their band, Anvil, hailed as the "demi-gods of Canadian metal," influenced a musical generation that includes Metallica, Slayer, and Anthrax, despite never hitting the big time. Following a calamitous European tour, Lips and Robb, now in their fifties, set off to record their 13th album in one last attempt to fulfill their boyhood dreams. World Premiere THE BLACK LIST/ U.S.A. (Director: Timothy Greenfield-Sanders; Screenwriter: Elvis Mitchell)— Journalist Elvis Mitchell interviews twenty African American leaders, ranging from athletes and academics to politicians, social activists, and artists, providing a series of living portraits—a unique glimpse into the zeitgeist of black America—and redefining traditional notions of a "blacklist." World Premiere KICKING IT/ U.S.A. (Director and Screenwriter: Susan Koch)—The lives of homeless people are changed forever through an international soccer competition. This film follows six players as they set off for Cape Town, South Africa to play in the Homeless World Cup. World Premiere THE LINGUISTS/ U.S.A. (Directors: Seth Kramer, Daniel A. Miller, Jeremy Newberger; Screenwriter: Daniel A. Miller)—David and Greg are "The Linguists," who document languages on the verge of extinction. In the rugged landscapes of Siberia, India, and Bolivia, their resolve is tested by institutionalized racism and violent economic unrest. World Premiere MADE IN AMERICA/ U.S.A. (Director: Stacy Peralta; Screenwriters: Stacy Peralta, Sam George)—With a first-person look at the notorious Crips and Bloods, this film examines the conditions that have led to decades of devastating gang violence among young African Americans growing up in South Los Angeles. World Premiere WHERE IN THE WORLD IS OSAMA BIN LADEN?/ France (Director: Morgan Spurlock; Screenwriters: Jeremy Chilnick and Morgan Spurlock)—Filmmaker Morgan Spurlock explores every nook and cranny of the Middle East on a quest to find the world's most wanted man. World Premiere YOUNG@HEART/ United Kingdom (Director: Stephen Walker)—A choir of Massachusetts senior citizens delights audiences worldwide with their covers of songs by everyone from The Clash and Coldplay to Jimi Hendrix and Sonic Youth. # # # For the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, 121 feature-length films were selected including 87 world premieres, 14 North American premieres and 12 U.S. premieres representing 25 countries with 55 first-time filmmakers, including 23 in the non-competition categories. These films were selected from 3,624 feature film submissions composed of 2,021 U.S. and 1,603 international feature-length films. These numbers represent an increase from last year when 1,852 U.S. and 1,435 international feature-length films were considered. What's New for the 2008 Sundance Film Festival: Spectrum: Documentary Spotlight This year a sidebar within the Spectrum category presents seven documentary films as a way of continuing the Festival's long-standing commitment to nonfiction storytelling. New Awards for World Cinema Competition In an effort to draw attention to international screenwriters, cinematographers, and editors, this year, the Festival expands the number of awards given to films screening in the World Cinema Competitions. In addition to the World Cinema Jury Prize: Documentary and World Cinema Jury Prize: Dramatic, the international films in competition are now eligible for awards in directing, editing, screenwriting, and cinematography. 2008 Sundance Film Festival Sponsors The 2008 Sundance Film Festival sponsors help sustain Sundance Institute's year-round programs to support independent artists, inspire risk-taking, and encourage diversity in the arts. This year's Festival Sponsors include: Presenting Sponsors - Entertainment Weekly, Volkswagen of America, Inc., HP, and Adobe Systems Incorporated; Leadership Sponsors - American Express, Delta Air Lines, DIRECTV, and Microsoft Corporation; Sustaining Sponsors - 360 Vodka, Blockbuster Inc., L’Oréal Paris, The New York Times, Ray-Ban, Sony Electronics, Inc., Stella Artois®, Turning Leaf Vineyards, Utah Film Commission, and ZonePerfect® Nutrition Bars. Sundance Channel is the Official Television Network of the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is the premier showcase for U.S. and international independent film. Held each January in Park City, Salt Lake City, Ogden, and Sundance, Utah, the Festival is a core program of Sundance Institute, a nonprofit cultural organization founded by Robert Redford in 1981. Presenting dramatic and documentary feature-length films in nine distinct categories and approximately 80 short films each year, the Sundance Film Festival has introduced American audiences to some of the most innovative films of the past two decades. Since 1985, the Festival program has evolved to include music, art, and dialogue. Beyond the streets of Park City, the official website of the Sundance Film Festival, http://www.sundance.org/festival shares the Festival experience with a global audience with short films, filmmaker interviews, video episodes, podcasts, photos, news stories, and more. Sundance Institute: Dedicated year-round to the development of artists of independent vision and to the exhibition of their new work, Sundance Institute celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2006. Founded by Robert Redford in 1981, the Institute has grown into an internationally recognized resource for thousands of independent artists through its Film Festival and artistic development programs for filmmakers, screenwriters, composers, playwrights, and theatre artists. The original values of independence, creative risk-taking, and discovery continue to define and guide the work of Sundance Institute, both with U.S. artists and, increasingly, with artists from other regions of the world.
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