There’s an old myth that Sundance skeptics like to repeat, “They only show films that already have distribution!” Out of 114 films playing at Sundance, remarkably only 13 come into the festival with distribution already in place. Some of the other statistics about Sundance 2K1 may also surprise you. Here’s a quick look at the Sundance Film Festival 2001 line-up that may offer a few surprises.
SUBMISSION DATA ^ TOTAL FEATURE SUBMISSIONS = 1,760 ^ TOTAL SHORTS SUBMISSIONS = 2,500 ^ Dramatic Features = 860 (849 last year) ^ Documentary Features = 390 (347 last year) ^ Foreign Features = 510 (420 last year)
NUMBER OF FEATURE FILMS IN FILM FESTIVAL PROGRAM = 114 ^ Dramatic Competition = 16 ^ Documentary Competition = 16 ^ American Spectrum = 16 ^ Premieres = 17 ^ World Cinema = 27 ^ Frontier = 4 ^ Midnight = 6 ^ Native Program = 5 ^ Special Screenings = 4 ^ Added Special Screenings = 2
DIVERSITY ISSUES ^ LATINO FILMMAKERS = 4 ^ Rosemary Rodriguez (ACTS OF WORSHIP); Michæl Cuesta (L.I.E.); Jose Mojica Marins (AT MIDNIGHT I’LL TAKE YOUR SOUL); Henry Barrial (SOME BODY)
LATINO INTEREST = 2 ^ CHAIN CAMERA; SCRATCH
AFRICAN-AMERICAN FILMMAKERS = 8 ^ Lee Davis (3 AM); Kasi Lemmons (CAVEMAN’S VALENTINE); Vanessa Middleton (30 YEARS TO LIFE); DeMane Davis and Khari Streeter (LIFT); Stanley Nelson (MARCUS GARVEY: LOOK FOR ME IN THE WHIRLWIND); William Greaves (RALPH BUNCHE: AN AMERICAN ODYSSEY); Reggie Rock Bythewood (DANCING IN SEPTEMBER)
AFRICAN AMERICAN INTEREST = 12 ^ CAVEMAN’S VALENTINE; 30 YEARS TO LIFE; LIFT; MACARTHUR PARK; RALPH BUNCHE: AN AMERICAN ODYSSEY; LALEE’S KIN: THE LEGACY OF COTTON; SCRATCH; DANCING IN SEPTEMBER; BROTHER; JUMP TOMORROW; CHAIN CAMERA; MARCUS GARVEY
ASIAN-AMERICAN FILMMAKERS = 2 ^ Meng Ong (MISS WONTON); Timothy Linh Bui (GREEN DRAGON)
ASIAN-AMERICAN INTEREST = 3 ^ MISS WONTON; GREEN DRAGON; CHAIN CAMERA
JEWISH CONTENT = 2 ^ THE BELIEVER; TREMBLING BEFORE G-D
LESBIAN/GAY/TRANSGENDER CONTENT = 17 ^ JULIE JOHNSON; LOST AND DELIRIOUS; HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH; THE SLEEPY TIME GAL; SCOUT’S HONOR; SOUTHERN COMFORT; TREMBLING BEFORE G-D; HISTORY LESSONS; HEY, HAPPY!; 101 REYKJAVIK; THE CONFUSION OF GENDERS; NATIONAL 7; POSSIBLE LOVES; PRINCESA; THE TIMES OF HARVEY MILK; TOGETHER; L.I.E.
NATIVE-AMERICAN FEATURE FILMMAKERS = 5 ^ Kate Montgomery (CHRISTMAS IN THE CLOUDS); Alanis Obomsawim (ROCKS AT WHISKEY TRENCH); James M. Fortier (ALCATRAZ IS NOT AN ISLAND); Billy Worth (MACARTHUR PARK); Randy Redroad (DOE BOY)
+ NATIVE INTEREST = 3 ^ THE FLIP SIDE (Pacific Islander); VOICES OF THE SIERRA TARAHUMARA; THE WALK
WOMEN DIRECTORS ^ Premieres = 5 ^ Dramatic Competition = 1 ^ Documentary Competition = 5 ^ American Spectrum= 3 ^ World/Native/Frontier/Midnight= 6 ^ FESTIVAL TOTAL = 20
FEATURE FILMMAKERS RETURNING TO SUNDANCE = 26 ^ 1 Spectrum, Richard Linklater (TAPE) ^ 5 Dramatic Competition, Scott McGehee & David Siegel (DEEP END); DeMane Davis and Khari Streeter (LIFT); Christopher Munch (THE SLEEPY TIME GAL) ^ 2 Documentary Competition, Kirby Dick (CHAIN CAMERA); Chris Smith (HOME MOVIE) ^ 4 Premieres, Allison Anders (THINGS BEHIND THE SUN); Bob Gosse (JULIE JOHNSON); Daniel Minahan (SERIES 7: THE CONTENDERS); Richard Linklater (WAKING LIFE) ^ 1 Archival/Special Screenings, Rob Epstein (THE TIMES OF HARVEY MILK) ^ 5 World Cinema/Frontier/Midnight, Bill Plympton (MUTANT ALIENS); Penelope Spheeris (WE SOLD OUR SOULS FOR ROCK ‘N ROLL); Tom DiCillo (DOUBLE WHAMMY); Rob Sitch (THE DISH); Jay Chandrasekhar (SUPER TROOPERS) ^ 1 Native, ShirleY Cheechoo (TRACKS IN THE SNOW)
FIRST-TIME FEATURE FILMMAKERS = 46 ^ Premieres = 2 ^ Jonathan Glazer (SEXY BEAST); Christine Lahti (MY FIRST MISTER) ^ Dramatic Competition = 11 ^ Vanessa Middleton (30 Years to Life); Cory McAbee (THE AMERICAN ASTRONAUT); Henry Bean* (THE BELIEVER); Patrick Stettner (THE BUSINESS OF STRANGERS); Richard Kelly (DONNIE DARKO); Timothy Linh Bui* (GREEN DRAGON); John Cameron Mitchell (HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH); Michæl Cuesta (L.I.E.); Billy Wirth (MACARTHUR PARK); Billy Morrisette (SCOTLAND, PA); Henry Barrial (SOME BODY) ^ Documentary Competition = 6 ^ Edet Belzberg* (CHILDREN UNDERGROUND); Stacy Peralta (DOGTOWN AND Z BOYS); Tom Shepard (SCOUT’S HONOR); Kate Davis (SOUTHERN COMFORT); Bestor Cram and Mike Majoros (AN UNFINISHED SYMPHONY) ^ Spectrum = 10 ^ Rosemary Rodriguez (ACTS OF WORSHIO); Robert Manganelli (AFTER IMAGE); Randy Redroad (DOE BOY); Reggie Rock Bythewood (DANCING IN SEPTEMBER); Jacob Kornbluth & Josh Kornbluth (HAIKU TUNNEL); Beverly Peterson (INVISIBLE REVOLUTION); Jordan Melamed (MANIC); Ilya Chaiken (MARGARITA HAPPY HOUR); Ara Corbet (ROOF TO ROOF); ^ World Cinema = 12 ^ Baltasar Kormakur (101 REYKJAVIK); Nebil Ayouch (ALI ZAOUA); Javier Corcuera (THE BACK OF THE WORLD); Bill Eagles (BEAUTIFUL CREATURES); Yoshiyasu Fujita (THE BLEEP BROTHERS); Andrew Dominik (CHOPPER); Laura Maña (COMPASSIONATE SEX); José Luis Marqués (FUCKLAND); Kim Kiduk (THE ISLE); Jamie Thraves (THE LOW DOWN); Jean-Pierre Sinapi (NATIONAL 7); Henrique Goldman (PRINCESA) ^ Frontier/Midnight = 5 ^ Philip Gröning (L’AMOUR, L’ARGENT, L’AMOUR); Guy Des Lauriers (THE MIDDLE PASSAGE); Kon Pet Moon (TWO UNKNOWN PHOTOGRAPHERS); André Barcinski and Ivan Finotti (COFFIN JOE -THE STRANGE WORLD OF JOSé MOJICA MARINS)
SUNDANCE LAB/NHK PROJECTS = 10 ^ Premieres: SERIES 7: THE CONTENDERS (Dan Minahan, 1996); 3 AM (Lee Davis, 1995) ^ Competition: THE AMERICAN ASTRONNAUT (Cory McAbee, 1998); THE BUSINESS OF STRANGERS (Patrick Stettner, 1999); HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH (John Cameron Mitchell, 1999); LIFT (DeMane Davis & Khari Streeter, 1997); Spectrum: DOE BOY (Randy Redroad, 1994); HAIKU TUNNEL (Josh Kornbluth, 1994); AFTER IMAGE (Bob Manganelli, 1992) ^ World: BLEEP BROTHERS (Yoshiyasu Fujita, 1998)
INTERNATIONAL FILMS AT SUNDANCE ^ Premieres = 3; World Cinema = 27; Midnight = 3; Frontier = 2 ^ Total number of Countries Represented = 20 ^ Total number of International Features = 35
PREMIERES ^ World Premieres = 65 ^ North American Premieres = 8 ^ US Premieres = 22
FILMS WITH DISTRIBUTION (13 total) ^ American Spectrum = 0 ^ Dramatic Competition = 2 ^ (HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH/Newline Cinema; MEMENTO/IFC Releasing) ^ Premieres = 5 ^ (MY FIRST MISTER/Paramount Classics; CAVEMAN’S VALENTINE/Universal Focus; PERFUME/Lionsgate; SERIES 7: THE CONTENDERS/USA; SEXY BEAST/Fox Searchlight; ^ World Cinema = 7 ^ (THE ROAD HOME/Sony Pictures Classics; THE DISH/Warner Bros.; BEAUTIFUL CREATURES/Universal Focus; CHOPPER/First Look; BROTHER/Sony Classics; OUR LADY OF THE ASSASINS/Paramount Classics; TOGETHER/Strand Releasing) ^ Midnight/Frontier = 0
DIGITAL FEATURES ^ Projected Digitally = 18 ^ Shot Digitally = 23 ^ GO TIGERS; SERIES 7: THE CONTENDERS; TAPE; WOMEN IN FILM; WAKING LIFE; JACK THE DOG; PERFUME; THINGS BEHIND THE SUN; INVISIBLE MOVIE; HOME MOVIE; DOGTOWN AND Z-BOYS; SOME BODY; CHAIN CAMERAS; CHILDREN UNDERGROUND; BEAVER TRILOGY; RAW DEAL; MANIC; NATURAL HISTORY OF THE CHICKEN; SCOUT’S HONOR; SCRATCH; SOUTHERN COMFORT; STARTUP.COM; TREMBLING BEFORE GOD
Special thanks to Carla from Sundance for her help in providing this information.
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